The 3 days Uganda camping safari is a 2 nights/3 days camping safari in Uganda that offers a bucket-list trekking experience deep into Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park for an eye-opening encounter with highly endangered mountain gorillas, our closest mammalian cousins.
Starting and ending in Kampala, this 3-day camping safari in Uganda tour takes you southwest with stops at the Uganda Equator crossing Kayabwe for photoshoots and Igongo Cultural Centre for a traditional meal. You continue to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site hosting nearly half of the world’s population of Mountain Gorillas, about 459 individuals at last count.
About 19 gorilla family groups are habituated to human presence and will allow you to track and observe them from a respectful and mandated distance as they go about their day feeding, playing, grooming, and socializing. Under the ever-watchful eye of a dominant silverback, you’ll encounter a family of gorillas, each with their own personalities, from cocky adolescents and wise mothers to young ones rolling through the bamboo. It’s always a magical experience.
As trek gorillas, you will have the opportunity to spot hundreds of species of endemic birds, butterflies, L’Hoest’s monkeys, black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, and several other forest creatures.
After your gorilla trekking in Uganda safari adventure, drive to Lake Bunyonyi (the place of little birds) for amazing scenic views, a boat cruise, and relaxation. Lake Bunyonyi is Africa’s second deepest, framed by lush, green-terraced hills that reach a height of (2,200 – 2,478m) but it’s the 29 islands of various shapes and sizes scattered across the water that make it the most magical.
Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
Photograph endemic birds, butterflies & orchids
Enjoy beautiful views of the Kigezi Highlands and Lake Bunyonyi
Boat cruise on Lake Bunyonyi
Photoshoots at the Uganda Equator
Traditional lunch at Igongo Cultural Centre
Day 1: Equator, Igongo Cultural Center & Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 2: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park & Lake Bunyonyi
Day 3: Transfer back to Kampala
Day 1: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Make stops en route at the Equator crossing Kayabwe & Igongo Cultural Center for traditional lunch.
Day 2: Mountain Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi. Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi for an evening boat ride & relaxation
Day 3: Transfer back to Kampala
After breakfast at your place of stay in Kampala, embark on the transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park departing at 6:30 am. You drive to the country’s southwest heading for a 527km journey taking about 10 hours’ drive. You drive through the traffic of Kampala and connect to Masaka road on smooth tarmac driving for 77km to make a stop at the Uganda Equator crossing Kayabwe where the world’s main latitude that partitions the world into the northern and the southern hemisphere can be encountered. It is a unique geographical site where water experiments can be carried out to justify the geographical divide between the north and the southern hemispheres.
You have an opportunity to take magical photos with one leg in the northern hemisphere and another one in the southern hemisphere. Retreat from the break and continue on the drive to Bwindi. A traditional lunch stop can be made at Igongo Cultural Center 12km from Mbarara for a local cuisine prepared in a modern setting and served in standard utensils.
The food is organically grown and freshly served. Continue on the drive welcomed by the fascinating Kigezi Highlands arriving in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in the evening for relaxation, dinner, and overnight
The highlight of the day: – The Uganda Equator experience and traditional lunch at Igongo Cultural Centre.
Luxury/Upmarket: – Gorilla Forest Camp/Nkuringo Gorilla Camp
Midrange/Standard: – Gorilla Mist Camp/Nkuringo Gorilla Camp/Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
Budget/Basic: – Buhoma Community Rest Camp/Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
Meal Plan: – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Drive Distance & time: – Approx. 527km or 10 hours
This is a great day that will mark your reunion with your long-lost cousins – the mountain gorillas. You wake up at around 6.00 am for a hearty breakfast after which you pack your lunch and embark on a short drive to the respective park headquarter where you meet the expert local ranger guides.
At 8.00 am, the guides give an informative briefing on how the gorilla trekking experience is conducted. Next, embark on a trek to find the gorillas. A gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is relatively difficult and needs some stamina. It usually takes 2- 6 hours and may reach altitudes of almost 2000m above sea level. The dense forest also can sometimes be wet, muddy, and uncomfortable, but the sheer thrill in coming across a habituated family group of gorillas, dominated by a giant male Silverback, more than outweighs any difficulty.
An adult male can weigh up to 220kg and reach 6 ft. in height but mountain gorillas are calm and gentle; watching their movements are like seeing a mirror image of yourself. Contact time with gorillas is limited to 1 hour but coming face to face with a family of mountain gorillas is indeed a life-changing experience that will be imprinted on your mind forever.
After your one hour with the gorillas, return to the starting point and transfer to the starting point to embark on the transfer to Lake Bunyonyi 52km about 2 hours’ drive driving through fascinating Kigezi Highlands which locals apply terracing method to cultivate their slopes deriving impressive scenic landscape.
You arrive at Lake Bunyonyi in the afternoon; undertake a thrilling boat cruise on the second deepest lake in Africa marked with a range of 29 Islands that have earned it a dub as the lake of a thousand Islands. You explore the amazing sceneries of the Islands surrounded by magical Kigezi Highlands. Retire for relaxation, dinner, and overnight.
The highlight of the day: – Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.
Luxury/ Upmarket: – Birdnest @Bunyonyi Resort
Mid-range/ Moderate: – Lake Bunyonyi Rock Resort/Lake Bunyonyi Eco Resort
Meal Plan: – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Drive distance & time: – Approx. 55-85 km or 1-3 hours
After breakfast, embark on the transfer back to Kampala 437km about 7 hours’ drive. You drive through the magical highlands of Kigezi covered with mist in the morning before continuing through impressive south western Uganda landscapes of Ntungamo with extensive banana plantations and cattle farms.
A lunch stop will be made at Igongo Cultural Center and another can still be made at the Equator crossing Kayabwe to get yourself memorabilia to carry back home. An optional game drive can be made in Lake Mburo National Park with the opportunity to explore the Rothschild giraffes, Elands, Burchell’s Zebra, Impala, and Topis among others
The highlight of the day: – The Uganda Equator experience and traditional lunch at Igongo Cultural Centre.
Meal Plan: – Breakfast & Lunch
Drive distance & time: – 437km or 7 hours
Short game drive in Lake Mburo National Park
End of the 3 Days Uganda Camping Safari
Cate
Samuel
Robert
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