5 Days Gorilla Trekking and wildlife safari
Overview
This 5 Days Gorilla & Wildlife Safari combines the unforgettable experience of mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park with classic wildlife viewing in Queen Elizabeth National Park. The safari takes you through some of Uganda’s most scenic landscapes, from mist-covered mountains and dense rainforests to open savannah plains and wildlife-rich waterways.
You will trek mountain gorillas in their natural habitat, enjoy game drives in search of lions, elephants, buffaloes, leopards, and antelopes, and cruise along the famous Kazinga Channel, home to one of the highest concentrations of hippos in Africa.
Safari Highlights(Queen Elizabeth Park safari)
- Gorilla trekking
- Nature walks
- Game drive
- Boat cruise
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Transfer from Entebbe or Kampala to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After an early breakfast, your driver guide will pick you up from your hotel in Kampala or Entebbe and begin the journey to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in southwestern Uganda.
The drive passes through beautiful countryside, rolling hills, local villages, and agricultural landscapes. You will stop at the Equator crossing for photographs and continue through Mbarara and Kabale before arriving in Bwindi in the evening.
After checking into your lodge, enjoy dinner and relax as you prepare for the next day’s gorilla trekking adventure.
Accommodation: Buhoma Community Haven Lodge / Bakiga Lodge / Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge / Gorilla Mist Camp
Meal Plan: Lunch and Dinner
Day 2: Gorilla Trekking Experience in Bwindi
Following an early breakfast, transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing by Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers. You will be assigned a gorilla family and receive instructions about gorilla trekking regulations.
The trek takes you through dense rainforest, steep slopes, and thick vegetation in search of mountain gorillas. Depending on the movement of the gorilla family, the trek may last between two and eight hours.
Once the gorillas are located, you will spend one hour observing them in their natural habitat. Watching a silverback protect his family, juveniles playing, and mothers caring for their infants is an unforgettable wildlife experience.
After the trek, return to your lodge for relaxation and an evening surrounded by the sounds of the forest.
Accommodation: Buhoma Community Haven Lodge / Bakiga Lodge / Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge / Gorilla Mist Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 3: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park via Ishasha Sector
After breakfast, depart Bwindi and travel towards Queen Elizabeth National Park through the famous Ishasha Sector.
This region is well known for its tree climbing lions, one of the few lion populations in Africa that regularly rest in fig trees. During your game drive through Ishasha, you may also encounter elephants, buffaloes, topis, and Uganda kobs.
Continue to the northern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park and check into your lodge in the evening.
Accommodation: Buffalo Safari Lodge / Twin Lakes Safari Lodge / Elephant Hab Lodge / Enganzi Game Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 4: Morning Game Drive and Kazinga Channel Boat Cruise
Begin the day with an early morning game drive in the Kasenyi Plains, one of the best wildlife viewing areas in Uganda. The open grasslands attract large numbers of wildlife including elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, warthogs, and lions.
Return to the lodge for lunch before heading to the Kazinga Channel for an afternoon boat cruise. The channel connects Lake George and Lake Edward and is famous for its large concentrations of hippos, crocodiles, elephants, buffaloes, and water birds.
The cruise provides excellent photography opportunities and close views of wildlife gathering along the shoreline.
Accommodation: Buffalo Safari Lodge / Twin Lakes Safari Lodge / Elephant Hab Lodge / Enganzi Game Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 5: Morning Game Drive and Return to Entebbe or Kampala
Enjoy an early breakfast before setting out for a final game drive in Queen Elizabeth National Park. This is another opportunity to search for wildlife and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the park.
After the game drive, begin your return journey to Kampala or Entebbe with a stop for lunch along the way. Arrive in the evening and transfer to your hotel or Entebbe International Airport for your departure flight.
Accommodation: No Overnight Accommodation
Meal Plan: Breakfast and Lunch
Optional Activities
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
- Batwa Cultural Experience
- Gorilla Habituation Experience
- Guided Forest Nature Walk
- Bird Watching Excursion
- Community Coffee Tour
- Waterfall Trail Walk
Queen Elizabeth National Park
- Chimpanzee Tracking in Kyambura Gorge
- Lion Tracking Experience
- Maramagambo Forest Walk
- Crater Lakes Tour
- Katwe Salt Mining Experience
- Bird Watching Safari
- Cultural Community Visit
- Sundowner Experience
- Night Game Drive
- Photography Safari
Tour Includes
- Travel in a 4×4 car
- Professional guide
- Park fees
- Accommodation
- Meals
- All Activities In Itinerary
Tour Excludes
- Alcoholic drinks
- Laundry
- Tips
- Shopping
- Insurance
- Anything not included per itinerary
Gorillas and Queen Elizabeth’s Varied Landscape
This five-day itinerary combines Bwindi gorilla trekking with a fuller stay in Queen Elizabeth National Park than a shorter add-on trip allows, giving genuine time to explore both the park’s northern Kasenyi plains, known for lion and large kob herds, and the southern Ishasha sector, famous for tree-climbing lions resting in fig trees during the heat of the day.
A Kazinga Channel boat cruise, connecting Lake George and Lake Edward, is a highlight of the wildlife component, offering close views of hippo pods, crocodiles and a wide range of water birds from the calm water rather than the dust of a game drive.
Practical Notes
A Uganda e-visa or East Africa Tourist Visa, arranged before travel, is required for most nationalities, along with a yellow fever vaccination certificate if arriving from a country with risk of transmission. Travel insurance covering trekking or wildlife activities and medical evacuation is strongly recommended, and malaria prevention is worth discussing with a travel health clinic ahead of your trip.
US dollars printed after 2009 are widely accepted for park fees, permits and lodge bills, while Ugandan shillings are more practical for tips and smaller day-to-day purchases. Mobile network coverage is generally reliable at lodges and along main routes but becomes patchy inside the parks themselves.
Because permits and lodge availability are limited, particularly during the June to September and December to February peak seasons, we recommend booking this itinerary at least three to four months in advance for peak-season travel.
Tipping is customary though not compulsory. Rangers and trackers typically receive a tip at the end of any trekking activity, scaled to group size, while your driver-guide is usually tipped separately at the end of the full trip. We’re glad to advise on typical tipping ranges when you book.
A private 4×4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof and an experienced English-speaking driver-guide accompany you throughout this itinerary, suited to both park game-viewing tracks and the connecting roads between destinations.
Who This Itinerary Suits
This itinerary suits travelers who want to combine primate trekking with a genuine wildlife component rather than treating gorilla or chimpanzee trekking as a standalone activity. It works well both as a first Uganda safari and as a focused addition to a longer regional trip that already includes Rwanda or Kenya.
Because this itinerary spends meaningful time in two very different environments, dense montane forest for the gorilla trek and open savannah for the wildlife component, packing needs to cover both cool, wet forest conditions and warmer, drier plains weather within the same short trip.
Booking Timeline, Tipping and Logistics
Because permits and lodge availability are limited, particularly during the June to September and December to February peak seasons, we recommend booking this itinerary at least three to four months in advance for peak-season travel, with somewhat more flexibility possible during the quieter shoulder months. Tipping is customary though not compulsory across this trip: rangers and trackers typically receive a tip at the end of any trekking activity, scaled to group size, while your driver-guide is usually tipped separately at the end of the full trip, and we’re glad to advise on typical ranges when you book.
A private 4×4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof and an experienced English-speaking driver-guide accompany you throughout, suited to both park game-viewing tracks and the region’s connecting roads. US dollars printed after 2009 are widely accepted for park fees, permits and lodge bills, while Ugandan shillings are more practical for tips and smaller day-to-day purchases along the way.
Physical Preparation for Gorilla Trekking
Gorilla trekking in Bwindi is graded as moderate to strenuous depending on where the assigned family is ranging that day. Trails climb steep, muddy ridges through tangled vegetation, and altitude in the park ranges from roughly 1,160 to 2,607 metres, so a reasonable level of fitness helps considerably. Porters are available at the trailhead for a small fee and are worth hiring — they carry daypacks, offer a steadying hand on slick sections, and their fee directly supports the local community bordering the park. Waterproof hiking boots with good ankle support, a long-sleeved shirt and trousers to guard against nettles and safari ants, gardening gloves, and a rain jacket are the essentials most trekkers wish they had packed. Because Bwindi sits in a genuine rainforest, showers are possible in any month, so dressing in breathable layers rather than heavy clothing keeps the trek comfortable.
Kazinga Channel Boat Cruise
The Kazinga Channel, a natural waterway linking Lake Edward and Lake George inside Queen Elizabeth National Park, is home to one of the largest concentrations of hippopotamus in Africa alongside Nile crocodiles, buffalo herds and an exceptional variety of water birds including pelicans, kingfishers and African fish eagles. A two-hour launch cruise along the channel is one of the most reliable wildlife-viewing activities in the park because animals gather along the banks to drink, offering close, unhurried sightings that game drives cannot always guarantee. The cruise is included as a core activity on itineraries through Queen Elizabeth and runs at set times in the late morning and afternoon to align with when wildlife activity along the water is highest.
Health and Travel Preparation
Most countries in this region require proof of yellow fever vaccination for entry, particularly if arriving from or having transited another yellow-fever-endemic country, and it is worth checking current requirements with your airline or embassy well ahead of departure. Malaria is present across most safari areas at varying risk levels, so consulting a travel health clinic about prophylaxis, alongside practical measures like insect repellent and covering up at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active, is standard advice for the region. Comprehensive travel insurance that explicitly covers emergency medical evacuation is strongly recommended for any itinerary involving remote parks, since the nearest advanced medical facility can be several hours away by road or air.
Money and Practical Travel Tips
US dollars are widely accepted for park fees, permits and larger payments across the region, though local currency is generally needed for smaller purchases, tips and market shopping, and it is worth carrying a mix of both. Bank notes printed before 2009 are frequently refused at borders and by vendors, so it is worth requesting newer notes from your bank before travel. Tipping guides, drivers and lodge staff is customary and appreciated, though not obligatory, and most lodges and safari operators can advise on appropriate amounts if it is your first visit to the region.
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