Thursday 18 February 2010

uganda big 5 safari

please contact habari @ habariafrica.com for promotional rates for this safari.

+256.779.459.917


day 1

 

Arrival at Entebbe International Airport where clients will meet & greet with our representative before being transferred to Kampala for dinner and over night stay at Cassia Lodge (B).

 

day 2

Early in the morning set off for Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park.

This safari will take a minimum of nine hours. Make a brief stop at the Equator line. The drive takes you through the grasslands of Ankole, whose common sight are the famous long horned cattle; then to the highlands of Kigezi with their beautifully terraced hills.

 

Break off for lunch at either Agip Motel or Lake View Hotel in Mbarara before proceeding with the journey through beautiful scenery. Arrive Bwindi National Park in the evening. This park is home of the rare mountain gorillas. Apart from gorillas, there are a wide variety of primates to see including the blue and red tailed monkeys. The forest itself is lush and green and there are streams running through it. You will check in at Silver back Lodge or Gorilla Safari Lodge. Dinner and overnight stay (B/L/D).

 

day 3

 

After breakfast set off early with your guide to track the gorillas. The thrill of your encounter will erase the difficulties of the potentially strenuous trek. Spend time in awe watching the Uganda Safari gorillas go about their activities. Each encounter is different and has its own rewards, but you are likely to enjoy the close view of adults feeding, grooming and resting as the youngsters frolic and swing from vines in a delightfully playful display. On a clear day as you track the gorillas - you may have a spectacular view of Congo’s Parc National Des Virunga’s, L.Edward and Mountain Rwenzori’s.Return to the camp exhilarated to relieve the encounter with friends over a drink. Dinner and over night at Silver back Lodge or Gorilla Safari Lodge (B/L/D).

 

day 4

 

Early break fast then take on a second day of Gorilla Trekking. This will be done through a different trail and to a different family of gorillas.

You are bound to have a unique experience. If time allows, you could take on a late afternoon community walk. Dinner and over night at Silver back Lodge or Gorilla Safari Lodge.

 

day 5

 

After breakfast, depart northwards for Queen Elizabeth National Park. The drive takes you through the unique western rift valley escarpment (subject to the road condition in this area), you will take on a game drive in Ishasha sector in search of tree climbing lions before proceeding to the Mweya Peninsular; park headquarters. Arrive in the evening and check in at your Lodge. The park boasts of a variety of big game like; lions, buffaloes, kobs, elephants, bushbucks, and the rare occasional leopard.

Have dinner and spend the night either at Mweya Safari Lodge or Jacana Safari Lodge (B/L/D).

 

day 6

 

Rise before the sun and drive to Kyambura Gorge for a thrilling Chimpanzee safari. Your guided walk may last three to five hours and in addition to seeing the chimps, the trip may yield sightings of the colobus monkeys, baboons, red tailed and velvet monkeys, and other primates. It is important to note that the chimpanzee safari is subject to availability of permits and good weather because occasional flooding can make the trails impassable.

 

After lunch, drive to the dock, and take on an afternoon launch cruise on Kazinga Channel, which joins Lakes Edward and George. It is a waterway that is filled with schools of hippos, buffaloes, and elephants, which can be seen at the banks. There are also a rich variety of birds on the channel.

Retire to the lodge for dinner and over night at Mweya Safari Lodge or Jacana Safari Lodge (B/L/D).

 

day 7

Early rise for a morning game drive. Look out for early grazers and hunters. These include hippos, elephants, lions, spotted hyenas and leopards, bushbuck, water buck and stripped jackal, and of course the several warthogs. Visit the saline explosions for the locally mined salts, the processes and people involved. See the role of women in this activity plus the risks at hand.

 

Return to the lodge for lunch and then drive to Kibale Forest National Park through Fort-Portal. Drive along the scenic beauty of the Rwenzori ranges and the stretch of savanna grasslands. Admire the smoke from the Bakonzo homesteads and the glittering tiny iron sheet-roofs on the steep Rwenzori ranges. Dinner and overnight stay at Ndali Lodge or Kibale Safari Lodge (B/L/D).

 

day 8

 

After early breakfast, report at Kanyanchu Tourist Centre where tourist activities begin and set out to track chimpanzee in the forest. Chances of viewing the chimps are over 90% but not a guarantee. Kibale National Park is one of the beautiful and stunning forests in the Uganda. This is home of our closest living relatives the endangered Chimpanzee, the threatened Red colobus monkey and the rare L’Hoest’s monkey.

 

The forest also boasts of having one of the highest diversity and density of primates in Africa totaling 13 species including the Black and white colobus, Blue monkey, Grey-cheeked mangabey, Red tailed monkey and Bush babies and Pottos.

 

After lunch take on a nature walk to the wetlands. View a variety of butterflies, birds and other insects. Have a tour of the crater region around Ndali lodge. Visit the “natural bridge” and “top of the world”. You may also stop over at any tea plantation along the road if you wish. Return to your accommodation for dinner and overnight stay at Ndali Lodge or Kibale Safari Lodge (B/L/D).

 

day 9

 

After breakfast, drive to Murchison Falls National Park with packed lunch enroute. Experience the endless stretch and beauty of savanna grassland that disappears in a mirage. After breakfast, drive to Murchison Falls National Park with picnic lunch enroute. Arrive at Paraa. Stay Nile Safari Lodge or cross by ferry to Paraa Safari Lodge on the northern bank of River Nile for dinner and overnight (B/L/D).

 

day 10

 

Start the day with an early morning game drive on the Buligi, Albert or Queens tracks north of the river Nile. You will most likely be able to view those animals that are unique to the African Savannah like giraffe, antelope, lion, elephant, and the Uganda kob.

 

After lunch, take on a launch cruise along the Nile River. The cruise takes to the Bottom of the thundering falls where you will see huge crocodiles, schools of hippos, buffaloes, elephants and a variety of water birds like herons, cormorants, ducks, bee-eaters, kingfishers, skimmers, fish eagle and the rare shoebill. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight at either Paraa Safari Lodge or Nile Safari Lodge(B/L/D).

 

day 11

 

On this day before you leave the park, take a drive to the “Top of the falls” for a breathtaking sight of the raging Nile as it forces its way through a rocky gap barely six meters wide. This is the point where the Nile River explodes through a narrow gorge and cascades down to become a placid river. Proceed to Kampala from where you will later proceed to Entebbe for dinner and over night stay at Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel (B/L/D).

 

day 12

 

Transfer to Entebbe International Airport from where you will catch up with your out bound flight. End of Safari (B).