11-Day Gorillas and Big Five in Uganda Rwanda & Burundi

Transfer From Entebbe  to Kibale Forest National Park

From Entebbe, embark on a 6–7-hour morning drive to Kibale Forest National Park, renowned for its rich primate diversity. Arrive in the afternoon and check in at your lodge for lunch before heading out for the Bigodi community experience.

Begin with a coffee farming experience, where you will learn about the local methods of planting, harvesting, and processing coffee. Continue with a visit to a women’s community group to discover traditional handicraft-making techniques, and conclude with an introduction to the local banana brewing process and its cultural significance.

After the experience, return to the lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Chimpanzee Tracking Experience
Start the day with an early morning chimpanzee tracking experience in Kibale Forest. Begin with a briefing from the park rangers, then head into the forest for a 2–4 hour walk to track a chimpanzee family. Once you find them, spend up to 1 hour observing and photographing their behavior—watch how they feed, interact, and move through the forest. The experience ends around midday.

Afterward, embark on a 2-hour drive to Queen Elizabeth National Park, with a lunch stop along the way. You will also stop at the Equator line monument for photos.

Arrive at your lodge around 3:00 PM, check in, and take some time to relax. At 4:00 PM, head out to the Kasenyi Plains for an evening game drive across the savanna, where you may spot a variety of wildlife. The drive ends around 7:00 PM, after which you return to your lodge for the night.

Explore Kazinga Channel and Kasenyi Plains 

Start with an early morning game drive to search for lions, elephants, buffaloes, leopards. Late Morning enjoy a boat safari along the Kazinga Channel, a wildlife-rich waterway teeming with hippos, crocodiles, and diverse bird species. Watch elephants and buffaloes gather along the shores.

Conclude the day with a transfer to Ishasha Sector famous for the tree climbing lions.

Track Tree climbing lions at Ishasha sector 

This morning marks your final game drive in Uganda, focusing on the rare tree-climbing lions of the Ishasha sector. Drive through the remote parts of the park and enjoy a picnic breakfast at a riverside site near the Congo border. The experience ends around 11:00 AM.

Drive  to a roadside café for a 1-hour lunch break and refreshment before a 2–3 hour drive to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, home of the endangered mountain gorillas.

Arrive at your lodge near the forest in late afternoon, around 5:00 PM, and settle in to rest ahead of the next day’s gorilla trekking experience.

Gorilla Trekking Experience 

Gorilla trekking, the highlight of this safari, begins after an early breakfast and a transfer to the park offices for a briefing by park officials about the gorilla conservation efforts. You will then head into the forest with rangers and fellow visitors to track a gorilla family.

The hike can take anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours, depending on where the gorillas nested the previous night. Once you find them, spend up to 1 hour observing them at close range—watch mothers feeding their young, juveniles playing, and the dominant silverback keeping watch over the group.

After the experience, exit the forest and enjoy a short picnic lunch. Then drive about 1.5 hours to the Rwanda border, immigration formalities typically take around an hour. Continue with another 1.5-hour drive to your lodge near Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda.

Golden Monkey Tracking Experience
Golden monkeys are endangered primates found only in Uganda and Rwanda within the Virunga Massif. This experience supports ongoing conservation efforts to protect these playful species, which were once close to extinction.

The day begins with a briefing, followed by a hike that can take between 30 minutes to 4 hours, depending on the location of the monkeys. The experience usually ends around midday when you encounter them in the bamboo zones of the Virunga ranges, often near local communities. Golden monkeys move in troops through the forest canopy and are commonly seen feeding on bamboo shoots, their favorite seasonal food.

After the tracking experience, visit the Gorilla Guardians Village for a cultural experience and learn more about Rwanda’s traditions and way of life. Return to your lodge for lunch, then transfer about 2 hours to Lake Kivu, arriving at your lakeside lodge near the Congo border.

Boat excursion on Lake Kivu of Rwanda

Lake Kivu, Rwanda’s largest lake, is shared with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Enjoy a boat ride along the shoreline to visit local fishing villages and small lakeside communities near the Congo border. You may also take a short walking tour of a local market, where traders from Goma- Congo often cross over to sell their goods.

Walk to  the border line and observe daily life on the Goma side. If the security situation at the time of your visit allows, you may choose to cross into Goma for a brief city and market experience (this requires a valid entry visa).

In the afternoon, begin a 3-hour drive to Kigali with a lunch stop along the way. Arrive in the late evening and relax at your hotel.

Kigali City Cultural and Historical Tour
Often described as Africa’s cleanest city, Kigali boasts a very organized society and well-built infrastructure. Start with historical visits to the Kigali Genocide Memorial and the Belgian Peacekeepers Memorial to understand the history of the genocide, which was fueled by ethnic divisions between the Hutu and Tutsi people.

These cultural differences existed even before colonial times and later influenced the formation of Rwanda and Burundi, which were once part of the same kingdom. 

After the historical and cultural tours, visit a local craft market for souvenirs. End the city experience with a local cuisine meal, then drive 2 hours to your lodge near Akagera National Park. 

Game Drive to Search Black and White Rhinos

After an early breakfast at your lodge, set out with a packed lunch and drive to the park entry gate for registration. Begin your game drive from the southern part of the park, heading north.

Explore areas around water sources where wildlife often gathers. Expect to see a variety of animals, including rhinos, Masai giraffes, antelopes, zebras, and buffaloes. On a good day, you may also spot lions and leopards. Enjoy a picnic lunch during the drive.

Afterward, return to your lodge for the evening and overnight stay. 

Cultural Experience at Gishora Drums Sanctuary

Start with a 2-hour drive to the Rusumo border. It’s advisable to order a packed lunch from a restaurant on the Rwanda side before crossing into Tanzania, as food options along the route are limited.

Spend about 1 hour completing immigration formalities into Tanzania, then continue with a 1.5-hour drive to the Kobero border with Burundi. Allow another hour for immigration procedures before entering Burundi.

Proceed with a 3-hour drive to Gitega, with a picnic lunch stop along the way. You will arrive in the late afternoon at the Gishora Drum Sanctuary for a traditional drum performance, showcasing Burundi’s rich drumming culture passed down through generations.

After the experience, transfer to your hotel for the night. 

Bujumbura City Tour And Departure

Drive 2–3 hours to Bujumbura, enjoy a short city drive to explore key landmarks and learn more about the political and cultural history of Burundi and Rwanda, which were once part of the same kingdom, from the Burundi perspective.

In the late evening, prepare for your departure flight, marking the end of your safari experience.