Name: 3 Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking Safari in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Brand: Friendly Africa Safaris
Price: 1450 USD
Availability: InStock

Bwindi National Park and Lake Bunyoyi Safari in Uganda

Let Friendly Gorillas Safaris take you on this remarkable safari to Bwindi National Park - the ultimate gorilla experience. Encounter the gorillas firsthand on your trekking expedition. With a strenuous day trekking, it would be ideal to find a better place for relaxation. That place will certainly be Lake Bunyonyi, a place of little birds. You will transfer to Lake Bunyonyi after the gorilla trekking. Enjoy a swim in the lake before your return to Entebbe.

Key information

Group safari
Group size: 2 - 6 persons
Children policy: Children from the age of 15 years are allowed to participate under the supervision of a parent or guardian.
Starting point and ending point: Entebbe
English-speaking guides
Gorilla permit and park fees are included.

Highlights

Gorilla trekking safari
See the mountain gorillas of Bwindi
Scenic drive through Kigezi Highlands
Visit Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Lake Bunyoyi
Transportation throughout the safari
2 nights accommodation
Gorilla permit included
Daily meals

Styles

Gorilla Trekkings

1 activity days

Group size: 2-6 participants

Airport transfer included: Entebbe International Airport

Program

Day 1: Entebbe to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Hopefully, your flight is scheduled for an early morning landing in Uganda. Your safari will start from Entebbe International Airport (EBB) where you will be picked up by your driver / guide who will brief you about your tour and then depart for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a big habitat for mountain gorillas in Uganda harboring over 300 of them, more reason why it should be your safari destination.

The drive will take you to southwest Uganda by road, cross the Equator then to Mbarara for lunch, and through savannah grasslands to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The scenic drive through Kigezi Highlands (commonly referred to as “the Switzerland of Uganda”) and banana plantations take you to the gorilla sanctuary of Bwindi.

You will arrive in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and will mainly do little but just check in your accommodation, and relax as you prepare for the gorilla trekking experience the next day.

Day 2: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to Lake Bunyoyi

After an early breakfast and a briefing by a ranger guide, you will enter the gorilla sanctuary for your adventure. The beauty of this rainforest is remarkable! The area offers a dramatic steeply forested landscape and is incredibly dense, but crisscrossed by numerous animal trails allowing access to tourists. The time is taken and the terrain varies with the movements of these great primates.

Once you locate a gorilla group, you will be allowed an hour in their presence. The thrill of spending time observing these gentle and endangered giants is an awesome, exciting experience to be long-savored.

After that, return to your lodge. Have your lunch and thereafter, check out for a transfer to Lake Bunyonyi. Lake Bunyonyi is framed by lush, green-terraced hills that reach a height of 2,200 to 2,478 meters but it’s the 29 islands of various shapes and sizes scattered across the water that make it most magical, you could admire them all day.

Day 3: Lake Bunyoyi to Entebbe

You will have a relaxed breakfast then you may opt to enjoy a swim in the lake before you set off on the journey to Entebbe via Mbarara and settle at Igongo Cultural Center for lunch (traditional dishes) but also you will have the option to visit the cultural museum here and embark on your drive to Kampala.

You can make an en route visit at the Equator for more photos and pass through the gift shops to secure yourself memorabilia as a commemoration of your gorilla and wildlife safari in Uganda.

Gorilla tracking rules and guidelines

Mountain Gorillas and humans share a lot in common. They are susceptible to human diseases like cough, etc., and also, mountain gorillas are endangered wild mammals, therefore, to keep both travelers and gorillas safe, there are a few guidelines to follow. Below are some of the rules and regulations when doing gorilla tracking safari in Uganda.

Before trekking the Mountain Gorillas

All travelers must be aged 15 years and above.
Wash your hands before you go Gorilla trekking.
Keep your voice low, by keeping your voice low this enables one to look out for different mammals in the forest, by lowering your voice you will have a chance to see more of the inhabitants of the forest.
Do not leave the rubbish behind during your trek, the animals might eat the rubbish and die; always keep all the rubbish in bags and go back with them.

When you encounter the gorillas

Always stand seven meters away from the gorillas; the more you stand back, the more relaxed they become to continue with their day-to-day life, witness them closely as they eat, play, groom each other, and display their nests, such a beautiful encounter.
Always keep your voice low, however, questions are allowed to be asked in case you need to know more.
Stay in tight groups of eight.
Do not move around, the gorillas may take charge, do not look directly into their eyes, and do not run away as this may increase the risk.
You’re advised not to touch the gorillas as they are wild animals.
Do not eat, smoke, or drink this may leave droppings, causing the gorillas to eat, and might lead to transmission of diseases.
Flash cameras with lights are not allowed during the trek as this may scare gorillas.
The maximum time to spend with the mountain gorillas is one hour. After all that time spent with the mountain gorillas, move 200 meters away and start talking, but in a low voice.
In case gorillas behave wildly, travelers are reminded to copy their movements, by crouching down to calm them down.

General health rules

If you need to use a toilet, you need to dig a hole of about 30 meters, fill and cover it up after use.
Although people with cough and flu are not allowed to trek the gorillas, in case you suffer from such diseases, like airborne diseases you must turn your head around, cough, and sneeze while covering yourself in order not to pass on the diseases.
If one feels ill or carries contagious diseases, you’re advised to stay behind and you will be refunded.

What to bring with you

Flash cameras are not permitted, bring a film camera.
Carry sunscreen, lotion, a hat, insect repellent, and rain gear.
Carry a packed lunch and enough bottled water.
If you don’t feel comfortable with the sound of the jungle, put on earplugs.
Wear comfortable hiking shoes, the forest is steep and slippery.

Location

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda, a glorious verdant swathe across the steep ridges of the Albertine Rift Valley. This ancient rainforest is one of the few in Africa to have flourished and a home to half of the world’s endangered population of mountain gorillas with an estimated number to be 400 individuals.

The Impenetrable Forest Reserve was gazetted in 1942, upgraded to the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in 1992, and recognized as a World Heritage Site in 1994. In the local language, Bwindi actually means “darkness” and this is because of the way the forest is dark with no sunshine passing through the thick forest.

This double warning is apt, for Bwindi is all but impenetrable; 327 square kilometers of tangled vegetation draped over a deeply fissured landscape of steep, slippery valleys and high, droughty ridges.

But if the terrain is far from easy to negotiate, it is well worth the effort. A trek through this thick forest, one of Africa’s most ancient rainforests, in search of the threatened Mountain Gorillas, ranks among the world’s premier wildlife adventures. Bwindi can be cold, particularly in the morning and at night, the coldest months are June and July.

Warm clothing is required plus wet weather gear since Bwindi receives up to 2390 millimeters of rain per year. This is intense during the wet seasons, with short rains from March to May and heavy rains from September to November. Instead of short tropical deluges, rain in Bwindi often falls as long hours of soft drizzles.

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Food

Daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be provided for you during this safari, as well as one bottle of distilled water per day.

The following meals are included:

Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Drinks

The following drinks are included:

Water

The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:

Regular (typically includes meat and fish)

If you have special dietary requirements it's a good idea to communicate it to the organiser when making a reservation

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Day 1: Entebbe to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park