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10 days
Daily Tour
Unlimited
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This is our full run through Uganda’s main parks for travellers who have the time and want to do it properly, one road trip covering savannah, forest and lakes rather than a single park visit. It suits people who want both gorillas and chimpanzees in one trip, plus a relaxed finish at Lake Bunyonyi. It is a lot of driving over 10 days, so read the day-by-day carefully before booking.
Two choices affect this trip’s cost and pace more than anything else.
The first is how much of the loop you drive versus fly. As built, this itinerary uses a single vehicle for all 10 days, which keeps the price down and lets you watch the country change from savannah to forest to lakes. You can fly between some sectors instead, most usefully Entebbe to Murchison or Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi, which cuts two of the longest driving days but adds meaningfully to the total cost. Ask us for a fly-drive version if the road time worries you more than the budget.
The second is season, because it moves two things at once. April, May and November bring the gorilla permit down from USD 800 to USD 600, a real saving on a trip with only one permit, but those low-season permits cannot be rescheduled, and the same months bring the heaviest rain, which slows the longer drives between Murchison, Kibale and Queen Elizabeth. June to September and December to February cost more per permit but keep the roads firmer and the whole trip more predictable.
Day 1: Entebbe to Murchison Falls. Pick-up from Entebbe airport, drive north, around 5 to 6 hours with a possible stop at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Afternoon game drive on arrival.
Day 2: Murchison Falls. Morning boat cruise to the base of the falls, afternoon visit to the top of the falls or a second game drive.
Day 3: Murchison to Kibale. A long drive south, roughly 6 to 7 hours through Hoima and Fort Portal, on mostly good tarmac. Arrive in the Kibale area in the evening.
Day 4: Kibale chimpanzee tracking. Morning chimp tracking in Kibale Forest, Uganda’s best site for this, followed by an afternoon walk through Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, good for birds, monkeys and a slower pace after two busy park days.
Day 5: Kibale to Queen Elizabeth. Short drive, around 2 hours, into Queen Elizabeth National Park via the Kichwamba escarpment, with views over the Rift Valley. Afternoon game drive or a Kazinga Channel boat cruise, waters here hold some of Africa’s densest hippo populations.
Day 6: Ishasha sector. Drive south to Ishasha, known for tree-climbing lions that rest in fig trees during the heat of the day, a behaviour rarely seen elsewhere. Game drive in the sector, though sightings of lions in trees are not guaranteed on any given day.
Day 7: Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi. Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, around 3 to 4 hours on winding hill roads. Evening briefing for the next day’s gorilla trek.
Day 8: Gorilla trekking. Full trekking day, briefing at 7:30am, trek duration varies from 2 to 6 hours depending on the family’s location, one hour with the gorillas.
Day 9: Bwindi to Lake Bunyonyi. A short, scenic drive, around 2 hours, to Lake Bunyonyi, one of Africa’s deepest lakes, dotted with small islands. Afternoon free for canoeing or simply resting after a demanding week.
Day 10: Departure. Drive to Kigali or back to Entebbe for onward flights, depending on your route, this leg can run 6 to 8 hours, so an early start is worth discussing with us.
| Months | Season | Gorilla permit price | Crowd levels | Road conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January, February | Dry | USD 800 | Busy, one of the two peak windows | Firm and fast across all sectors |
| March | Short wet spell | USD 800 | Quieter | Starting to soften, still manageable |
| April, May | Wet, low season | USD 600, not reschedulable | Quiet, best availability of the year | Slick and slow on the Kibale to Queen Elizabeth and Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi legs |
| June, July, August, September | Dry | USD 800 | Busiest window of the year, book early | Firm across the whole loop |
| October | Short wet spell | USD 800 | Quieter | Softening again, some delays possible |
| November | Wet, low season | USD 600, not reschedulable | Quiet, good permit availability | Similar to April and May, allow extra transfer time |
| December | Dry, festive period | USD 800 | Busy, especially over Christmas and New Year | Firm, though book lodges early for this period |
The permit saving in April, May and November is real, USD 200 per person on this itinerary’s single gorilla permit, but it is not free money. Those months bring the heaviest rain to the Kibale to Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi stretch, the longest and hilliest driving of the trip, and a low-season permit cannot be swapped for a different day if your trek gets rained out. June to September is the safest all-round choice for first-time visitors who want predictable roads and are less price-sensitive, while December to February works well too, book lodges early since it overlaps with festive travel.
June to September and December to February are the driest windows and the easiest on this itinerary’s longer drives. April, May and November are wetter, gorilla permits drop to USD 600 in that low season but cannot be rescheduled, worth weighing against the extra rain and mud on the roads and trails.
This itinerary crosses four parks and a lake, so lodge tier matters more here than on a single-park trip, since you are choosing it five or six times over.
Budget lodges and camps, roughly USD 40 to 75 per person per night full board, are available in every sector on this route. They keep a 10-day trip affordable, but the trade-offs add up over more nights: less reliable hot water, simpler food, and generator power that may cut out before you want it to.
Mid-range lodges, USD 120 to 220 per night, are what this itinerary is quoted around throughout. Expect solid rooms, dependable meals and staff who know the parks well, without the cost of a full luxury run across 9 nights.
Luxury lodges, USD 350 to 600 per night, are worth mixing in selectively rather than booking for the whole trip. The strongest case for luxury on this route is Bwindi, where a good lodge makes the one rest evening either side of a demanding trek genuinely restorative, and Queen Elizabeth, where the best properties sit right on the Kazinga Channel. Paying luxury rates for all 9 nights adds a large amount to a trip already priced from USD 3,800; most of our clients mix mid-range with one or two luxury nights where it counts most.
Moderate. Most days involve long stretches in the vehicle rather than walking, but gorilla trekking day is genuinely demanding, steep and muddy terrain at altitude, and chimp tracking in Kibale also involves uneven forest paths. Anyone in reasonable general health can manage this trip; porters are available on trek days for those who want the extra support.
Is 10 days on the road too much driving? It is a fair amount, some days run 5 to 7 hours. We space activities either side of the longer drives and use decent roads for most of the route. If you want fewer travel days, ask about flying between some sectors, which shortens the trip but adds cost.
Can we swap Lake Bunyonyi for another day in Bwindi or Queen Elizabeth? Yes, this itinerary is a starting template. Tell us what you would rather do and we will adjust the quote.
Do we need two gorilla permits if there are two of us? Yes, every person entering the forest to trek needs their own permit, priced per person, not per group.
How far ahead should we book, given this trip needs two permits? Earlier than a single-park trip. You need one gorilla permit and one chimpanzee permit, both allocated by their respective authorities with limited daily numbers, and booking one without confirming the other risks a mismatched itinerary. For the June to September and December to February windows, we recommend locking dates three to six months out. Low season, April, May and November, usually has more room, but we would still book several weeks ahead.
Can children join this trip? Gorilla trekking has a strict minimum age of 15, set by the Uganda Wildlife Authority, and chimp tracking in Kibale generally follows the same guidance. Younger children can be left at the lodge for those two activities with a babysitter arranged locally, but on a 10-day trip built around both treks, this itinerary suits teenagers and adults better than young families. For a family trip, our Murchison 4-day safari has no activity age limits.
What should we budget for tips across 10 days? Plan on roughly USD 10 to 15 per day for your driver-guide across the whole trip, so USD 100 to 150 in total, plus separate tips for trackers on gorilla and chimp days, commonly USD 10 to 20 per person per activity, and a smaller daily amount for lodge staff, often left in a shared tip box. Carry a mix of small denomination US dollars and Ugandan shillings, it is easier for staff to split.
Share your travel dates and group size and we will send a tailored quote within 24 hours, checked by someone who has run this exact route.
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