This 8-day Uganda gorilla and chimpanzee safari travels the length of the country’s wild west: two nights in Kibale Forest, two in Queen Elizabeth National Park and three in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Chimpanzee and gorilla permits are included, and the whole journey is planned with Dexter Kariuki and guided by his trusted Ugandan partner.
Kibale is the place to track habituated chimpanzees on foot, the forest ringing with their calls as you close in. Queen Elizabeth adds a classic savannah safari, with a boat trip along the Kazinga Channel past hippo, buffalo and elephant, and the famous tree-climbing lions of the Ishasha sector.
The journey ends in Bwindi, where Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers lead you through steep rainforest to spend an hour with a mountain gorilla family. Gorilla trekking is open to travellers aged 15 and over, and permits sell out early for the dry months.
From Entebbe, fly west to the crater-lake country around Fort Portal. Your partner guide drives you to a lodge on the edge of Kibale Forest, where the evening fills with the sounds of the canopy.
Set off with UWA guides into the forest. The pant-hoots grow louder until you find the chimpanzees feeding, squabbling and swinging overhead. An afternoon walk through the nearby wetlands for monkeys and birds.
Drive south through tea plantations and down into Queen Elizabeth National Park, its plains running to the Rwenzori Mountains. An evening drive for elephant, buffalo and Uganda kob.
A morning game drive, then an afternoon boat trip along the Kazinga Channel, gliding past hippo pods, buffalo at the water’s edge and elephants coming down to drink.
Head south through the Ishasha sector, scanning the fig trees for lions resting in the branches, then climb into the hills of Bwindi.
The day you came for. Rangers lead you through the forest to a gorilla family, and you spend one remarkable hour in their company.
A gentle forest walk or a visit to the community on the park’s edge, or simply rest at the lodge after yesterday’s trek. A second gorilla permit can be added on request.
Fly from Bwindi back to Entebbe for your onward international connection.
5 days Fly into the misty hills of south-west Uganda for four nights in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and two gorilla treks, the closest and most moving wildlife encounter in Africa. Permits included.
9 days Big cats on the Masai Mara with Dexter, then a flight to Uganda for mountain gorillas in Bwindi and the tree-climbing lions of Queen Elizabeth. East Africa's two greatest wildlife experiences in one trip.
Tell Dexter when you'd like to go and he'll check permits first, then build the route around them.
It's in Nairobi Dexter replies usually within a day