10-Day Grand Uganda Safari

Expect the day to center on Ziwa Rhino tracking on foot and Riverside lodge arrival. Travel north from Entebbe, stopping at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary — the only place in Uganda to see wild rhinos. Walk through the sanctuary's grassland with armed rangers, tracking Southern white rhinos on foot until you stand just meters from these magnificent two-ton animals. Travel onward to Murchison Falls National Park and settle into your riverside lodge overlooking the Victoria Nile.

• Ziwa Rhino tracking on foot
• Riverside lodge arrival

Day 2 is built around Northern bank game drive and 3-hour Nile boat cruise. Early morning game drive on the northern bank. The vast savannah is home to Rothschild's giraffe, elephant herds, lion prides, buffalo, Uganda kob, and Jackson's hartebeest. Following lunch, embark on a spectacular 3-hour boat cruise upstream toward the base of Murchison Falls. Hippo pods line the banks, massive Nile crocodiles bask on sandbanks, and the birdlife is extraordinary — African fish eagles, goliath herons, and the rare shoebill stork. The thundering falls exploding through a 7-meter gap are memorable.

• Northern bank game drive
• 3-hour Nile boat cruise
• Murchison Falls
• Shoebill stork

The focus today is Optional Budongo Forest chimps and Scenic Albertine Rift. Morning optional chimpanzee walk in Budongo Forest. Travel south through the scenic Albertine Rift to Kibale Forest National Park — the primate capital of the world. The drive passes through Fort Portal surrounded by tea plantations and volcanic crater lakes. Reach your forest lodge in the afternoon.

• Optional Budongo Forest chimps
• Scenic Albertine Rift
• Fort Portal crater lakes

Today's route brings together Chimpanzee tracking — 1 hour and Bigodi Wetland — 200+ bird species. Morning chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest — spend one memorable hour with a habituated chimpanzee community watching them groom, feed, play in the treetops, and communicate with complex vocalizations. Kibale is also home to red colobus monkeys, L'Hoest's monkeys, and grey-cheeked mangabeys. Afternoon guided walk through Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary — a community-run conservation project with exceptional birdlife (over 200 species) and additional primate sightings.

• Chimpanzee tracking — 1 hour
• Bigodi Wetland — 200+ bird species

Expect the day to center on Kasenyi Plains game drive and Uganda kob displays. Travel south to Queen Elizabeth National Park. The afternoon is reserved for a game drive on the Kasenyi Plains — the park's most wildlife-rich sector where large herds of Uganda kob perform spectacular mating displays, elephants move in family groups, buffalo herds darken the plains, and lions survey their territory from the shade of euphorbia trees.

• Kasenyi Plains game drive
• Uganda kob displays
• Lions and elephants

Day 6 is built around Kazinga Channel — hundreds of hippos and Ishasha tree-climbing lions. Morning boat safari on the Kazinga Channel — hundreds of hippos line the banks alongside enormous Nile crocodiles, elephants bathing, buffalo drinking, and staggering birdlife. Following lunch, drive to the Ishasha sector — famous for its tree-climbing lions draped along fig tree branches, a rare behavior seen regularly only here and in Tanzania's Lake Manyara.

• Kazinga Channel — hundreds of hippos
• Ishasha tree-climbing lions

The focus today is Ishasha lions scanning and Stunning highland scenery. Travel through the Ishasha sector scanning fig trees for more lion sightings, then continue through striking highland scenery — terraced hillsides, volcanic crater lakes, and misty forest-covered mountains. Reach your Bwindi lodge. Evening gorilla trekking briefing.

• Ishasha lions scanning
• Stunning highland scenery
• Gorilla briefing

Today's route brings together Mountain gorilla trekking — 1 hour and Silverback encounters. The pinnacle — gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, a UNESCO World Heritage Site home to approximately half of the world's remaining mountain gorillas. Trek into the dense, misty ancient forest with experienced trackers. Spend one memorable hour sitting just meters from a gorilla family — watching a 200-kilogram silverback beat his chest, mothers cradling tiny babies, juveniles wrestling in the undergrowth. The direct eye contact with a wild mountain gorilla is widely regarded as one of the most profound wildlife experiences on Earth. Celebration dinner.

• Mountain gorilla trekking — 1 hour
• Silverback encounters
• Life-changing experience

Expect the day to center on Optional Batwa cultural visit and Lake Bunyonyi — 29 islands. Morning optional Batwa pygmy community visit for cultural performances and stories. Travel to Lake Bunyonyi — the 'Switzerland of Africa' — a breathtakingly beautiful lake surrounded by steep terraced hillsides and dotted with 29 islands. Afternoon canoe trip on the calm waters, paddling between islands as kingfishers flash overhead. Reflect on an extraordinary journey.

• Optional Batwa cultural visit
• Lake Bunyonyi — 29 islands
• Canoe trip

Day 10 is built around Optional morning canoe and Scenic return drive. Final morning enjoying the serene beauty of Lake Bunyonyi. Following breakfast, drive back to Entebbe (approximately 7-8 hours). The drive passes through rolling hills of southwestern Uganda with spectacular rural scenery. Reach by evening. Transfer to airport or hotel. Safari ends.

• Optional morning canoe
• Scenic return drive