10-Day Uganda Safari: Gorillas, Chimps & Big Game

The shape of the trip: Entebbe → Bwindi (3 nights) → Queen Elizabeth NP (2 nights, plus activity days on either side) → Kibale Forest (2 nights, plus activity days on either side) → Entebbe. This gives you 3 genuine activity days in each park while keeping driving realistic.

Day 1 — Arrive Entebbe

Land at Entebbe International Airport, met by your driver-guide. Overnight near Lake Victoria to shake off jet lag before the long drive/flight south.

Day 2 — Travel to Bwindi (Buhoma sector)

Either a scenic ~8–9hr drive (often broken up with a stop at Lake Mburo) or a ~1.5hr scheduled flight into Kihihi or Kayonza airstrip. Settle into your lodge in time for dinner.

Day 3 — Gorilla Trekking

The headline day. 7:30 am briefing at the Buhoma Ranger Station, then a trek (2–6 hours depending on where the gorilla family is) to spend a magical hour with a habituated mountain gorilla family.

Day 4 — Second Bwindi Activity

Choose between a Batwa cultural trail (life with Uganda’s indigenous forest people), a waterfall hike, birding walk (23 Albertine Rift endemics here), or a second gorilla permit if you want to go again.

Day 5 — Transfer to Queen Elizabeth NP via Ishasha

A scenic ~4–5hr drive north through the Ishasha sector, known for lions that climb fig trees — a built-in game drive en route. Arrive at your lodge by afternoon.

Day 6 — Game Drive & Kazinga Channel Boat Cruise

Morning game drive on the Kasenyi plains (lion, elephant, buffalo, Uganda kob). Afternoon: a 2-hour boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel, one of the best wildlife-viewing waterways in Africa — hippos, crocs, elephants, and huge bird numbers.

Day 7 — Optional Kyambura Gorge Chimps, transfer to Kibale

Morning option to track a smaller chimp community in Kyambura Gorge (“the Valley of Apes”), then a scenic ~2hr drive to Kibale Forest via Fort Portal.

Day 8 — Chimpanzee Tracking, Kibale Forest

Kibale is Africa’s primate capital (13 species). 8am briefing at Kanyanchu, then a 2–4hr trek to find one of the park’s habituated chimp communities.

Day 9 — Chimp Habituation Experience or Bigodi Wetland Walk

Option A: a full chimp habituation permit (up to 4 hours with the chimps, far less crowded than standard tracking). Option B: a relaxed 2.5hr guided walk through Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary for monkeys and birds. Begin the journey back afterward.

Day 10 — Return to Entebbe & Departure

Fly from Kasese or drive (~6hrs) back to Entebbe, with time for souvenir shopping before your international flight out.

Where to Stay

Bwindi Impenetrable NP (3 nights)

Queen Elizabeth NP (2 nights)

Kibale Forest (2 nights)

A few practical notes:

• Gorilla permits (~$800 in Bwindi) and chimp permits (~$250) should be booked 4–6 months ahead, especially for July–August and December–February high season.
• Driving Bwindi–QENP–Kibale covers rough, winding roads — a 4×4 with an experienced driver-guide is essential, or budget for the internal flights to save time.
• Pack waterproof hiking boots, gardening gloves, and a rain jacket — Bwindi trekking can be muddy and steep year-round.

Want me to turn this into a day-by-day PDF or Word itinerary you can save and share, or build out a budget estimate for permits, lodges, and transport?