Holiday Bazaar Ltd

Day 1: Entebbe Airport - Entebbe

Welcome to Uganda! On arrival, you will be met at the Airport by a Holiday Bazaar representative who will escort you to your safari vehicle and will introduce you to your Driver who will also be your Guide. The first stop will be a short drive to your accommodation where you will be able to relax and contemplate the adventure that lies ahead.

 

Day 2: Entebbe - Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary - Murchison Falls N.P

An early morning rise will enable you to begin your journey to Murchison Falls National Park. The Safari will proceed north towards Masindi and onwards to the park via the southern entrance. The journey to entrance gate will take you through the beautiful Kaniyo Pabidi Forest until the Kichumbanyobo Gate. This journey sees you leave the traditional Buganda Kingdom and move into the area the Bunyoro Kingdom call home.
Any trip towards north-east Uganda just wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Rhino Sanctuary at Ziwa. They provide trained rangers who will guide you through a Rhino Trekking expedition. You will have the opportunity to observe the rhinos at a very close and safe distance. While at the sanctuary you will also encounter a range of other wildlife species including Uganda kobs, reedbucks, oribis, hippos and crocodiles.
Murchison Falls National Park is split into its northern and southern sectors by The Nile that runs east to west through the Park. The majority of visitors access the park from the south and have to cross over to the north at the Paraa Ferry Crossing point using a regular vehicle ferry. On the north bank of the river, networks of game tracks explore the Buligi sector in the west and Chobe in the east.

 

Day 3: Murchison Falls N.P

Game drives in Murchison Falls are incredible. The park is home to all of the Big 5 with the exception of the rhino. Also, resident is the hippo, buffalo, giraffe as well as several antelope and monkey species. Most of the game viewing is done around the Buligi Game tracks in the northern sector of the park. The park also boasts the Nile - Lake Albert Delta which is home to a large number of birds including African fish eagles and the rare shoebill storks.
After lunch, it will be time for a boat ride along the Nile to the foot of Murchison Falls, be sure to have your cameras ready for this one. Expect to see birds perched on tree branches ready to hunt, mammals drinking or cooling down in the river and reptiles basking in the sun on the river banks. One of the highlights of the boat ride is getting up close to Murchison Falls itself, allowing you to feel the awesome power and beauty that comes when the world’s longest river is forced through a 7-meter gap before dropping 40 meters as is continues its journey to the Mediterranean Sea. This trip on the River Nile really harks back to the days of the intrepid explorers of days gone by and the best time to do the trip is at sundown.

 

Day 4: Murchison Falls N.P - Hoima

After breakfast, you will head south-westwards to Hoima Town which acts as a midway stopping point between Murchison Falls National Park and Kibale Forest National Park. There is an interesting blend of rural and town life which you will not get to see anywhere else in Uganda. Hoima Town is historically known as the principal city of the Bunyoro Kingdom.
No trip to the Murchison Falls area would be complete without a trip to The Boomu Women's Group! The Group was formed in 1999 in the village of Kihaguzi with aim of fighting poverty and creating more social and economic development. The Women now run a small-scale accommodation facility that employs local people and is a source of income.
During your visit to the Boomu Group, you will get to see the other activities that they run as part of their diversification to ensure a varied income base. These include handcrafts, weaving bedspreads as well as poultry farming and bee-keeping.
Overnight at Hoima Cultural Lodge I Full board standard room

 

Day 5: Hoima - Kibale N.P

With the anticipation of your Chimpanzee Trek tomorrow the safari will head even further south into the Kibale Forest region. You leave the Bunyoro Kingdom and journey into the heart of the Tooro Kingdom towards the principal city Fort Portal, the only Ugandan town with an English name.
The city sits at the foot of the Ruwenzori Mountains is considered a gateway to many of the National Park in western Uganda, including Kibale, Semliki, Queen Elizabeth, Bwindi and the Toro - Semliki Wildlife Reserves. Look out for the King of Tooro’s grand palace on top of the largest hill in the area.
The Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary is a part of the Magombe Swamp just south of Kibale National Park. A visit to the sanctuary enables you to see rare mammals and birds, like the webbed feet sitatunga as the great blue turaco call this place home. However, if you aren't lucky enough to see them there are still plenty of other animals, including bush pigs, black and white colobus monkeys and over 200 species of birds that inhabit the swamp. The Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary is a community-based programme that supports local residents and encourages a healthy link between tourism and the community it affects.

 

Day 6: Kibale N.P - Queen Elizabeth N.P

Your Chimpanzee Trekking experience has finally arrived! It begins at the Uganda Wildlife Authority HQ at Kanyanchu Gate where your trekking group will head into the forest with a guide after a short briefing. About 1 hour before your group sets off an advance party of guides will have entered the forest to locate where the Chimpanzees spent the night. Once located the advance party send a radio message back to your trekking group so that you can navigate through the forest.
During the trek, you will also get to see the different birds, animals and plant species within the forest. Once you locate the Chimpanzees you can only spend one hour with them this ensures that the Chimpanzees don't become accustomed to human contact.

The excitement of Chimpanzee Trekking will probably still be with you as the safari continues to Queen Elizabeth National Park in the afternoon. Entry will be via the northern sector famous for the Kasenyi Plains and Kazinga Chanel. This part of the safari is all contained within the Tooro Kingdom and you will notice a distinct change in scenery as the lush green crater lake region of surrounding Kibale Forest gives way to the open savannah lands of Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Accommodations:
Overnight at Katara Lodge | Full board 
Overnight at Mweya Safari Lodge | Full board 
Overnight at Baboon Safari Resort | Full board

 

Day 7: Queen Elizabeth N.P    

A game drive in Kasenyi sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park is a great place to see view differing landscape and ecosystems in Uganda. The park is the oldest and the most visited in Uganda. This game drive will take place on the Kasenyi Plains which are in the north-east section of the park and but west of Lake George. There are large numbers of buffalo, antelope, elephant, warthogs, baboons as well and lions and the odd leopard if you are lucky.

One of the highlights of visiting Queen Elizabeth National Park is the boat ride along the Kazinga Channel. The boat ride is a round trip beginning at the Mweya Peninsula and lasting around 3 hours. The Channel is a 32-kilometre long natural channel that links Lake Edward and Lake George. The channel has one of the world’s largest concentration of hippos, numerous Nile crocodiles, buffalo, elephants and a whole host of birds. including African fish eagles, kingfishers, herons, storks and skimmers.

One of the highlights of visiting Queen Elizabeth National Park is the boat ride along the Kazinga Channel. The boat ride is a round trip beginning at the Mweya Peninsula and lasting around 3 hours. The Channel is a 32-kilometre long natural channel that links Lake Edward and Lake George. The channel has one of the world's largest concentration of hippos, numerous Nile crocodiles, buffalo, elephants and a whole host of birds. including African fish eagles, kingfishers, Herons, storks and skimmers.

 

Day 8: Queen Elizabeth N.P - Bwindi N.P
With the Kazinga Channel and the Game drives in the northern part of the park experiences ticked off your list, Queen Elizabeth National Park has a parting gift as you head south towards Bwindi and the Gorillas. The Southern Sector of the park is called the Ishasha Sector and it is famous for the fig tree climbing lions that inhabit this area. Driving this way towards Bwindi will give you an opportunity to catch a glimpse of the lions which make a great photo.

 

Day 9: Bwindi N.P
Your Gorilla Trekking experience is finally here, hope your camera is charged and you are ready for what lies ahead. An early start will see you transfer to the Park Headquarters for a briefing with the Uganda Wildlife Authority guides. An advance party of guides will have gone ahead into the forest to locate where the gorillas slept the previous night and will have begun to track their movements. These guides will communicate with your team via a walkie-talkie and the trek into the forest will begin.
Locating the Gorillas can take a few hours or the whole day depending on how far they have moved from the place they spent the previous night. For conservation purposes, the amount of time allowed with the Gorillas is 1 hour. As you trek through the forest you will appreciate why the forest is called impenetrable. There is also a multitude of other animals that you might encounter including antelopes and rare monkeys not to mention the beauty of the forest itself. Once you have completed the trek you will return to the lodge, for a well-earned rest and time to reflect on a truly magical experience.

At Holiday Bazaar we try and support the communities that we interact with as part of the business we run, with a view to minimizing the impact we have on communities as well as ensuring that they too benefit from our operations. One such community in the Buhoma area of Bwindi is called Ride 4 a Woman. You will get to visit these incredible women and learn more about their story!

 

Day 10: Bwindi N.P - Kihihi Airstrip - Entebbe Airport

After an early breakfast, you will be transferred to Kihihi for your flight back to Entebbe. The drive from your lodge to the airstrip shouldn't take more than one and a half hours.

On your flight back from Bwindi to Entebbe you will be afforded and a fantastic view of Bwindi The Impenetrable Forest from the air. This always gets people thinking just how did I manage to find the Gorillas in all that jungle below? Make sure you have your camera ready or simply enjoy the amazing view. From this high up you can also see the mountains and forests in Congo and Rwanda!

As your time in Uganda has come to an end, we truly hope you have had a memorable experience that you will remember for many years to come. Have a safe onward journey and we hope that Uganda will always be close to your hearts!

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**Prices are per person sharing based on minimum 4 adults travelling together**

 

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