3 Days Uganda Primates Safari – DETAILED SAFARI ITINERARY

Day 1 of the 3 Days Uganda Primates Safari: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park with En Route Stop at the Equator Crossing. Undertake A Boat Cruise On Kazinga Channel On Arrival & An Evening Game Drive.

Our 3 days Uganda primate safari starts after breakfast at your place of stay in Kampala (at around 6.30 am) and we embark on 417km (about 7 hours) drive southwest to 1,978km² Queen Elizabeth National Park, one of the most biologically diverse parks in the world blessed over 95 species of mammals and 610 bird species across a variety of habitats: rolling savannah grasslands, tropical rainforest, moist acacia woodlands, sparkling saline crater lakes freshwater lakes, and fertile wetlands.

On our journey to Queen, we’ll drive through striking Uganda rural landscape where you will see how is life really like here before making a remarkable and memorable stop at the Equator crossing at Kayabwe for amazing photo shoots plus water experiments that justify the geographical separation between the north and the southern hemispheres. We’ll then proceed our journey making another stop at Igongo Cultural Centre for a traditional lunch. Igongo is a huge commercial enterprise with conference facilities, a five-star hotel, a top restaurant, craft centres and shops, and luckily also one of the best museums in all of Uganda. We’ll continue to Queen Elizabeth Park fronted by the legendary Rwenzori Mountains or Mountains of the Moon for much of your journey.

Once in Queen, we’ll connect to the lodge for check-in and then drive to the Mweya jetty for 2 hours thrilling boat cruise along the 45km long Kazinga channel departing at 3 pm. Taking the boat tour on the Kazinga channel is almost obligatory, when visiting this park. It will give us the chance to cruise just metres from hundreds of hippos and African Buffalo, while African Elephants linger on the shoreline, along with waterbirds (including African Open-billed, Yellow-billed, Saddle-billed Storks and Pelicans) and giant Nile Crocodiles. It is an incredible experience being so close to all these fantastic creatures from the comfort of the boat, with the stunning park all around us adding to the memories we will have of this cruise. You retreat from the boat cruise and do an evening game drive along the Channel track to explore the wild game in their evening moments. Continue to the lodge for relaxation dinner, and overnight.

Highlight of the day: – A stunning boat cruise on Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth Park.

 

Accommodation:-

Luxury/Upmarket: – Mazike Valley Lodge/Mweya Safari Lodge/Katara Lodge

Mid-range/Moderate: – Enganzi Game Lodge/ Kasenyi Safari Camp/ Bush Lodge

Budget/Basic: – Pumba Safari Cottages/ Park View Safari Lodge

Meal Plan: – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Drive distance & time: – Approx. 417km or 7 hours

 

Activities & Services of the day:-

• Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
• Afternoon Kazinga Channel boat cruise
• Evening game drive along the Channel Track

Optional activities you can do on this day:-

• Night game drive in Queen Elizabeth NP
• Cultural encounters in Queen Elizabeth

 

Day 2 of the 3 Days Uganda Primates Safari: Do Chimpanzee Trekking In Kyambura Gorge & Transfer To Kibale National Park.

After breakfast at 6.30am, embark on the drive to Kyambura gorge for a thrilling chimpanzee experience that tends to last 3– 5 hours including one hours encounter with them. Situated on the park’s eastern boundary, the amazing forested Kyambura gorge is 100-meters deep. The confined nature of this forest gorge makes it easy to located chimps by sound. Once you have found them, they can usually be approached quite closely and you view them as the feed copulate, patrol, and socialize.

Even if you don’t see chimps, it is a quite lovely patch of forest, with an open understory typical of riparian woodland, and the river that runs through it is very beautiful too. Chimps aside, you will see Black-and-white colobus, Vervet monkeys, Red-tailed monkeys and Olive baboons. Bird species include the Great blue turaco, Black-and-white casqued hornbill, Black bee-eater and Blue-bellied kingfishers.

Retreat from the encounter which tend to take 2 – 5 hours and then embark on the transfer to Kibale Forest National Park 157km about 3 hours’ drive enjoying the views of Rwenzori Mountains en route.

Highlight of the day: – Chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura gorge

 

Accommodation:-

Luxury/Upmarket: – Crater Safari Lodge/Kyaninga Lodge/Primate Lodge Kibale

Midrange/Standard: – Chimpanzee Forest Guesthouse/Kibale Forest Camp/Turaco Tree Tops

Budget/Basic: – Chimpanzee Forest Guesthouse/Kibale Forest Camp

 

Meal Plan: – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Drive distance & time: – Approx. 157km or 3 hours

 

Activities & Services of the day:-

• Chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura Gorge
• Transfer to Kampala

Optional activities you can choose to do on this day including:-

• Birding in Queen Elizabeth National Park
• Morning game drive in Kasenyi Sector of Queen
• Game drive in Ishasha Sector in search of rare tree-climbing lions
• Nocturnal walk in Kibale National Park creatures such as Bush babies, Night jars, and Genet

 

Day 3 of the 3 Days Uganda Primates Safari: Do Chimpanzee Trekking In Kibale National Park & Drive Back To Kampala.

After breakfast at around 7.00 am, we drive to Kanyanchu Visitor Centre in Kibale for the unforgettable on-foot Chimpanzee tracking adventure which begins promptly at 8.00am. The encounter starts with a short briefing from the expert local park rangers who will give an informative talk on tracking etiquette. Top of the list: keep a distance of at least 10 meters from the Chimps. Not only for your own safety, but also for theirs as our colds, viruses and diseases can easily spread to them due to shared DNA.

After the briefing, we head to the forest in search of man’s closest relative in company of the ranger guide. Kibale’s chimps have been tracked since 1993 and there are over 95% chances of locating some of Kibale’s 1500 Chimpanzees. The trek to see these intelligent apes lasts between 2-5 hours. Contact time with chimps is limited to one hour; group size is limited to 6 visitors and participants must be aged 12 or over.

As you trek in the depths of the lush green forest, you’ll be surrounded by bird song, colourful butterflies and can expect to see at least 5 or 7 other types of monkeys, most probably Olive baboons, Uganda mangabeys and Uganda red colobus,  red tailed, L’Hoest’s,  Vervet, and Black-and-white colobus monkeys. Finally you approach the common chimpanzees which have been fully, offering you an opportunity to draw quite close to them and take pictures. Viewing them as they munch fruit, swinging in trees, socializing, patrolling their territory, mating and making hooting calls is an unforgettable experience that you will treasure forever. You’re free to take as many photos as you wish!

After our amazing Chimpanzee trek we’ll return to the starting point where we’ll enjoy our packed picnic lunch, catch our breaths after all the excitement and  embark on 326km (6-7 hours) journey to Kampala, arriving in the evening to mark the end of the tour.

Highlight of the day: – Tracking a troop of Chimpanzees in Kibale National Park on foot.

 

Meal Plan: – Breakfast & Lunch

Drive distance & time: – Approx. 326km or 6-7 hours

 

Activities & Services of the day:-

• Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale
• Transfer to Kampala

Optional activities you can choose to do on this day including:-

• Whole day Chimpanzee Habituation Experience

End of the 3 Days Uganda Primates Safari

3 Days Uganda Primates Safari − SAFARI INCLUSIONS

 Chimpanzee trekking permit fees

 Full Board Accommodation on Safari

 Transportation in either 4X4 Safari Van or 4X4 Safari Land Cruiser all with Pop up roof & AC

 Fuel

 Professional English Speaking driver guide. Any other foreign language speaking guide can be arranged on request.

 Entrance fees to the tourist sites including Protected areas mentioned

 Activity fees of the tourist activities mentioned

 Bottled water while on safari

3 Days Uganda Primates Safari − SAFARI EXCLUSIONS

General tips for the driver guide, site guides and service staff at the lodges

Laundry Services

Other Beverages/drinks of personal nature like Alcohol

International Flights (Arranged on request)

Domestic Flights (Arranged on request)

Visas

Optional Activity fees

Other extras not mentioned in the Itinerary

Airport Transfer (Arranged on request)

Accommodation in Kampala or Kigali unless it is part of the Itinerary (Arranged on request)

3 Days Uganda Primates Safari – PRICE PER PERSON

Number of people against price per person

2 – $na pp

3 – $na pp

4 – $na pp

5 – $na pp

6 – $na pp

At Prime Safaris and Tours Ltd, your safety is our utmost priority. We have thus undertaken the necessary safety measures in compliance with the approved Standard Operating Procedures by the Governments of ALL African countries in which we operate with a goal of protecting our customers while travelling and on their Africa safari. The following guidelines will be applicable for your  Safari in Uganda, Rwanda, Congo and other African Countries.