12 Day – Uganda’s Classic Photography Expedition Safari
African untamed open Savannah Wilderness, Primates, People, Unique Cultures and Traditions
Overview:
This 12 – Day Uganda’s Classic Photography Expedition Safari starts and ends in Entebbe international Airport. The trip grants more time for Photographers to spend more time with Wildlife, capturing uniqueness and also the private cruise grants minimal or no visual destructions and less noise pollution during videography. We meet up close with man’s closest relative alongside researchers who will answer so much questions from you aiding your write up in case you are a photography Blogger! However, this trip can also be booked by a couple/family that are so ecstatic with Wildlife, Primates, Birdlife and unique cultures which a coupled by untold history!
Brief Itinerary
Day 1: Meet and greet with our representative at Entebbe International Airport
Day 2: Domestic Flight transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park – Sunset Boat safari on Lake Mutanda, Visit the Punishment Island for history
Day 3: Gorilla Habituation Experience
Day 4: Batwa Cultural encounter, transfer to Ishasha Sector – Home of the Tree Climbing Lions for a sundowner guided game drive
Day 5: Have a Bush Breakfast and morning guided game drive – Relax whole afternoon at the Lodge
Day 6: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park – Afternoon Private Boat Safari on Kazinga Channel into Lake Edward
Day 7: Full Day Guided game drives with a Bush Breakfast
Day 8: Morning Transfer to Kibale National Park – Relax the whole afternoon at the Lodge or enjoy an optional tea experience or crater hikes or Bigodi swamp walk if you are a keen birder at an extra fee.
Day 9: Chimpanzee Habituation Experience at Ngogo in Kibale National Park
Day 10: Morning Domestic Flight Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park – Afternoon five hour return sundowner private boat trip to the Delta area.
Day 11: Morning Balloon Safari – Afternoon Boat trip to the Bottom of the falls, hike to the top of the falls
Day 12: Morning transfer to Ziwa Rhino sanctuary for Rhino tracking – Road transfer to Entebbe, enjoy your afternoon flight back home/next destination
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Meet and greet with our representative at Entebbe International Airport
| Meet and greet at Entebbe International Airport where your Expedition safari starts by our representative who will warmly welcome you and facilitate seamless arrival formalities. You will then be transferred to your hotel where you will be briefed about your adventure safari.
However, depending on the time of arrival you are advised to have money Changed on this day and time allowing you may go for city tour with the help of your driver/guide, visiting the Uganda Wildlife Education center to see the endangered species of mammals, primates, plants and birds including the rare endemic Albertine Shoebill Stork at an extra fee of $15 Per person. |
Overnight: Hotel No.5 Boutique Meal Plan: B/B |
|---|
Day 2: Domestic Flight transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park - Sunset Boat safari on Lake Mutanda, Visit the Punishment Island for history
| Enjoy a Flight transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park – The Park lies in south-western Uganda on the edge of the Rift Valley. Its mist-covered hillsides are blanketed by one of Uganda’s oldest and most biologically diverse rainforests, dating back over 25,000 years and contain almost 400 species of plants. More famously, this “impenetrable forest” is home to half of the remaining Mountain Gorillas in the world. After lunch, you can either relax at the lodge or take a guided community walk around near lodge.
Before nightfall, you will have a sunset Boat Cruise on Lake Mutanda to the small island identified as a Punishment Island where un married young girls who got pregnant were said to be bringing shame to their families hence they were taken by a canoe to the tiny island and left to die. You will see the Remains of those that were punished and left to die in a small open Cave on Akampene the Punishment Island. This will perfectly tune our brains to the unforgettable Bush Journey! |
Overnight: Clouds Mountain Gorilla View Lodge Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 3: Gorilla Habituation Experience
|
After an early breakfast depart to the starting point for briefing about your gorilla Habituation adventure, after which you will be led by researchers on the slopes of the volcanoes. Although the hike while following the Gorillas can be physically demanding, the anticipation of the exciting
experience is amazing, and the beauty of the gorilla forest and its inhabitants are fascinating. One of Africa’s major highlights is when you encounter these amazing apes. It is a humbling experience to stand just meters from man’s distant cousins as they eat rest, play and bond with their young ones. Follow the mountain gorillas as they range freely in the impenetrable forest, and discover their gorgeous natural habitual and the many species they share it with. You will spend four hours with the Gorillas as you capture your beautiful shots. Make sure you have a flash free cameras. |
Overnight: Clouds Mountain Gorilla View Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 4: Batwa Cultural encounter, transfer to Ishasha Sector – Home of the Tree Climbing Lions for a sundowner guided game drive
|
After breakfast, Proceed for a Batwa pygmy trail Experience– here we shall experience the culture of the ancient Batwa People who live in these forests, See the forest through the eyes of the first People who have lived here for over 500,000 years! Experience the lives of the Batwa People on the Interactive Batwa Trail and learn more about their hunting tricks, blacksmith, making of fire from sticks, herbal collections, weaving of Baskets, making bamboo cups, clothing beyond this generation among other interesting thrilling activities. Return to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay..
Transfer to Ishasha sector Home of the Tree Climbing Lions, depending on how you feel this afternoon and the time you reach this destination, you may have a sundowner guided game drive combing the sector for tree climbing lions – Do you know that morning and evening game drives provide stupendous pictures? So this could be one of the best times to zoom a lion scratching a bug from the tree – so Possible! |
Overnight: Ishasha Wilderness Camp
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 5: Have a Bush Breakfast and morning guided game drive - Relax whole afternoon at the Lodge
| After Breakfast, we comb the sector with a well composed and fresh mind, our guide driver knows the best spots for this and together we will spend time in the wilderness with a Bush breakfast searching for the mammals and birds that characterise the unique region. You may relax at the camp in the afternoon or if you still need more shots then why not head to the wilderness again, it is your safari so you just need to ask your guide to be set. | Overnight:Ishasha Wilderness Camp. Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 6: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park - Afternoon Private Boat Safari on Kazinga Channel into Lake Edward
|
Pack up your bags after breakfast and say goodbye to this unique sector with a morning guided game drive enroute to Queen Elizabeth National Park Mweya peninsular – This is a hub of Tourism in the Park and most activities take place here or start from here.
Upon arriving at your lodge, you will enjoy a hot lunch and later in the afternoon take a unique 2-hour boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel into Lake Edward. This trip passes through possibly the highest concentration of hippos and this launch/cruise offers an excellent platform for photography, bird watching and game viewing. The prolific bird life is colourful and stupendous, with well over 550 resident species. |
Overnight: Kyambura Lodge Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 7: Full Day Guided game drives with a Bush Breakfast
| Queen Elizabeth National Park’s diverse eco-system of grassy plains, tropical forest, rivers, swamps, lakes and volcanic craters is home to an incredible abundance of wildlife. Have an early morning game drive where you have an opportunity to view the massive Rwenzori as backdrop, which provides excellent opportunities to spot lion, leopard, giant forest hog, Cape buffalo, elephant, defassa waterbuck, Uganda Kob, topi and bushbuck. The game drives and the boat trip (taken prior) are memorable methods of discovering a vast array of Ugandan wildlife. Be sure to have your camera ready for these amazing sightings! | Overnight: Kyambura Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 8: Morning Transfer to Kibale National Park – Relax the whole afternoon at the Lodge or enjoy an optional tea experience or crater hikes or Bigodi swamp walk if you are a keen birder at an extra fee.
| After the great collection of Queen Elizabeth national park, we head to Kibale National Park with a stopover at the equator then proceed following the Rwenzori mystical backdrops to the Lodge. We will reach in time for lunch and later we can sample different optional activities or spend time at the lodge as we wait the next adventure. |
Overnight: Kyaninga Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 9: Chimpanzee Habituation Experience at Ngogo in Kibale National Park
|
After breakfast at your lodge, transfer to the starting point of your Chimpanzee Habituation experience in Kibale Forest National Park which is reputed to have the greatest variety and highest concentration of primates in East Africa. You will spend time in Ngogo with the researchers who will give you information about the chimps which will be of great aid to your blogs. The most famous of its 13 species is the Chimpanzee, man’s closest relative. Kibale’s 1450 Chimpanzee represent Uganda’s largest population of this endangered primate. Kibale is also a home to the rare I’Hoest’s monkey. Other primates include the black and white Colobus, Blue monkey, Grey cheeked mangabey, Red tailed monkey, Olive baboon to mention but a few. So you will enjoy a guided nature walk in the tropical rainforest in search of the wild chimpanzees, red-tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys and many others. |
Overnight: Kyaninga Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 10: Morning Domestic Flight Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park – Afternoon five hour return sundowner private boat trip to the Delta area.
|
After Breakfast, we head to the Airstrip and enjoy a flyover the rift valley escarpment, viewing the verdant lush country side with tea estates and dappled traditional homesteads, we will arrive at the Park only to be welcomed by our guide representative. We may have a game drive enroute the lodge or we can drive straight to the lodge as we calm down for the sundowner adventure. As it approaches sunset, we certainly enjoy our great photogenic exercise towards the delta area with enough caption of the crowded cunning crocodiles, school of Hippos and yet today may be a lucky day for us to see the shoebill stork on a look out for its prey or maybe we can come close to the African Cats busking on nearby rocks and anthills. |
Overnight: Nile Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 11: Morning Balloon Safari – Afternoon Boat trip to the Bottom of the falls, hike to the top of the falls
|
Arise early in the morning and proceed to the starting point of your balloon safari at the Paraa. This early drive in the dark is a chance to see nocturnal animals that live in and around the park. You will meet your pilot and be given a safety briefing and instructions for boarding the balloon as well as landing procedures. The flight gives you great photo opportunities that are different from an ordinary safari on the ground. As you gently drift over the park, you can watch the sun rise as savannah below come to life with birds and animals. After landing, celebrate the flight with a glass of sparkling wine. After the toast, passengers sit down to a delectable bush breakfast prepared by Paraa Safari Lodge. The bush breakfast makes for a memorable ending to your ballooning adventure in Murchison Falls NP. After lunch, go for a sun set 3hrs return boat cruise upstream the calm Victoria Nile to the base of the falls stopping just few of meters from the ‘Devil’s Cauldron’, Marvel at the schools of hippos, crocodiles and over the 17km stretch you may see elephant, waterbuck and Uganda Kob. This is also the zone of many birds, species like goliath heron, Egyptian goose, pelican bee-eater, kingfisher, hornbill, cormorant and the rare shoebill stork. |
Overnight: Nile Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: F/B |
|---|
Day 12: Morning transfer to Ziwa Rhino sanctuary for Rhino tracking - Road transfer to Entebbe, enjoy your afternoon flight back home/next destination
After your early morning breakfast drive Rhino Sanctuary for an opportunity to trek Rhinos at an. There are 15 Rhinos which were reintroduced after their extinction in the 1970s through poaching and now they have multiplied. A local ranger guide will lead you on foot to an up-close encounter with the rhinos and it may take about 1 and half hours. You will have lunch in a selected restaurant and then proceed to Entebbe for your onward flight back home. You may visit the craft shops for souvenir shopping and on this day our office representative will be with you to hear your experiences.
✔ Inclusions
- All ground transportation in A 4×4 pop up roof safari Land cruiser vehicle with fuel
- Domestic flight transfers as per the itinerary
- Value Driven accommodation facilities
- Park entrance Fees for visitors
- Gorilla Habituation experience
- Chimpanzee Habituation Experience
- Batwa Pygmy cultural encounter
- Guided Boat safari to the Punishment island
- Rhino tracking Experience
- Guided Game Drives
- Private Boat safari on Kazinga Channel
- Private Boat Safari to the Delta Area
- Private Boat Safari to the Bottom of the Falls
- Guided Hike to the Top of the Falls
- Well bottled mineral water
- Any other items included in the above itinerary
❌ Exclusions
- International Air tickets
- Visas
- Personal insurance
- Meals enroute
- Personal expenses such as drinks, tips, telephone calls, etc
- Any other items which are not included in the above itinerary