Birding and Primates Safari in the Pearl of Africa Uganda

Day by day itinerary for our 9 days Uganda safari:

Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe International Airport

At Entebbe Airport you meet your safari guide who takes you to the hotel in Entebbe to relax and be ready to set off for the 8 days Birding Uganda safari the next morning.

Overnight: Via Via hotel, Airport link hotel, Bleu Monkey guest house

Day 2: Birding as you Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park 

After early morning breakfast at the Hotel, our travel journey will take us to Kibale forest national park, bird watching En-route lunch around fort portal city the tourism city. This Uganda’s second largest safari park contains Africa’s best game populations as well as some of Uganda’s biggest birding list, an incredible bird list of 450 species.

Overnight: Chimpanzee forest comp, Kibale forest comp, papaya safari lodge

Day 3: Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale forest and community walk

DAY 5: Early Morning Game Drive and Bird Watching Along Kazinga Channel on Boat Cruise

This morning we start early for a bird safari and game drive towards the Kasenyi trail after trying Uganda’s top bird in Queen Elizabeth, The Papyrus endemic Papyrus Gonolek. The drive leads us to the mating ground with grassy plains dotted with the cactus, to the fishing village with a variety of stork species including the Spectacular Saddle-billed, African Open Billed and Woolly necked Storks. Other species include the Bateleur, Grey Kestrel, Lappet-faced, White-backed, Palm-nut Vultures and the award winning rappels vulture in soaring the highest among birds! African Crake, Black Coucal, Common button, Harlequin and Black-ramped Quails, Rufous-naped and Flappet Larks. Common mammals include African Buffalo, Uganda Kobs, leopard and many others. In the afternoon it is time for the boat-cruise on the Kazinga channel, a 36km channel connecting Lake George and Lake Edward, and a highlight during this 8 days Uganda birding safari. Along the banks you can see hippos, buffaloes and crocodiles.

Overnight: Pumba Safari Cottages

Day 6: Bird watching Through Southern Sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park Ishasha

This morning, we shall bird towards Ishasha through the transitional habitat between Lake Edward and Maramagambo Forest. We will see a lot of colorful butterflies along the way. Special birds of this area include Yellow-bill, Pygmy Kingfisher, African mustached warbler, Batleur eagle, Black Bee-eater, Grey-headed Kingfisher, Greater honey guide and White-breasted Negro finch. After this we continue birding to the Ishasha part of the park where we spend the night.

Overnight: Topi Lodge

Day 7: Transfer to Bwindi Forest for Gorilla Trekking  and Bird Watching in Mubwindi Swamp 

After breakfast we leave the flat savanna behind and journey up to the home of the mountain gorillas through cultivated hills and villages to forest covered mountains. We take time to look for birds along the way and target to be at the lodge in time for lunch. In the afternoon we explore the birding possibilities. We could assemble to head for the Mubwindi swamp for the highest concentration of the Albertine endemics aiming to grip on the African green broadbill, Grey cuckoo-shrike, Stripe breasted tit, Chestnut throated apalis, montane oriole, Frasers eagle owl, black billed turaco and Rwenzori batis. This Impenetrable Forest is full of birds, butterflies and plant species plus forest hog; forest Elephants.

Overnight: Broadbill Forest Camp

Day 8: Transfer to Lake Mburo National Park & Safari walk 

Be woken up by a choir of birds before breakfast. We leave Lake Bunyonyi after breakfast driving to Lake Mburo national park where we have lunch at the lodge. In the afternoon we continue our 7 days birding Uganda safari by heading out for a game-drive with views of zebras and impalas as well as birding with chances of seeing yellow throated apalis, red faced barbet, coqui francolin, black cuckoo shrike, Tabora cisticola, pale flycatcher, emerald spotted wood dove, African penduline tit and pearl spotted owlet.

Overnight: Hyena / Eagle next safari lodge

Day 9: Shoebill stork at Mabamba Swamp and Transfer to Entebbe Airport for your Flight 

This morning we visit Mabamba village and its adjacent swamp with chances of seeing the prehistorical looking Great shoebill stork. The road to Mabamba winds its way through areas of secondary forest and agricultural land attracting Red-headed Lovebird, African Crowned-Hornbills, and a range of sunbirds including the Green-headed, Green, Red-chested, Collared, Marico and Scarlet-chested and the African pied Wagtail is common along the road. After these last birding highlights we cross towards Entebbe international airport in time for an evening flight as we have reached the end of our 9 days Uganda birding safari.