11 days Birding Safari

Day 1: Arrival and Pick up

Upon your arrival at Entebbe International Airport our team will be ready to transfer you to the booked accommodation for relaxation and treating the lag of travel.

Depending on the arrival time and how you would be feeling, we can have optional bird watching around Entebbe, basically on the shores of Lake Victoria and the Entebbe Botanical Gardens, where we’ll see both forest and lakeshore birds.
Our first bird species could include the Palm-nut Vulture, 11 Days Birding Safari, Great Blue Turaco, Eastern Gray Plantain-eater, African Pied Hornbill, Splendid Glossy Starling, the rare Orange weaver, and many others.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Hotel No. 5
Mid-luxury: Boma Hotel
Standard: Airport Guesthouse

Meal plan: Dinner

Day Two: Birding to Masindi

Enjoy a morning breakfast and thereafter, we drive to Masindi where we can have our lunch through the Nakasongola plains that have open undulating grasslands and mosaic woodland where we have lots of opportunities to see birds.
Our target bird species here will be the White-crested Turaco, Bronze-tailed Starling, lesser Blue and Great Blue Eared Starlings, Black, Yellow Mantled, and Black Winged Bishops, White Headed Barbet, Cardinal and Nubian Woodpecker, Lesser, and Greater Honeyguide.

Saddle Billed Stork in the swamps after Luwero, we have also chances of seeing the Rufous Bellied Heron, Banded Snake Eagle, Eastern Chanting Goshawk, and many more as we pass through the forest.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Standard: Masindi Kolping

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Day 3: Full-day birding, game drive at Murchison Falls National Park

You will enjoy undoubtedly the boat trips to the bottom of the falls and to the delta area, and more emphasis will be on one bird that will be everyone’s target, the Shoebill while at the delta. Superb views can be had of this wonderful bird along the Nile River. There will be other birds including the Red-throated and Northern Carmine Bee-eater. Mammals such as Rothschild’s Giraffe, Lions, Leopards, Cape Buffalo, Elephant, Waterbuck, and many others will be viewed. Other birds to look out for include the Saddle-billed, Yellow Billed, and African Open Billed Stork, African Finfoot, Hauglins Falcon, Senegal Thick-knee, Rock Pratincole, Giant, Woodland, Grey Headed, Malachite, Pygmy and striped Kingfishers.

On the game drive we look out for Heuglin’s Francolins Black Billed Barbet, Northern and Red Faced Barbet, 11 Days Birding Safari, Swallow-tailed and Blue-breasted and Northern Carmine Bee-eaters, Abyssinian Rollers, the giant Abyssinian Ground Hornbills, Black Winged and Northern Red Bishops. The Patas Monkey will be the primate to look out for on this day.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Paara Safari Lodge
Mid Luxury: Twiga Safari Lodge
Standard: Fort Murchison Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Day 4: Birding as we drive to Kibale National Park

After breakfast, drive a long journey with numerous stopovers in the birding spots.

Enjoy birding in the papyrus swamps where specialties such as White-winged Warbler and Papyrus Gonolek can be found, while the surrounding scrub may harbor, Double-toothed Barbet, Black-bellied Seed cracker, and Gray-headed Olive back as well as the forest patches along.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Ndali Lodge
Mid Luxury: Isunga Lodge
Standard: Kibale forest camp

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Day 5: Chimpanzee trekking and birding in Kibale Forest National Park

On this day, you enjoy the most rewarding Kibale Forest which is home to 13 species of primates and rare species of birds.

This is where we have the chance to see the Chimpanzees. Birding in the forest is also very rewarding and you could encounter White-naped Pigeon, African Gray Parrot, Black Bee-eater, Hairy-breasted, Yellow Spotted and Yellow Billed Barbet, Chestnut-winged and Purple-headed, Waller’s and Narrow Tailed Starlings, Blue-throated Brown and Superb Sunbirds, White-collared Olive back and most importantly the Blue-breasted pitta.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Ndali Lodge
Mid Luxury: Isunga Lodge
Standard: Kibale forest camp

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Day 6: Enjoy the day with an enormously discovery of Queen Elizabeth National Park’s vast birdlife of over 600 species.

Lots of species on the search that include among others the Wahlberg’s, Brown Snake, Short Toed Snake and Martial Eagles, Red-necked Spurfowl, Black-rumped and Common Buttonquails, African Crake, Hollub’s Golden and Lesser Masked Weavers, Black Coucal, Black Lored and Arrow Marked Babbler, Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl Copper, Scarlet Chested and Red-chested, Broad Tailed and African Moustached Warbler.

An afternoon boat trip along the Kazinga Channel looking out for water birds that roost in between the Edward and George lakes. Adjacent meets with the biggest schools of Hippos and some crocodiles.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Elephant Plains Lodge
Mid Luxury: Marafiki Lodge
Standard: Bush Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 7: Birding through Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Start the morning with a cup of coffee and transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest birding en route.

Game viewing in the Ishasha sector which provides chances of viewing the tree-climbing lions and other game, look out for grassland birds including; Pipits, Larks, African Cuckoo Hawk, Black Cuckoo, White Winged Black Tit, Ovambo Sparrow Hawks, many more proceed to Bwindi Ruhija the most recommended spot by international birders.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Chameleon Hill Lodge
Mid Luxury: Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
Standard: Rushaga Gorilla Havens Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 8: Gorilla Trekking and birding in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

An early breakfast and head to the briefing point for allocation of the gorilla family and thereafter, take on the Gorilla tracking experience.

The Birding option for those not interested in Gorilla tracking, will start after breakfast and go out birding looking out for the Black-billed and Rwenzori Turaco, Western Green Tinkerbird, Olive, Elliot’s, and Fine-banded Woodpecker, African Green-Broadbill, Mountain, Yellow whiskered and Yellow-streaked Greenbul, African Hill Babbler, Mountain Illadopsis, Grey Cuckoo Shrike Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Grauer’s Warbler, Mountain Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-throated Apalis, Collared Apalis, Stripe-breasted Tit, Rwenzori Batis, Montane Sooty Boubou, Blue-headed Sunbird, Regal Sunbird.

Back to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Chameleon Hill Lodge
Mid Luxury: Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
Standard: Rushaga Gorilla Havens Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 9: Birding as we drive to Lake Mburo National Park

After morning breakfast, drive to Lake Mburo National Park while birding en-route While in Lake Mburo, we shall look out for mammals like the Zebra, Eland, Topi, Impala, Cape Buffalo, Warthog, and more as well as bird species that are hardly seen like the African Finfoot, White Backed and Black Crowned Night Heron, Giant Kingfisher.

A night drive always produces good views of the Black Shouldered, northern Tanzania Fiery Necked Nightjar, nocturnal mammals, and Bush Babies.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Mihingo Lodge
Mid-Luxury: Arcadia Cottages
Standard: Eagles Nest Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 10: Birding in Lake Mburo and drive to Kampala

The morning will start with breakfast and an early search for special savannah birds like the Yellow Bellied Apalis, Green Capped Eremomela, Buff Bellied Warbler, White Winged Tit, Red Billed Wood Hopoe, the special birds for today’s drive will be the Tabora Cisticola, Red Faced Barbet and Coqui Francolin.

Brubru, Sulpher Breasted Bush Shrike, Red Headed Weaver, Green Backed and Uganda Spotted Woodpecker, African Black Headed Oriole.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Hotel No.5
Mid-Luxury: Boma Hotel
Standard: Airport Guest House

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 11: Birding in Mabamba Bay and departure

After breakfast, we take a boat trip around the shores of Lake Victoria in search of the shoebill stork and many more bird species. 

Later drive to have lunch and wait for the transfer back home.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

No accommodation

Meal Plan: Breakfast and Lunch

INCLUSIONS

• • Vehicle, Safari Van + Fuel
  • Transport in 4X4 Vehicle/Landcruiser with pop roof
  • English speaking Guide/ driver
  • All meals as indicated in the itinerary
  • Accommodation as per the itinerary
  • Park Entrance fee
  • Bottled water while on the safari
  • Gorilla and chimpanzee permits
  • Activities as stipulated in the iinerary.