The one-week special of the Uganda Wildlife Safari is the best reward for travelers seeking to watch the full list of Big Five games. The trip starts in Kampala with two major destinations: Murchison Falls National Park and Kidepo Valley National Park. Activities to engage in will include wildlife game viewing, boat cruises, community visits, community camping, forest walks, and rhino tracking, among others.
Day 1: Drive to Kidep Valley National Park
Today I will meet your car delivery guy and pick up your car rental. Then we will embark on a drive to Kidepo Valley National Park. This is a long day of driving, meaning it should start in the early morning hours. Along your drive, you will be en route to either Gulu or Kitgum town for lunch, depending on the time. Then we will proceed with a scenic drive to the park, which we will reach in the late evening hours. Check-in at your lodge, enjoy your dinner, and relax after the exhaustion of the day.
Dinner and overnight
Luxury: Apoka Lodge
Mid-range: Kidepo Savannah Lodge
Day 2: Explore Kidepo Valley National Park
With an experienced park ranger to guide you through the dwells of the park. Kidepo is among Uganda’s most rewarding national parks, with great encounters among which include prides of lions, leopards, herds of elephants, buffalos, several antelope species, several bird species, zebras, giraffes, and many other wild species. The drive will continue through the scenic golden savannah, alongside acacia woods. The game drive will last for at least 3 to 4 hours when enjoying a glance at the amazing dwells of the park.
Then, you will return to your lodge for refreshment, enjoy your lunch, and take an afternoon visit to the Karamoja community. Here, you will enjoy the Karamoja narrations and their lifestyle stories. There are dancing presentations in which you have to engage. Then I will return to your lodge for dinner and overnight.
- Luxury: Apoka Lodge
- Mid-range: Kidepo Savannah Lodge
Day 3: Visit the Karamoja communities in Moroto.
Following the delicious morning breakfast, we will drive to Moroto and spend the day exploring the depths of the Karamoja people. This will include visiting the Manyatta communities; the experience is guided by Karatunga cultural experts. You will have a chance to taste the local beers and spend the night in the communities of the Karamojas. The lunch and dinner meals will be enjoyed accordingly at Karatunga Camp.
Day 4: En route to Murchison Falls National
Today we will take a drive to Murchison Falls National Park, and while driving, we will enroute to the magnificent Aruu Falls in Padar district along your route to Gulu. Then we will drive via Gulu with lunch en route, and finally, in the late evening hours, we will be at Murchison Falls National Park.
Luxury: Chobe Safari Lodge
Mid-range: Pakuba Safari Lodge
Budget: Heritage Safari Lodge
Day 5: Explore Murchison Falls National Park
We suggest a packed breakfast and take an early morning game drive, which is the only space to see sunrise arrays. It’s an amazing moment to encounter the wild under the arrays of the sunrise. Imagine sipping and enjoying your breakfast under the legs of the sunrise. Just know that a game drive at Murchison is full of amazing things, and expect to watch some of the Big Five animals (lions, leopards, elephants, and buffalos). There are larger schools of hippos in the delta, the highest concentration of antelope species, towers of giraffes and warthogs, several bird species, and a lot more. The game drive takes several made-up driving trucks that will all converge at the delta that has the highest concentration of animals.
After a game drive, we will relax, and then after the delicious lunch, we will embark on a Victoria Nile boat ride to the bottom of one of the world’s most powerful waterfalls. The boat ride takes about 2 hours and is packed with views of various wildlife on the banks of the river and aquatic life, including monitor lizards and crocodiles, several water birds, and amazing features like cliffs, among many encounters on the boat cruise. Then we will drive back to your lodge and relax for another day, dinner, and overnight.
Luxury: Chobe Safari Lodge
Mid-range: Pakuba Safari Lodge
Budget: Heritage Safari Lodge
Day 6: Rhino tracking and night at Kampala
This morning, following your breakfast, you will drive to the top of the falls and watch the amazing flow of rapids forcing into the narrow gorge. Feel the moist view of the falls, then drive to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary to track only wild rhinos in Uganda. This gives a complete list of the Big Five games after watching lions, elephants, leopards, and buffalos in Murchison and Kidepo. Then, with lunch en route, we will drive back to Kampala and spend an overnight here in a newly booked hotel.
Day 7: Explore Kampala
Kampala is the genesis of all adventures in Uganda; there is a lot to discover. We will have to reach the Mengo palace for cultural tales about the Buganda Kingdom, Kasubi tombs, and Gaddafi Mosque. Then you will drive to Entebbe, drop off at the airport, and board your next flight back home.