18 Day Uganda Rwanda Gorilla and Wildlife Safari
This 18-day Uganda Rwanda gorilla and wildlife safari is designed for travellers who want a longer East Africa journey with more variety than a standard gorilla or wildlife package. The route begins in Uganda with Jinja, Murchison Falls, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth, Bwindi, and Lake Bunyonyi, then continues into Rwanda for Volcanoes National Park, Lake Kivu, Nyungwe Forest, and Kigali. Along the way, the safari combines white water rafting, rhino tracking, chimpanzee trekking, boat cruises, gorilla trekking in both Uganda and Rwanda, golden monkey tracking, Batwa culture, and forest experiences in Nyungwe. It is best suited to travellers who want a broad cross-border safari with primates, classic game viewing, adventure, and scenic contrasts in one itinerary. Rather than focusing on one headline experience, this route gives you a richer picture of both countries, with enough time to enjoy major highlights without reducing the trip to only one type of safari.
Safari highlights
Source of the Nile boat experience in Jinja
White water rafting on the Nile
Rhino tracking at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary
Murchison Falls game drive and Nile boat cruise
Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale National Park
Kazinga Channel boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth
Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Batwa cultural experience and Lake Bunyonyi boat ride
Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park
Golden monkey tracking in Volcanoes
Lake Kivu boat trip in Gisenyi
Nyungwe canopy walk and Isumo waterfall forest walk
Kigali is the endpoint in Rwanda.
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1, Entebbe Arrival and Kampala Overnight
Following your arrival at Entebbe airport, our company driver will welcome you and transfer you to Kampala or Entebbe to check in at your booked hotel. Optional meals, overnight stay at Fairway Hotel for mid-range, Sheraton Kampala Hotel for luxury, Forest Cottages for budget
Day 2, Jinja Source of the Nile Tour and Boat Trip
After breakfast, you will meet your safari driver guide to transfer to Jinja town. Jinja is located in the Eastern part of Uganda, taking about 2-3 hours drive depending on the traffic jam on that road. Upon arrival in Jinja, proceed to check in at your hotel, have your lunch served, and drive to visit the source of the River Nile, and take on a sunset boat trip on Lake Victoria. Return to your booked hotel for relaxation, dinner, and overnight stay at Jinja Nile Resort for luxury or 2 Friends Jinja Guesthouse for mid-range
Day 3, Jinja White Water Rafting Experience
After an early morning breakfast, check out and drive to the starting point of your white water rafting experience. Report for a briefing by the rafting experts, and also get rafting gear. Depending on your ability to raft, you can choose from the 5 grades of rafting provided. This is a full-day activity with lunch and drinks provided. After rafting, have your lunch, then drive to Kampala. Upon arrival in the evening, check in at your booked hotel for relaxation, dinner, and overnight stay at hotel as above
Day 4, Murchison Falls Safari and Ziwa Rhino Tracking
Enjoy a morning breakfast by 6:30 and drive to Murchison Falls National Park. You will have a stop at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for a rhino tracking experience. Rhino tracking takes about 2-3 hours; thereafter, have en-route lunch, then proceed to Murchison Falls through Kichumbanyobo gate. Proceed to visit the top of the most powerful waterfalls, learn about the history of the falls before you drive to check in at your lodge for relaxation, dinner, and overnight stay at Pakuba Safari lodge for mid-range, Nile Safari lodge for luxury, or Tilenga Safari Lodge for budget
Day 5, Murchison Falls Game Drive and Nile Boat Cruise
Early morning breakfast and then go for a game drive where you will spot various animal species like elephants, giraffes, lions, Uganda kobs, among others. Return for lunch at the lodge. In the afternoon, you will go for a launch cruise on the park’s main tourist attraction, the unique Murchison Falls, as well as the River Nile with its streaming hippo and serried ranges of crocodile along the sandbanks, as well as large numbers of different species getting down to drink & bathe. Dinner and overnight at Lodge as above
Day 6, Kibale National Park Transfer and Bigodi Swamp Walk
After early morning breakfast, embark on your journey to Kibale forest national park in the western part of the country with an en-route lunch break. Later in the afternoon, your guide will take you for a nature walk at Bigodi wetland, where you will enjoy the silence but only the whispers and sounds of birds. Bigodi Wetland is where you will experience a lot of birdlife and unspoiled nature, and if you are good at birding, this is a great place to spot various bird species. Later afternoon, connect to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay at Chimpanzee Forest Lodge for mid-range, Chimpundu lodge for luxury, Isunga Lodge for budget
Day 7, Kibale Chimpanzee Trekking and Queen Elizabeth Transfer
After an early morning breakfast at the lodge, connect to Kibale forest for your chimpanzee trekking experience with your packed snacks and water. You will first report to the park headquarters for a briefing before entering the forest for the activity. Trekking takes 2-5 hours, depending on the location 
of the chimpanzees. You will also encounter monkeys and other animals like forest elephants, buffalo, bush pigs, duiker, warthogs, reptiles, as well as a colorful variety of butterflies. On finding the chimpanzees, you will be allowed to spend 1 hour with them. Return to the Lodge for lunch.
After tracking, transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park, en route stop at the equator for pictures and the Katwe salt mine for crater lakes. Later evening, drive for an evening game drive in the Kasenyi area for chances of spotting the park’s residents, such as the elephants, buffaloes, leopards, lions, just to mention a few. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay at Buffalo Safari lodge, Elephant Hub lodge for mid-range, Elephant Plains lodge for luxury
Day 8, Queen Elizabeth Game Drive and Kazinga Channel Boat Cruise
After your breakfast, you will set off on an early morning game drive. where you will encounter animals like lions, leopards, buffalo, elephants, waterbuck, Uganda Kob, and other types of antelopes. Then go back for lunch at the lodge. Afternoon, go for a 2-hour launch cruise along the Kazinga Channel into Lake Edward. This cruise will let you pass through a place of the highest concentration of hippos, and you may also see many animals drinking at the water’s edge. The cruise also offers a good platform for photography, bird watching, and games. Drive back to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay at the lodge as above
Day 9, Ishasha Tree Climbing Lions and Bwindi Transfer
After breakfast, check out and transfer to the Ishasha sector for a game drive and opportunity to see the tree-climbing lions and other animals for about an hour. Thereafter, have lunch and proceed to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and connect to your sector. Check-in for dinner and overnight stay at Buhoma have lodge for mid-range, Mahogany Springs lodge for luxury, Buhoma Community Rest Camp for budget
Day 10, Bwindi Gorilla Trekking Experience
Have breakfast and transfer you to the park offices for a briefing about Gorilla trekking by a local guide. The time taken is usually between 2 and 8 hours, depending on the movement of the gorillas. Meeting the gorillas unexpectedly is one of the most captivating lifetime experiences. You will have a chance to observe and take pictures at very close range. You will observe adults feeding and groaning among themselves. After an hour with the long-awaited gorillas, your guide and rangers will lead you back to the starting point, where your driver will readily be waiting to transfer you back to the lodge. Dinner and overnight stay at the lodge above
Day 11, Batwa Cultural Tour and Lake Bunyonyi Transfer
After breakfast, you will meet up with your driver guide to go for an interesting cultural tour where you will be able to interact with the Batwa people, learn about their culture, tradition, way of living, visit 
their homesteads, listen to their ancient stories, and enjoy their traditional entertainment, among others. After the cultural tour, you will return to the lodge for an early lunch, where you will check out of the lodge and start the journey to Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale. Upon arrival, you will go for an evening boat cruise where you will be able to explore the 29 islands and view different bird species, among others. After the boat cruise, you will drive to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay at Bunyonyi BirdNest Lodge, mid-range, Bunyonyi Arcadia Cottages, for mid-range, Bunyonyi Overland Resort for budget
Day 12, Volcanoes National Park Transfer and Twin Lakes Visit
Wake up for a transfer to Volcanoes National Park. The drive goes through the beautiful countryside and people’s homesteads, along with dramatic views of the Virunga Volcanoes. On arrival at Ruhengeri with en route lunch, enjoy a beautiful view of the twin lakes before you connect to relax at your lodge. Dinner and overnight stay at Da Vinci Gorilla lodge for mid-range, 5 Volcanoes Gorilla Lodge for luxury
Day 13, Volcanoes Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda
Have breakfast and transfer you to the park offices for a briefing about Mountain Gorilla trekking by a local guide. The time taken is usually between 2 and 8 hours, depending on the movement of the gorillas. Meeting the gorillas unexpectedly is one of the most captivating lifetime experiences. You will have a chance to observe and take pictures at very close range. You will observe adults feeding and groaning among themselves. After an hour with the long-awaited gorillas, your guide and rangers will lead you back to the starting point, where your driver will readily be waiting to transfer you back to the lodge. Depending on the time you return from the trekking activity, spend your afternoon relaxing, with dinner and an overnight stay at the lodge above
Day 14, Golden Monkey Tracking and Rwanda Cultural Experience
After early morning breakfast, drive back to the park headquarters for a briefing about the endangered golden monkeys and be allocated a group. Connect to the tracking starting point and enter the forest to 
search for the rare golden monkey. This activity can take about 1-5 hours and is done at a closer view of the other primates in the park, like the red-tailed monkeys and Vervet monkeys, among others. After viewing for an hour while taking pictures and studying their behaviors, return to the base, meet your driver, and have lunch. Later afternoon, spend your afternoon on a community tour visiting the Iby’cuwa cultural village for a Rwanda cultural experience. Return to the lodge for relaxation, dinner, and an overnight stay at the lodge as above
Day 15, Lake Kivu Boat Trip and Gisenyi Stay
After breakfast, connect to Lake Kivu Gisenyi and take a boat cruise to some of the islands of the lake. Spend your afternoon at leisure, relaxing at the lodge. Meals and overnight stay at Lake Kivu Serena Hotel for luxury, Kivu Gorilla Lodge for mid-range
Day 16, Nyungwe Forest National Park Transfer
After your breakfast, transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park. It’s about a 5-hour drive from Gisenyi with great views of the rolling hills of Rwanda and Lake Kivu bordering Congo. Arrive at a good time for 
lunch and check in at your lodge for lunch. Later afternoon, connect for a canopy walk experience – a swing bridge 50 meters in length that is suspended from large trees. You will be able to see the amazing rainforest with a bird’s eye view, spotting wildlife moving about below you, and then connect to your accommodation. Return to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay at Nyungwe One and Only Hotel for luxury, Nyungwe Top Hill View Hotel for mid-range
Day 17, Isumo Waterfalls Walk and Nyungwe Canopy Experience
After having breakfast, you will return to the forest for a forest Nature walk, which will enable you to explore the Park’s unique tourist features, including waterfalls and orchids in the high altitude swamps, and also views of the surrounding areas. Return to the lodge for lunch and spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing. Connect for a canopy walk upon arrival. You will go on a walking trail that will take you to the Canopy Walk, a swing bridge 50 meters in length that is suspended from large trees; you will be able to see the amazing rainforest with a bird’s eye view, spotting wildlife moving below. Thereafter, connect to your booked lodge for dinner and overnight stay at your booked lodge
Day 18, Kigali Departure Transfer
Take an early morning breakfast at leisure, at 11 am as the check-out time for the lodge, meet your driver and embark on your journey to Kigali with an optional visit to the Butare museum and en route lunch. Upon arrival in Kigali, you will be dropped off at Kigali airport for your onward flight
Inclusions and exclusions
Inclusions
Private 4×4 safari vehicle and fuel
English-speaking driver-guide
Accommodation as per the selected category
Meals as specified in the itinerary
White water rafting activity
Park entry fees were applicable
Murchison Falls boat cruise
Kibale chimpanzee trekking permit
Queen Elizabeth game drives and Kazinga Channel boat cruise
Bwindi gorilla trekking permit
Volcanoes gorilla trekking permit
Golden monkey permit
Lake Kivu boat trip
Nyungwe canopy walk
Bottled drinking water in the vehicle
Exclusions
International flights
Uganda and Rwanda visa fees
Travel insurance
Personal expenses
Drinks not included with meals
Tips and gratuities
Optional activities not clearly listed in the itinerary
