For travellers whose priority is primates, this seven-day journey gives Kibale and Bwindi enough time to feel different. Chimpanzee tracking is fast, vocal and socially complex; gorilla tracking is quieter, ground-based and shaped by steep forest. The route includes recovery time rather than making every day a transfer.
Journey at a glance
- Duration: 7 days / 6 nights
- Route: Entebbe – Kibale – crater lakes – Bwindi – Entebbe
- Style: Private premium great-apes journey
- Key experiences: Kibale chimpanzee tracking and Bwindi gorilla tracking
- Price: From USD 4,850 per person sharing for two guests
Why seven days?
Kibale and Bwindi are not neighbouring forests. Seven days allows two proper nights around Kibale, a considered transfer south-west, three nights around Bwindi and a flight back to Entebbe. It avoids placing a long road day immediately after each primate trek.
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1 — Entebbe to Kibale
Take a scheduled flight towards Kasese or travel by the routing confirmed for the departure. Meet your private driver-guide and continue through crater-lake and tea-growing country to a lodge positioned for Kibale’s Kanyanchu trailhead.
Day 2 — Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale
Join UWA guides in Kibale’s tall forest. Chimpanzees may travel quickly and vocalise through the canopy, so the experience can involve sudden movement and uneven ground. The guides control approach, viewing time and group conduct.
Day 3 — Crater lakes and the forest-edge landscape
Keep a slower day around the wider Kibale–Fort Portal landscape. Choose a guided crater-lake walk, birding or a carefully run community wetland visit. The day provides recovery while giving context to the farms, wetlands and forest fragments around the national park.
Day 4 — Kibale to Bwindi
Drive south-west in a private 4×4. The route is chosen around road conditions and the confirmed Bwindi permit sector, with a proper lunch and comfort stops rather than a rushed arrival.
Day 5 — Gorilla tracking in Bwindi
After the UWA briefing, enter Bwindi with rangers, trackers and an optional porter. The trek length cannot be predicted because the gorillas move through a large, steep forest. Once located, follow ranger instructions and experience the permitted viewing period at the position the animals allow.
Day 6 — A second day with Bwindi
Recover at the lodge and choose a forest, birding or community-led activity appropriate to the sector. A second gorilla trek or habituation experience can be requested well in advance; extra permits and route changes are quoted separately.
Day 7 — Bwindi to Entebbe
Transfer to Kihihi or Kisoro according to sector and fly to Entebbe. Add an Entebbe night if the international connection does not leave a safe buffer.
Price and inclusions
From USD 4,850 per person sharing for two guests. Included are one gorilla permit, one Kibale chimp permit, the stated domestic flight, a private 4×4 and WAE driver-guide, six nights with listed meals, the stated crater-lake or wetland activity, drinking water and operating support.
International flights, visa, insurance, optional second permits, porters, tips, drinks and luxury upgrades are excluded.
Permit and health note
The latest public UWA tariff listed USD 800 for foreign non-resident gorilla tracking and USD 250 for Kibale chimpanzee tracking. Current tariffs and availability are reconfirmed before deposit. Guests with contagious illness must not join primate tracking, and all UWA ranger decisions are final.
Start a conversation
Enquire about 7-Day Uganda Great Apes Journey
Dates, group size and a rough idea are enough. Tell us where you would like to go and what matters most; we will reply with honest advice and a clear next step.
