14 Days Rwanda and Uganda Gorilla & Wildlife Safari

Explore the two East African countries on a single safari. The 14 days Rwanda and Uganda Gorillas and wildlife safari explore Kigali city and Rwanda’s 2 National Parks (Nyungwe and Volcanoes). If you have an interest in East Africa’s primates and wildlife, this is your trip. See Chimpanzees at Nyungwe, Gorillas at Bwindi, Golden Monkeys at Volcanoes, tree-climbing lions at Ishasha, cruise on the Kazinga Channel, and Rhinos at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.

Detailed Itinerary

The 2 weeks in Africa begin. Your transfer vehicle and guide will meet you at Kigali International Airport, and drive you to a hotel in Kigali, where you will have an overnight before your start of the adventure through the Land of 1000 Hills the next day. Staying at Heaven Restaurant and Boutique Hotel

Today, we prepare for a drive to the southwest- Nyungwe National Park. First, we drive around Kigali city to see the highlights of the city. Our main stop will be at the Kigali Genocide and Memorial museum. This will give you an insight into the history of Rwanda and where it’s going. After you will continue your exploration of the country on your journey to Nyungwe Forest. Drive through Farmlands and rice fields with lunch en route for about 6 hours. If there is anything that catches your eye along the way, you can chat with your guide about it. Staying at Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel

An exhilarating day but an early rise. By 5 am Rwanda time, be at the park headquarters at Umwinka for briefing and the excursion to search for chimpanzees. Watching chimpanzees in this dense forest can be challenging because they move in canopies. But their characteristics make the half-day excursion rewarding and exceptional. After, you return to the lodge, for lunch as you await the afternoon to explore the park from the canopy. After you drive and have an overnight on Lake Kivu, with a view of the lake. Staying at Cormoran Lodge

Today explore an island- Napoleon Island on Lake Kivu before heading for Volcanoes National Park. The island is famous for its population of straw-colored fruit bats, we shall hike on the island and leave for Volcanoes National Park. We drive northwards and after about 3 hours to the foothills of Volcanoes National Park. We shall visit The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, and check in at our lodge. Staying at DaVinci Gorilla Lodge

Spend a day in the Bamboo Zone to search for the endangered monkeys. The golden-orange fur-characterized monkeys are endemic to the Albertine Rift areas at Volcanoes and at Mgahinga in Uganda. Spend an hour watching them jump through the bamboo. After driving back to the lodge, have lunch and relax, before visiting the Gorilla Guardians Village (Iby’Iwachu Cultural Village). Learn about the culture of Rwanda, the people, and its practices. Later have an overnight. Staying at DaVinci Gorilla Lodge

These are one of the top attractions around Volcanoes National park. The 2km long cave is in the Musanze district and dates back to 65 million years. It has 31 entrances, most from the falling roof, it is a bat colony, and was used for hiding during the 1994 genocide. We shall visit the cave and later cross to Uganda via the Cyanika border. Depart Musanze and continue to Bwindi on the tracking base for gorillas. You will have an overnight here. Staying at Ride 4 a Woman

A day for you to meet the mountain gorillas. Have breakfast at the Lodge, and get to the park headquarters for briefing. They will allocate you a group and experienced guides and rangers that will accompany you on the trek. The tracking can be strenuous and ranges from 2 hours to even a whole day due to the altitude, and location of the gorillas, among others. Enjoy the adventure, take an hour with gorillas, and return to the lodge. You can opt for a community tour to the local Batwa (Former gatherers and hunters) that used to live in the forest before eviction. Staying at Ride 4 a Woman

Witness the tree-climbing lions. Today after breakfast, we drive 62km northwards to Queen Elizabeth National Park’s most famous area-Ishasha. The plains here are famous for the tree-climbing lion population. We shall have a game drive here to search for these tree-climbing cats and also watch other wildlife. After we hit the 80km dirty road to the northern part of the park. Arriving late afternoon, we check in and relax at the lodge. In the evening we shall opt for either a drive through the Kasenyi plains (a prime game viewing area at the park) or a crater drive. Staying at Elephant Hab Lodge

A network of tracks connects the Kasenyi plains game viewing area. The area is covered with thickets, grass, and euphorbia ingens. We shall look out for big mammals, like elephants, buffaloes, wallowing hippos, kobs, lions, leopards, and all those that are reliably sighted in this open game viewing area. In the afternoon, we take a cruise on the Kazinga Channel, a main and dominant feature in the park that joins the two lakes, George and Edward. Enjoy a boat safari on the 40km long channel and later have a night at your lodge. Staying at Elephant Hab Lodge

100m deep, and 16km long, the Kyambura gorge hosts Queen Elizabeth National Park's only community of chimpanzees. The chimpanzee here are not guaranteed but this buffer zone is a magnificent wild place. They- chimpanzees, are the top attraction in this strip of forest, but it has a variety of life like monkeys, Hippos that infest the Kyambura River, and birds, among others. From here you drive to Fort Portal to reduce the driving distance to Murchison Falls National park the next day. You can opt for a tour of the city to see the Palace, Karambi tombs, and the Amabere ga Nyina Mwiru (stalagmites and stalactites). Staying at Fort Motel

Off for Uganda’s biggest conservation areas-Murchison Falls Conservation Area. We shall visit the Murchison Falls National park which derives its name from the point where River Nile meets its greatest obstacle. Here the Nile forces through a 7m gorge to drop 45m before continuing to meet Lake Albert. We shall check in and visit the top of the falls and continue to our lodge. Check in relaxes, and prepare for the night drive by 7.30 pm. Night drives are great for seeing nocturnals and other animals that are always active at night (cats hunting, night jars, owls, among others). After we return to the lodge overnight. Staying at Pakuba Safari Lodge

Breakfast at the lodge, and hit the tracks for the morning drive. Get on the Buligi Peninsula from Pakuba to the tracks for the search of a big game. Drive with your guide as you look out for the park's key species (Lions, leopards, giraffes-the park has the largest concentration of giraffes, that over 1100 individuals, elephants, buffaloes, kobs) and these among the 74 species recorded here. In the afternoon, take on the boat trip on the Victoria Nile, to the bottom of the falls. Staying at Pakuba Safari Lodge

13th Day and rhino day. Today, we have breakfast and check out as we are headed for Kampala. Drive out of the park to Nakasongola, where you will visit the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Here the 70 sqkm area hosts about 33 white rhinos that can be tracked on foot at any time. Check-in, guides will lead you to the Rhinos. From here, have lunch and proceed to Kampala, arriving in the evening. Staying at Cassia Lodge.

Today, you will have a half day, exploring Kampala. Get in the vibrant mix of old and new attractions of Kampala. You can’t complete them all in a day, and that’s why you will engage in the few and top ones. Visit the Old Kampala Mosque, the Mengo Palace for the Kabaka of Buganda and walk on the Royal Mile that connects the Palace to the Parliament, visit the markets downtown, and end with the Bahai Temple and Namugongo Martyrs shrine. After this, you will be driven to the airport for your exit flight.