12 Days Primates of Uganda and Rwanda

12 Day Primates of Uganda and Rwanda

Discover the best of Uganda and Rwanda in the 12-day Primates of Uganda and Rwanda Tour. The highlights of the tour include Kibale Forest, Bwindi Forest,  Kigali, and a track to the Mountain Gorillas in the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda.

12 Day Primates of Uganda and Rwanda

Overview of the safari

Discover the best of Uganda and Rwanda in the 12-day Primates of Uganda and Rwanda Tour. This round trip offers opportunities for encounters with primates, diverse wildlife, breathtaking views, people, and culture in Uganda and Rwanda.

Safari highlights 

• Chimpanzee Trekking in Kibale Forest.
• Crater Lakes Region- Mahoma Water Falls Hike
• An encounter with the gentle giants the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi / Volcanoes NP 
• A unique encounter with golden monkeys in Volcanoes National Park
• Butare City and Nyanza – King’s Palace and Ethnographic Museum 
• An encounter with the chimpanzees in Nyungwe Forest and a canopy walk 
• Kigali city tour and Butare – Kigali genocide memorial center 

Tour Itinerary

Day 1:  Arrival in Uganda

Arrive at Entebbe Airport where you will be welcomed by a Travelers Link Africa representative and transferred to your hotel. Overnight at Karibu Guest House. (B&B)

Day 2:  Entebbe – Kibale Forest 

After a relaxed breakfast, we will depart Entebbe and head west to Fort Portal, with lunch en route. Fort Portal rests in the shadow of the fabled “Mountains of the Moon” and is famous for its many tea plantations.

From this lovely town, we will continue to Kibale National Park. Accommodation and Meals at Turac Treetops

Day 3:   Chimp Trekking and Crater Lakes Region – Mahoma Waterfalls

Today the forest opens its doors for chimp tracking. Kibale Forest is reputable for having the greatest variety and the highest concentration of primates in East Africa. Enjoy a guided nature walk in the tropical rainforest in search of the wild chimpanzee, red-tailed monkey, black-and-white colobus monkey, and many others.

After a hearty lunch, we transfer to the Crater Lakes region for scenic viewing of the Kasenda Crater Lakes. The lakes are all surrounded by intensely steep crater rims that generally keep everyone out, and create little sanctuaries for monkeys and birds.

Take a nature walk to Mahoma Falls set up in a beautiful scenic area of Ruteete characterized by cool temperatures and then return to the camp for relaxation.

Accommodation and Meals at Turac Treetops

Day 4:     Kibale Forest- Bwindi National Park 

After breakfast, we proceed to Bwindi National Park, the home of the endangered mountain gorillas. You will have lunch en route then arrive in the evening for relaxation at the lodge. Accommodation and meals at Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge.

Day 5:     Gorilla tracking

Arise early today and prepare for the highlight of your safari, an unforgettable encounter with the gentle giants of Bwindi!  Following breakfast, transfer to the national park offices where you will be allocated a gorilla family in groups of 8 as well as a gorilla tracking guide.

After a pre-tracking briefing by your guide touching on the gorillas generally, your assigned gorilla family as well as appropriate safety precautions, you drive to the trailhead for the start of a thrilling adventure. 

You will have a packed lunch from the lodge for this hike. Upon sighting the gorillas, you spend the allowed one hour with them as they go about their daily life; feeding, moving, playing, raising their young, and sometimes wrestling by the juveniles – it is a unique and unforgettable experience!  Accommodation and meals at Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge.

Day 6:     Bwindi National Park –Volcanoes National Park 

Today we will depart the impenetrable forest of Bwindi National Park and drive towards the border area with Rwanda. From here we continue to the most beautiful national park of Rwanda: Parc National des Volcans. Dinner and overnight at Mountain Gorilla View Lodge. 

Day 7:  Gorilla trekking OR Golden Monkey Hiking

Another opportunity to spend some time with the endangered mountain gorillas. You will make a beautiful hike through the green landscape and hills of the Virunga Volcanoes. After a magical hour with the gorillas, they return to the lodge.

Alternatively, you will have a golden monkey trekking in the park. Spend the morning searching the lush vegetation at the foot of Mount Sabyinyo for one of two habituated groups of golden monkeys, one of them a troop of more than 80 members.

Spend an enchanted hour watching their frolics as they leap among the slender shoots of bamboo or tumble among the dense foliage on the forest floor. Dinner and overnight at Mountain Gorilla View Lodge. 

Day 8:  Volcanoes National Park – Lake Kivu 

After breakfast, head to Lake Kivu arriving in time for lunch and thereafter you may explore the small islands on a boat ride,  swim at leisure, or wander through the local markets taking in the historic buildings. Accommodation and meals at Paradise Malahide. 

Day 9: Lake Kivu – Nyungwe Forest NP 

After breakfast head for Butare the second largest city in Rwanda, you will have a stopover at Nyanza, the former Mwami’s palace (King’s palace). The palace has been reconstructed into the traditional royal residence and is beautifully crafted as a thatched dome shape similar to a beehive. You will also visit the Ethnographic Museum.

This Museum was built in 1987 and now houses one of Africa’s finest ethnographic collections. Its seven galleries display historical, ethnographic, artistic, and archaeological artifacts accompanied by visual aides, giving visitors a rich insight into the culture of Rwandans. Accommodation and meals at Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel. 

Day 10: Chimpanzee Tracking  and Canopy Walk in Nyungwe Forest

Breakfast and then have an early start to go and trek the Chimpanzees. Depending on the availability you are likely to trek chimpanzees in Cyamudongo Forest, a very small, isolated ‘island’ of forest surrounded by tea estates a little over an hour’s drive from the park office at Gisakura. This group consists of about 40 individuals. 

Alternatively, you might be taken to see a second habituated group, the Uwinka group, which is the largest with around 65 individuals.  The duration of your trek depends on the location of the chimps – this could take between 30 minutes to 3 hours to find them depending on how far they have moved in search of food.

After lunch, you will have a 3-hour round-trip canopy walk along a 160m-long and 70m-high canopy walkway. Take in the scenery rewarding you with an entire forest covered with a few primate species.  Return to the hotel for relaxation. Accommodation and meals at Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel. 

Day 11: Nyungwe Forest – Kigali 

After breakfast, transfer to the capital city of Rwanda. Kigali boasts a range of hotels, fine restaurants, busy and colorful markets, and lovely local crafts. In the afternoon you can experience the delights of the city as we go on a city tour and visit some interesting, historical sites like the Kigali Memorial Centre. Overnight at Hotel des Mille Collines. 

 Day 12:  Kigali city tour – Departure 

After breakfast, explore the Kigali city tour takes you to the major historical and cultural sites of Rwanda. You may visit the Kandt House or Museum of Natural History where Dr. Richard Kandt the first German colonial resident of Rwanda resided and is now the Natural History Museum in honor of his work.

Or visit the Kigali Memorial Centre. This is a grim reminder of the 1994 senseless massacres. The museum is built on a site where over 250,000 people are buried. The exhibits in the museum powerfully tell the story of Rwanda, its history, and the unfolding genocide.

Included are touch screens that have on them the testimonials of some of the survivors present during this turbulent time. Enriched with the experience of a lifetime and unforgettable memories of the 12-day primates of Uganda and Rwanda Tour,  you will say goodbye to the Land of the Thousand Hills. In time, you will be transferred to the airport for your international flight.

INCLUDED IN PACKAGE

• Ground transportation in a safari customized 4WD with gasoline/fuel,
• Mineral water in the vehicle,
• Services of an English speaking Driver/guide,
• Accommodation as shown at the lodges mentioned in the itinerary,
• Meals as shown (B-breakfast, L-lunch, D-dinner),
• All Park Entrance Fees and all permits

EXCLUDED IN PACKAGE

• International Airfares; Excess baggage charges;
• Ugandan and Rwanda Entry Visa Fees
• International travel Vaccinations and Inoculations;
• Beverages
•  Tips and Gratuities for your Driver/guide and hotel staff
• International Airport Departure Taxes,
• Optional activities unless specified as included,
• Any other services not expressly shown in the itinerary or indicated as included.