13 Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking and Birding Safari

Day 1: Arrival, bird watching in the botanical gardens.

Upon arrival, our representative who is also your driver and guide from Travel Gorge Tours, will warmly receive you at the Entebbe airport and then give you a briefing about the birding and primate safari. He will then take to your accommodation where you can refresh up, have lunch and in the afternoon enjoy your first birding experience at the botanical gardens in Entebbe.

Meal plan: Dinner

Accommodation Options: Imperial resort hotel (luxury), or The Boma (Mid-range), or African Roots GH (Budget)

Day 2: Transfer to Semliki National Park.

The second day experience will start breakfast, then a re-location to Semiliki national park. There will be birding stop-overs and a luncheon enroute. Upon arriving at the park in the afternoon hours, you shall be ushered into semiliki safari lodge and later, experience bird sighting along the main road. Expect to see the Leaf-love, Orange-cheecked Waxbills, Swamp-palm Bulbul, Magpie Mannikins, Abyssinian & Oberlaender’s Ground-Thrush, Grant’s Bluebill, Yellow-bellied and Jameson’s Wattle-eye, White-browed Crombec, Black-bellied Seed-eater, Ituri Batis, African Dusky, Grey-throated, and Blue-headed Crested-flycatcher, Dusky Tit as well as Capuchin Babbler in Semiliki National park a renowned hot spot for bird sighting in Uganda.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Semuliki Safari Lodge (Luxury), Mountains of the Moon (Mid-range), Rwenzori View Guest house (Budget)

Day 2: Transfer to Semliki National Park.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Semuliki Safari Lodge (Luxury), Mountains of the Moon (Mid-range), Rwenzori View Guest house (Budget)

Day 3: Whole day birding Kirumya Trail

The kirumya trail is the Eastern limit to some of the Guinea- Congo biome species. That is where we shall enjoy a whole day’s birding experience right after having breakfast. The the Red-billed Dwarf, Long-tailed Dusky, Black-casqued Wattled, Dusky Long-tailed Dusky, Black-dwarf, Piping, African Emarald, White-thighed Hornbill, African Dwarf Kingfisher, Long-tailed Hawk, White-crested Hornbill, Chocolate-backed Kingfisher, African piculet, Shining-blue Kingfisher, Forest Robin, White-bellied Kingfisher, Zenker’s Honeyguide, Forest Francolin, Rufous-sided broadbill, African Green Ibis, Black-throated Coucal, Pale-fronted Negrofinche, Black-winged Oriole, Green-tailed Bristlebill, Red-rumped Tinkerbird, Forest Scrub-robin, Nkurengu rail, Rufous-breasted Sparrowhawk, Chestnut-breasted Negrofinche, African Pygmy Kingfisher, Blue-billed Malimbe, Swamp Palm Bulbul, Chestnut-flanked Goshawk, Red-bellied Malimbe, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Leaf-love, Yellow-throated Cuckoo, Woodhouse’s Antpecker, African Cuckoo, White-naped Pigeon, Hartlaub’s Duck, Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Fire-crested Alethe, Nahan’s Francolin as well as the Brown-chested Alethe among others. In the evening, you will return to your accommodation for dinner and the night’s rest.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Semuliki Safari Lodge (Luxury), Mountains of the Moon (Mid-range), Rwenzori View Guest house (Budget)

Day 4: transfer and explore the Sebitoli site in Kibale National Park

Right after having breakfast, with packed lunch, we shall head to Sebitoli sector for the days birding experience. Sebitoli sector is believed to be the best birding site in Kibale forest. A birder should therefore expectto see specials like the Pink-footed Puff Back, Olive Long-tailed Cuckoo, Ludher’s Bush-shrike, African black-duck, Bocage’s Bush-shrike, Joyful, Cabanis, Velvet-mantled Drongo, Toro Olive Greenbuls, Cameroon Sombre Greenbuls, Dusky Tit, Dark-backed Weaver, Red-capped Robinchat, Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Red-tailed Bristlebill, Superb Sunbird, Yellow whiskered, Little Green Sunbird, White-throated Greenbul, Grey-headed Sunbird, Blue-shouldered Robinchat, Green-throated Sunbird, Green-breasted pitta, Blue-throated Sunbird, African pitta, Tiny Sunbird, Green Twinsport as well as the Brown and Scaly-breasted Illadopsis. Later in the evening, you will head to your accommodation for the nights rest.

Meal Plan: Breakfast, lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Ruboni community camp

Day 5: Full day birding in Rwenzori National Park

Upon having breakfast, with packed lunch in arm, we shall set off towards Rwenzori National Park. Expect to see special birds like the purple breasted sunbird, Yellow-browed Camaroptera, Abyssinian crimsonwing, Olive-green Camaroptera, Red faced crimsonwing, cassin’s hawk eagle, Shelly’s crimsonwing, Ayres hawk eagle, Dusky crimsonwing, Grey apalis, Green-backed & Dusky Twinspot, forest flycatcher, White-collared Oliveback, stripe breasted tit, Yellow-bellied Waxbill as well as Woodhouse’s antipecker among other species. in the evening you will return to your accommodation where you will spend the night.

Day 6: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park.

After breakfast, we shall set face towards Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. We shall reach there through the Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National park and depending on sheer luck; we might be able to see the famous tree climbing lions. We hope to bird along the Munyaga trail, where we can look out for species like the Red faced Woodland-Warbler, Sulphur-breasted Bush-shrike, White-headed Barbet, Neumann’s Warbler, African Golden Oriole, Short-tailed Warbler, Yellow-bellied Waxbill, Grauer’s Rush-warbler, Yellow-fronted Canary, White-tailed Ant-Thrush, Ayre’s Hawk-eagle, Olive Thrush, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, White-bellied Robin-chat, Black Bee-eater, Equatorial Akalat, Bronze-naped Pigeon, Ansorge’s Greenbul, Red-chested Owlet, Toro Olive-Greenbul, Tullberg’s Woodpecker, Archer’s Ground Robin, Elliot’s Woodpecker, Grey Cuckoo-shrike, African Broadbill, Petit’s Cuckoo-shrike, Lagdens Bush Shrike, Western Green Tinkerbird as well as African Green Broadbil. Once in Bwindi, you will check-into your accommodation where you will dine and spend the night.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Buhoma Lodge (Luxury), Haven Lodge (Mid-range), Buhoma Community Rest Camp (Budget)

Day 7: Whole day birding in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

Bwindi Impenetrable national parkis established along theAlbertineriftvalley. This makes it Uganda’s number one bird watching spot. We can expect to see special species like Equatorial Akalat, Black-faced Rufous, White-bellied Robin-chat, Grauer’s Warbler, Ashy Flycatcher, Short-tailed Warbler, Banded Prinia Apalis, Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher, Black-faced Apalis, Dusky-blue Flycatcher, Black-throated Apalis, Mountain Masked Apalis, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Red-throated Alethe, Black-billed Weaver, White-bellied Crested Flycatcher, Chinspot Batis, Black and White Shrike, Rwenzori Batis, Waller’s Starling, African Hill-babbler, Narrow-tailed Starling, Pale-breasted and Mountain Illadopsis, Stuhlmann’s starling, Stripe-breasted and Dusky Tit, Grey-headed and Bocage’s Bush-shrike, Blue-throated Brown Sunbird, Strange Weaver, Northern Double-collared Sunbird, Doherty’s Weaver , , Rwenzori Double-collared Sunbird, Pink-footed and Northern Paffback, Brown-caped Weaver, Blue-headed Sunbird, Regal Sunbird, Mackinnon’s Fiscal plus the Mountain-black and Sooty Boubou. After breakfast, we shall follow the waterfall trail in the Buhoma area of BwindiImpenetrable forest to watch these birds.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Buhoma Lodge (Luxury), Haven Lodge (Mid-range), Buhoma Community Rest Camp (Budget)

Day 8: Gorilla Trekking,

Buhoma will serve as the base for our gorilla trek because it is where the Park’s headquarters are. Even though trekkers should prepare to be in the forest all day, sight seeing for the day will depend on where the gorillas are. An hour with the gorillas is enough to create an unforgettable encounter. We shall pitch overnight at the Buhoma community camp or Gorilla Forest Camp.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Buhoma Lodge (Luxury), Haven Lodge (Mid-range), Buhoma Community Rest Camp (Budget)

Day 9: Birding in Ruhiija sector – Bwindi National Park.

We shall go birding to Ruhija.We expect to encounter Key species like Gray Apalis, Mountain Wagtail, Red-throated Alethe, Dusky Twinspot, Honeyguide Greenbul, Oriole Finch, Red-tailed Greenbul, Bar-tailed and Narina Trogon, Shelley’s Greenbul, Ayres’s Hawk-eagle, Cassin’s Grey Flycatcher, Doherty’s and Grey-headed Bush Shrike, African Black Duck, Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Banded Prinia, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, Grey-throated Barbet, Red-headed Malimbe, Black Chin-spot Batis, Black-billed Turaco, Fine-banded Woodpecker, Dwarf Honeyguide, Red-tailed, Bee-eater, Common Buzzard, Mountain Greenbul, Mountain Buzzard, Yellow-streaked Greenbul, Augur Buzzard, African, Tree Pipi as well as the Shrike-flycatcher.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Bakiga Lodge, (Mid-range), Broadbill Forest Camp (Budget)

Day 10: Birding in Mubwindi Swamp – Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

After breakfast, We shall follow the 4km trail to Mubwindi Swamp for a whole day’s birding experience. This trail drops from 2350m to 2050m and this makes it the best place to find some of the rarest of all rift endemics. among them are the Grauer’s Warbler, Strange Weaver, African Black and Scarce Swift, Black-headed Waxbill, Handsome Francolin, Archer’s Robin-chat, African Green Broadbill , Regal Sunbird, Eastern Mountain-greenbul, Blue-headed Sunbird, Grauer’s Rush Warbler Grauer’s Broadbills, Archer’s Robin-Chat, Regal Sunbird, Dwarf Honeyguide, Blue headed Sunbird, Bar-tailed Trogon, Stripe-breasted Tit, Purple-breasted Sunbird, African Green Broadbill, Ruwenzori Apalis, Ludher’s Bushshrike, African Hill Babbler, Stuhlmann’s Starling, Rwenzori Hill Babbler, Montane Nightjar, Grauer’s Scrub-Warbler Handsome Francolin, Carruthers’ Cisticola, Waller’s Starling, Fraser’s Eagle-Owl and the White-headed Woodhoopoe.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Bakiga Lodge, (Mid-range), Broadbill Forest Camp (Budget)

Day 11: transfer to Lake Mburo national park.

After our morning breakfast, our birding experience will start as we move towards Lake Mburo National Park, through the terraces. Terraces are the main way that the locals do farming in the areas of Kabale and the rolling hills of Mbarara. It is in Mbarara that we shall have our lunch and then enter the park as we have a mini birding experience. We shall later have our dinner at our accommodation and spend the night there.

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Mihingo Lodge (luxury), Rwakobo Rock (Mid-range), or Eagles Nest (Budget)

Day 12: Birding around Lake Mburo National Park and Boat cruise

Right after breakfast, we shall move around Lake Mburo National park for our birding experience. Then we shall have lunch and enjoy a boat cruise on the lake. We hope to see special birds like the Brown-Chested Lapwing, Short-toed Eagle, Red-faced Barbet, Papyrus Gonolek, Crested Barbet, Papyrus Gonolek, Lilac-breasted Roller Lapwing, White-backed Night-Heron, Emarald-spotted Wood-Dove, Black-crowned Heron, Scaly-throated Honeyguide, Coque Francolin, Red-headed Weaver, African Finfoot, Long-tailed Cisticola and the Brown Snake-Eagle among others

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation Options: Mihingo Lodge (luxury), Rwakobo Rock (Mid-range), or Eagles Nest (Budget)

Day 13: morning Nature walk, departure.

Our Early morning expedition will start with bird sighting along the shores of lake Mburo. We hope to see the night dweller and anything else we could have missed the day before. We also hope to see a spread of wildlife for example Topis, Leopards, Waryhogs, Impalas, Buffalo’s, ClipSpringers,Reedbacks and Zebras. This will be the concluding experience because after this, we shall head back to the lodge for a late breakfast, check out and begin on the drive back to Kampala or to the airport for your flight home.

This shall mark the end of our birding experience.

Tour Includes: