8-Day Uganda Safari with Chimps, Gorilla Trekking and Queen Elizabeth

This is one of the few listings in the catalog where both primate permits sit inside the headline price. The gorilla permit alone is worth $800 for foreign non-residents under the current Uganda Wildlife Authority tariff, and chimpanzee tracking in Kibale is $250 until the end of 2026. Add park entrance fees, accommodation, all meals, the boat trips, a private 4x4 and a driver-guide, and the $3,429 figure starts to look tight.

Here is exactly what is in and what is out.

The listing itemises its inclusions and exclusions. The permit, visa and park fee lines below come from the official Uganda Wildlife Authority tariff and the immigration service.

Day 1 is a transfer day. The driver-guide collects you at Entebbe airport, if you land before 2 pm, or at your Entebbe or Kampala hotel, and drives you to a lodge on the edge of Kibale Forest National Park for the night. Day 2 starts at the rangers' post with a briefing on the rules, then you head into the forest with an experienced ranger-guide.

Kibale is the best-known chimp forest in Uganda, and the listing promises you will be surprised by how many primates you encounter there.

The one hour with the chimps

Once you locate the chimpanzees, you get a full hour in their presence. That is the UWA rule for standard tracking, and it is the same one-hour limit that applies to gorillas. Keep 10 m away, do not eat, drink or smoke near the primates, and skip the trek entirely if you have a cold or any infectious illness.

After lunch at the lodge you drive on to Queen Elizabeth National Park, with a free optional game drive in the late afternoon if time allows. The night is at Kazinga Wilderness Safari Camp.

Pack for the forest before you leave Entebbe. The treks here and in Bwindi run on steep, muddy and slippery trails.

• Hiking boots and long trousers
• Rain jacket, since rain can fall in any month
• Garden gloves for gripping vines and nettles
• Sunscreen, sunglasses and insect repellent
• Water and a packed lunch or snacks
• Some cash for a porter, UGX 40,000 per UWA's listed fee

Day 3 is the classic Queen Elizabeth double. You are up early for a game drive on the Kasenyi plains, looking for Cape buffalo, elephant herds, lions and leopards, though the listing warns leopards are hard to spot. After a rest and lunch at Kazinga Wilderness Safari Camp comes the afternoon boat trip: two hours on the Kazinga Channel, which connects Lakes George and Edward.

Hippos in numbers, elephants and crocodiles at the water's edge, plus a long list of birds. A brief late afternoon game drive afterwards is optional. Day 4 starts with a relaxed breakfast and the drive south into the Ishasha sector.

Tree-climbing lions, with honest odds

Ishasha is famous for lions that rest in fig trees, and the listing puts the chance of spotting them at about 60 to 70 percent. They are hardest to find when they are down in the grassland hunting. If you do find them in a tree, the listing calls the sight memorable.

From Ishasha you continue to the edge of Bwindi National Park and check in at Gorilla Mist Camp for the night before the trek.

Trek day. After breakfast you move to the rangers' post for the briefing, where rangers split permit holders into groups of up to eight, one group per gorilla family. Advance trackers set out early and radio back, so your walk follows the family's movements.

Bwindi is steep, dense rainforest crisscrossed by animal trails, and the time taken varies with where the gorillas are that morning, anything from a short walk to several hours. Bwindi protects around 459 mountain gorillas, almost half the world's population, across 25 habituated groups, and the park sits between 1,160 m and 2,607 m above sea level.

The hour and the rules

Once you reach a gorilla group you are allowed one hour with them. The UWA rules apply for the whole visit: keep a 10 m distance, no eating, drinking or smoking, no flash photography, and stay away if you are ill. The UWA minimum age for tracking is 15, which is why this listing sets its minimum at 15.

Afterwards you check out and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi, framed by green-terraced hills reaching 2,200 to 2,478 m and scattered with 29 islands. You sleep at Lake Bunyonyi Eco Resort. If you want more depth on how the trek works, the Bwindi gorilla trekking guide covers the sectors and trailheads.

Day 6 is the detail most gorilla trips skip: a full rest day. After long drives and the strenuous trek, the day is yours. All meals are served at the resort, and if you want to get active again your guide can arrange something locally at an extra cost.

This is the honest edge of the listing, because most itineraries put you straight on a long road the morning after the trek.

Game drive, walking safari and the road home

Day 7 takes you to Lake Mburo National Park, the smallest of Uganda's savannah parks, home to giraffes, zebras, impala, eland, buffalo and the elusive leopard. You check in at Hyena Hill Lodge and head out for a late afternoon to evening game drive. Day 8 starts with a guided bush walk in the company of an armed UWA ranger, meeting zebra, giraffe, eland, topi and Cape buffalo at close range, then climbs to a viewpoint over nine of the twelve lakes around the park.

After checkout you drive back to Entebbe airport for a flight at 6:30 pm or later. If eight days is more than you need but two primates are still the goal, the 5-day version linked in the quick answer above is the closest alternative.

This listing suits travellers who want the whole western Uganda circuit in one trip and would rather not juggle separate permit purchases. Both permits, all park fees, all meals, all lodging and the boat trips are pre-paid, so the main extras are the $50 visa, drinks, tips and insurance. The private format means your group only in the vehicle, with a driver-guide throughout, and the vehicles are wheelchair accessible with infant seats available on request.

Honest limits to weigh before booking.

• Minimum age 15 per the UWA gorilla tracking rule, and the listing caps adults at 80
• Minimum two travellers
• At least a moderate level of fitness is required, and the listing is not recommended for travellers with spinal injuries or poor cardiovascular health
• Cancellation is full refund 6 or more days out, 50 percent between 2 and 6 days, nothing inside 2 days

If that cancellation window is too tight, several catalog tours keep free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start, including the 3-day Bwindi trek with the Batwa Trail. If you want more time with the primates than the standard hour, the Private 5-Day Gorilla and Chimpanzee Habituation Experience in Uganda spends four hours or more with each group.

Against the rest of the catalog, this 8-day trip is the longest and the most complete, and it is the only one combining chimps, gorillas, a savannah park and a boat cruise. The 5-day primates trip covers chimps and gorillas but drops Queen Elizabeth, Ishasha and Lake Mburo. The short Bwindi treks cost less but cover gorillas only, and the day trips from Kigali are permit-extra and brutal on driving time.

Permit-included totals are shown where they apply. For permit-extra listings, the total column adds the $800 gorilla permit. Figures current for Q4 2026.

Note that UWA has already published a rise from 1 January 2027: chimpanzee tracking in Kibale goes to $300 and gorilla tracking stays at $800. Since 1 March 2026, UWA no longer holds unpaid permit reservations, so a permit is only secured on full payment at booking.