Day 1 — November 4: Kigali Arrival & Transfer to Bwindi (Rushaga)

Your adventure begins with an early arrival at Kigali International Airport, where your driver-guide will be waiting to meet you after you clear customs and immigration. From Kigali, it’s approximately a 4 to 5-hour drive southwest to the Rushaga sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, crossing the Rwanda-Uganda border at the Katuna crossing point. The drive itself is part of the experience — winding through Rwanda’s famous “thousand hills,” terraced farmland, and small trading towns before descending into the misty, forested hills of southwestern Uganda that give Bwindi its name.

Rushaga sits in the southern part of Bwindi and is known for having the highest concentration of habituated gorilla families in the park, making it a strategic base for the following day’s trek. Once you arrive, you’ll check in to Gorilla Haven Lodge, where you can settle into your room, enjoy a warm lunch or afternoon tea depending on arrival time, and take in views of the forested ridges that will be your trekking ground the next morning. The remainder of the afternoon is free for rest and acclimatization — a good opportunity to have your guide brief you on trekking logistics, gear requirements (waterproof layers, gaiters, sturdy hiking boots, gardening gloves for the vegetation), and what to expect. An early dinner and early night are recommended, since gorilla trekking briefings typically start around 7:00–7:30 AM.

Day 2 — November 5: Gorilla Trekking, Then Transfer to Queen Elizabeth NP for Chimp Tracking

Rise early for breakfast before heading to the Rushaga park headquarters for your trekking briefing, where rangers assign trekking groups based on family location and difficulty level. The gorilla trek itself is unpredictable in duration — anywhere from 1 to 6 hours of hiking through dense forest and steep terrain to locate one of Rushaga’s habituated gorilla families, including well-known groups like Nshongi, Mishaya, Busingye, or Kahungye. Once located, you’ll spend a magical, regulated hour observing the gorillas — watching family dynamics, feeding behaviour, and possibly a silverback’s commanding presence — before hiking back out.

After the trek, you’ll return to the lodge to clean up, have a late lunch, and then begin the transfer north to Queen Elizabeth National Park, specifically toward the Kalinzu Forest Reserve, which lies just outside the park’s boundary and is a prime chimpanzee tracking site. This drive is a substantial one — roughly 4 to 5 hours — winding through gravel road – Kabale Ishaka – Rubirizi to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Given the physical demands of the morning trek, this is a long travel day, so factor in rest stops.

By evening, you’ll arrive at Engazi Lodge, check in, and enjoy dinner while your guide briefs you on the next morning’s chimp tracking logistics. Since chimpanzee treks in Kalinzu typically begin very early, an efficient dinner and early bedtime are advisable.

Day 3 — November 6: Chimpanzee Trek & Return to Kigali for Onward Travel

Your final day starts before dawn with an early breakfast (or a packed breakfast if timing is tight) ahead of the chimpanzee tracking briefing at Kalinzu Forest, usually scheduled for 6:00–7:00 AM to catch the chimps before they move deeper into the canopy to feed. Kalinzu is one of Uganda’s lesser-crowded but highly rewarding chimp tracking sites, home to a large community of habituated chimpanzees along with black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, and rich birdlife. The trek can last 2 to 4 hours depend on how far the chimp community has ranged overnight, followed by an hour of observation once located.

Given the long return journey ahead, timing is critical this day. After the trek, you’ll head back to the lodge for a quick wash-up and early lunch before beginning the long drive back to Kigali — roughly 5 to 6 hours depending on the border crossing and road conditions — to connect with your onward international flight to Johannesburg. Given this tight timeline, it’s worth confirming your Johannesburg flight’s departure time in advance and potentially opting for a packed lunch en route rather than a sit-down meal, to build in a buffer for border formalities and any traffic around Kigali.

This itinerary is physically demanding, combining two separate primate treks with substantial cross-border driving, so stamina, flexibility, and a well-organized driver-guide are essential. If you’d like, I can also map out backup timing options in case the November 6 flight departs earlier in the day, since that would tighten the chimp trek and return-drive window considerably.

Note; you need to have an East African visa (multiple entry to avoid making more payments through border crossings)

Safari Cost $1625 per person

The safari package includes the following:

• All ground transportation
• Professional private guide
• Accommodation on a mid-range, full-board basis
• 2 Gorilla trekking permits
• 2 Chimpanzee habituation permits