7 days Uganda and Rwanda Primates, Cultural and Wildlife Safari
On this 7-day safari, you’ll visit Volcanoes National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, two of the best places in Uganda and Rwanda to witness these docile giants in their natural habitat. In Kibale Forest, you can also go on a hunt for chimpanzees and other primates. Furthermore, that is not the end of the remarkable experiences. Queen Elizabeth National Park is home to a wide variety of animals, so visitors may go on exciting game drives and boat tours. In Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, you can participate in a variety of cultural activities, such as hiking to the grave of Diane Fossey or visiting the iby’iwacu and Batwa communities.
Seeing a wild mountain gorilla in its own environment is an unforgettable and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Not only do both Rwanda and Uganda fit this description, but they are also among the top places in the world to go Gorilla trekking.
Safari overview of the 7 days Uganda and Rwanda Primates, Cultural and Wildlife Safari
Day 1: Arrival at Kigali International Airport and transfer to your Hotel
Day 2: Transfer to Kibale forest National Park and Bigodi Swamp Walk.
Day 3: Chimpanzee Tracking and Transfer to queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 4: Game drive in Ishasha Sector and Continue to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 5: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi and Batwa Community Experience
Day 6: Transfer to Volcanoes National Park and visit Iby’iwachu Community visit
Day 7: Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda and transfer to the Airport for departure
Arrival at Kigali International Airport and Transfer to the Lodge.
Step right up to the high country. Our courteous and experienced driver guide will be waiting for you when you land at Kigali International Airport. He will brief you and walk you through your itinerary before transferring you to a hotel in Kigali where you may unwind.
After a hearty breakfast, you’ll head to the Gisozi genocide memorial museum to gain a better understanding of the memorial’s history and its impact on the country. Along with learning about Rwandan culture, you will also visit a museum in Belgium.
Transfer to Kibale forest National Park in Uganda
You will be driven to Kibale Forest National Park after breakfast. The famous “mountains of the moon” will be vividly visible as you go to Fort Portal, providing you with a spectacular view. As you watch the locals tend to their crops, you’ll also pass through numerous charming little towns.
Fort Portal, located in the foothills of Mount Rwenzori and surrounded by verdant tea plantations, is another must-see. After you’ve had your fill of green tea at this verdant platform, head on over to Kibale Forest National Park, one of Africa’s major rain forests. Around thirteen primate species call this forest home, the most prominent of which are chimpanzees. In addition to birds, other primate species include black and white colobus monkeys, golden monkeys, and others. Bigodi wetland, a popular spot for primate and bird viewing, is owned and operated by locals and is next to the park.
Upon reaching the park, you will be escorted to the lodge for check-in before departing for the Bigodi Wetland excursion.
Chimp Trekking in Kibale Forest National park and Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
Get up and out of bed early in the morning so you may begin your chimpanzee trekking adventure in Kibale forest. Due to the high degree of genetic similarity between humans and chimpanzees (98 percent), the latter are thought regarded as our closest living relatives.
On your quest to find these adorable apes, you’ll come across a wide variety of animals and primates, such as the LHoests monkeys, black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, grey-cheeked mangabeys, bush babies, and a plethora of bird species, like the yellow-spotted nicator, among many more outdoors.
Listening for their own hooting noises, these primates quickly make their way to the source of the sound. While you’re there, you may see them play, feed, mingle, and even bounce about the trees.
Upon finishing the long hike, you will be transferred to Queen Elizabeth National Park for lunch and an evening game drive, you will return to the lodge for your overnight stay.
Game drive in the Ishasha Sector and transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
The Ishasha area of Queen Elizabeth National Park is well-known for its resident free-climbing lions, so get up early and take a wildlife drive there after breakfast. Although finding these lions is possible approximately 70% of the time, it can be challenging particularly when they are low in the grassland searching for food. It would be a breathtaking sight if you could see them. After that, you’ll be driven to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, where you can spend the night planning your next gorilla trekking experience.
Bwindi Gorilla Trekking and Batwa Community Experience
In Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, you will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the endangered Mountain Gorillas. The oldest and most biologically diverse rainforest in Uganda is home to half of the world’s gorilla population, which lives under mist-covered canopy. With the help of a seasoned park ranger, you’ll have to keep tabs on one of the habituated family groups who call the area home. Before you reach the family of these gentle giants, your gorilla tracking adventure will be a fascinating yet tough journey over the forested Bwindi hillsides, tangled vines, thick flora, bamboo woods, and occasionally muddy and slippery conditions.
Along the way, your ranger will point out things like gorilla poop, nests, and bits of bamboo that have been chewed. The duration of the trek can range from 2-7 hours on any one day, contingent upon the whereabouts of the gorillas. Finding the gorilla family is the first step. Prepare yourself for an hour of serene observation of these intriguing monkeys, whose behaviors and routines are remarkably similar to our own. Meeting mountain gorillas in their natural habitat is an unforgettable, profoundly moving, and humbling event.
Your journey to the Batwa community, where you will gain a deeper understanding of their culture, will follow the gorilla trek in the evening.
Transfer to Volcanoes National Park Rwanda and have the iby’iwachu Community Visit
Leaving the resort after breakfast, you will be transferred to Volcanoes National Park. When you get there, a vehicle will take you to the Gorilla Gaurdians Village also known as Iby’iwachu Community. You will be introduced to traditional Rwandan dances, poetry, dress codes, and more during your afternoon tour to the iby’iwachu village.
It is optional to take a tour of the Elen DeGeneres Museum, which was created by Diane Fossey, if time permits. The Elen DeGeneres Museum, founded by Diane Fossey, is about twenty minutes away by car from the trailhead. After the long day you will check in the lodge for dinner and an overnight.
Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park Rwanda and Transfer to the Airport for Departure.
We are going to have an early breakfast, and then you are going to be driven to the headquarters of the volcanoes national park for a briefing at 8:30 in the morning on the rules that need to be respected while you are trekking with the gorillas. Your task will be to track down a family of gorillas, and you will be provided with guides who will lead you to the Mountain gorillas. After the tracking exercise, which will last between 2-5 hours, you will drive back to the airport to catch your flight out of Rwanda.
