Description
5 DAYS, QUEEN ELIZABETH AND GORILLA SAFARI
Day One:
Morning start from Entebbe airport to start the Queen Elizabeth and gorilla safari. Begin from Kampala or your overnight Hotel then transfer to the Mpambire local Drum Makers roadside stalls. See the African traditional drum making. Your guide gives an explanation on how the Ugandan communities used drums to communicate by different beats. Later, transfer to the Uganda Equator at Kayabwe, earth movements and positioning makes you weigh 3% less of your weight. See how the water drains anti clockwise on one side of the Equator line as well as the opposite when you cross on the other side. You drive through the banana and coffee gardens then proceed to Mbarara and stop for lunch for about an hour.
Depart through the Savannah dotted hills and see the Ankole Long horned cows before driving through the rift valley into Queen Elizabeth National park. On arrival, the game viewing introduces solitary Cape Buffalo ejected out of the herds, Bush bucks with their spiral horns, Uganda Kob antelope which forms part of Uganda’s Emblem and probably the Hyenas along the channel track. Later on, transfer to your accommodations arriving for dinner and overnight at the Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge.
Meal Plan – Lunch and Dinner.
TRANSIT TIME 6 HOURS.
Day Two:
Morning woken up by the grass munching by Hippos outside your balcony! Hippos are mostly active into the night and early mornings as they leave the water and head to the grasslands to feed. Have coffee, tea and pastries before starting the morning game viewing Queen Elizabeth and gorilla safari. The tour guide will drive through the kabatooro gate stopping for you to see Elephants, Uganda Kob, Warthog,Bush buck, Hyena and colorful birds. Transfer to the main game viewing area where most of the hunts by Lions take place.
The Uganda Kobs have identified a large area where they naturally think they can evade the lions and use this area for courtship, territorial displays, fighting among each other and mating. Watch out for Hyenas as well as other scavengers lurking in the nearby bushes and on tree tops. Later, return to the safari Lodge arriving for breakfast and relaxing by the pool or in your rooms. Have lunch at the restaurant or privately on the Kazinga Channel then start the afternoon activity with a short drive to the Kazinga channel pier. With other visitors, the large excursion boats open on both sides, glide through the waters of the Kazinga channel.
You are a few metres near Elephants, Cape Buffalo and Hippos. Monitor lizards, Nile crocodiles and hundreds of resident and migrating birds on the banks. You will also see local fishermen in their wooden boats fishing on the channel. A guide by the Uganda wildlife Authority identifies birds and also gives an insight on the natural ecosystems. Sail back to the mainland and return to the Lodge arriving in time for dinner and overnight at the Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge. Meal Plan – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
ALL DAY ACTIVITIES
Day Three:
Morning breakfast and load up picnic lunches before starting the drive through euphobia candelabrum forests which are a delicacy for the Olive Baboons. See Uganda Kob harems as well as their dominant territorial males on the grassy plains, Elephant Matriarchs and bulls along the Park tracks browsing on the trees, Baboons seated on the main road and only move when the safari vehicles approach.
We have a picnic lunch on the plains looking for or at the tree climbing Lions which escape the day heat and bugs on the ground to climb into the fig trees. See Topi, Cape Buffalo and birds like the sooty chats and Snake Eagles. From here, the short drive to the gorilla sanctuary drives through the villages then ends at the edge of the Impenetrable forest at Bwindi where you have your welcome drinks, bonfire, dinner and overnight at the Gorilla Resort Bwindi Camp.
Meal Plan – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
TRANSIT TIME 5 HOURS.
Day Four: Uganda Gorilla Safari
Morning breakfast and transfer to the Park offices where registration and gorilla trekking etiquette briefing will be done by the guides. After the grouping in 8 people per gorilla tracking group is done, the gorilla trek commences with the trackers leading the way to find the gorillas while the guides would be following with the main trekking party, but communicating with the trackers ahead. Please note that this could be an easy walk of only about 3 minutes, but could also be an arduous trek that may take almost the whole day depending on many factors.
The gorilla family is tracked by looking out for chewed up plant material, hairs, droppings and trashed vegetation. The gorillas make, then sleep in nests on the ground and the trekking usually starts from these nests up to the feeding area. The gorillas are encountered and you are then allowed an hour of viewing and taking pictures. Later, transfer to a short distance in the forest where picnic lunches are served in the forest before the short walk or drive back to the base to receive the certificates. Dinner will be served at 7:00pm at the Lodge before overnight at The Gorilla Resort Bwindi Camp.
Meal Plan – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day Five:
Breakfast early and transfer through the Mountains to Mbarara. After a picnic lunch along the way, proceed to Masaka the former banana growing town and later to Kampala or Entebbe arriving late in the evening. At an extra fee, should one wish to avoid the long drive this day, there is a scheduled one hour flight from Bwindi to Entebbe. Departs either in the morning at 10:00am or in the afternoon around 2:pm
Meal Plan – Breakfast and Lunch.
TRANSIT TIME 9 – 11 HOURS.
Price per person at Luxury accommodations starts at USD1535
Fee per person at Mid range accommodations starts at USD1285
Tour price per person at Budget accommodations starts at USD1115
Queen Elizabeth and gorilla safari Includes:
- 2 Nights at the Queen Elizabeth Safari Lodge,
- 2 Nights at Gorilla Resort Bwindi,
- Meals as listed above,
- bottled water in vehicles,
- Queen Elizabeth and gorilla safari park entry fees,
- game viewing safari at Queen Elizabeth National Park and Ishasha plains,
- boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel,
- Gorilla Permit and
- private custom built 4×4 with an English speaking driver guide.
Exclusions on the Queen Elizabeth and gorilla safari:
- Beverages not mentioned above,
- tips and gratuities to lodge staff,
- guides on safari and personal expenses like
- laundry and extra meals
- other safari options organized in the field.
