Popular: gorilla permit · best time · chimpanzee · itinerary
Sample Itinerary
This 7 day Uganda gorilla safari is our most popular route for first-time visitors.
Parks: Lake Mburo NP, Bwindi Impenetrable NP, Queen Elizabeth National Park
Highlights: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi, with the sector chosen to suit your fitness and lodge, Game drives in Lake Mburo and Queen Elizabeth, including Ishasha’s tree-climbing lions, A Kazinga Channel boat cruise past hippos, buffalo, elephants and waterbirds
Best For: First-time visitors who want both mountain gorillas and a classic savannah safari in a single week.
Group Size: Private vehicle, any group size from solo travellers to families
Want a tailored quote for this route?
Send Us Your BudgetDay 1
Arrive in Entebbe. Your driver-guide meets you at Entebbe International Airport and takes you to a hotel near Lake Victoria for a quiet first evening. If you land early, the Entebbe Botanical Gardens or the shoreline make an easy first outing.
Day 2
Entebbe to Lake Mburo. A drive of about four to five hours, with a stop at the Equator. After lunch at your lodge, an afternoon game drive in Lake Mburo National Park looks for zebra, impala, eland, buffalo and topi — Uganda’s best park for zebra.
Days 3–4
Lake Mburo to Bwindi. An optional early boat trip or guided walk at Lake Mburo, then a scenic drive of about five to six hours through the terraced hills of Kigezi to your lodge in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Your guide goes through the next day’s trek with you over dinner. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi. An early briefing at the sector headquarters, then the trek to your assigned gorilla family. The walk can take from under an hour to most of the day; once you find the family you spend one hour with them. The rest of the afternoon is free to rest or join a community walk.
Days 5–6
Bwindi to Queen Elizabeth via Ishasha. A drive of about four to five hours north through the Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park, with a game drive to look for lions resting in the fig trees. Continue to your lodge in the north of the park, near Kasenyi or the Kazinga Channel. Queen Elizabeth game drive and boat cruise. An early game drive on the Kasenyi Plains, the best area for lions, elephants and Uganda kob — or, if you prefer, chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura Gorge. In the afternoon, a two-hour boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel, one of the best wildlife experiences in Uganda.
Day 7
Return to Entebbe. A full day’s drive back to Entebbe, about seven to eight hours, arriving in time for evening international flights. You can also take a scheduled flight from an airstrip near the park to save the drive.
Your quoted price covers accommodation for every night on the route, all ground transport in a private 4x4 with an experienced driver-guide, and park entry fees for each park visited, including the gorilla trekking permit and the chimpanzee tracking permit. Fuel and the driver-guide's costs across the full route are built into the quoted price rather than billed separately.
Excluded, as with every Uganda itinerary we quote: international flights, visa fees, travel insurance, tips for your driver-guide and gorilla trekking porters, and personal spending such as drinks and souvenirs. We itemise all of this clearly when we send your formal quote, so nothing arrives as a surprise once you're on the ground.
Lodging across the route is mid-range by default — the properties can be swapped for budget or luxury alternatives at the same locations without changing the underlying route, activities or duration. Tell us which tier fits your trip and we'll send a revised, fully itemised quote.
Start Planning
Good To Know
Seven days is enough to trek gorillas and enjoy a proper savannah safari without rushing. To add full chimp tracking in Kibale or Murchison Falls, allow ten days or more.
Lions, elephants, buffalo and, with luck, leopards live in Queen Elizabeth. There are no rhinos on this route; they are found at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary on the way to Murchison Falls.
Yes. Bwindi’s southern sectors are only a few hours from Kigali, so the route can be run from Rwanda, which shortens the first day’s drive. See Kigali vs Entebbe for gorilla trekking.
Trekking boots, long trousers, gardening gloves and a rain jacket for Bwindi, plus light layers, a hat and binoculars for the savannah. Our Uganda safari packing list covers everything.
Yes. Many couples follow this route with upgraded lodges and a night at Lake Bunyonyi added after the trek.
Tell us your travel dates and the kind of lodges you like. We will confirm gorilla permit availability, fit the route around your flights and send an itemised quote, adjusting any day to suit you.
