Sleep in the Heart of Primate Paradise. Kibale Forest Camp offers an affordable classic canvas experience in the form of 10 African safari-style tents tucked away in a lush forest.
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Gorillas and Chimps Tour
Gorilla tracking in Bwindi and chimp walking in Kibale. Meet our closest relatives in one trip.
Meet gorillas and chimps
Once in a lifetime encounters with mountain gorillas and chimpanzees in the afromontane and tropical rainforests of Uganda.
What has this trip to offer?
- Staying in the beautiful accommodations of Nature Lodges.
- You can choose “Lazy” camping (the tent is ready and fully equipped, showers and toilets are shared) or a room in the Lodges.
- All accommodation is on BB basis.
- All transport is in 4WD Landcruisers with a pop-up roof and for everybody a comfortable window seat.
- Guaranteed visit to world famous Mountain Gorillas (not included in the price, this is USD $800).
- Chimp tracking in Kibale National Park (include in the price).
Day to day
Early in the morning we will pick you up from the hotel or guesthouse of your choice and leave for Kibale Forest. In the afternoon we will arrive at Kibale Forest Camp, sleeping with the sounds of the tropical rainforest.
Driving time: ± 6,5 hours
Budget Tour: Kibale Forest Camp – “Lazy” camping
Comfortable Tour: Kibale Forest Camp
At 08.00 am we will start with the 4 hour chimp walk – during which you may also get to see 10 other primates! Kibale park is also known for all the butterflies and birds. In the afternoon we will walk through Bigodi Swamp (home to a community based project).
Early morning after breakfast start (8 AM) the drive to Kabale for lunch. From here the journey takes us through a beautiful landscape called the “Switzerland of Africa”. We pass mountains, hills and lakes with cultivated terraces, tropical rainforest and bamboo forest. On the last hill the landscape unfolds beneath us, in the vast plane of Uganda, Rwanda and Congo the Virunga volcanoes dominate the view. Down is Kisoro where we will stay in the famous Travellers Rest Hotel if staying in Kisoro. Just outside Kisoro, this unique hotel offers a cozy stay for the tourists, who come to see the endangered mountain gorilla. The hotel, built in a somewhat colonial style, and entirely renovated in 1999, has a comfortable ambiance. In the sixties the famous American ‘gorilla-woman’ Dian Fossey visited Hotel Travellers Rest many, many times to do paperwork, to relax or to meet people. Fossey said about the hotel: ,,It was my second home.”
IF STAYING AT GORILLA VALLEY LODGE A long cherished dream of an Africa enthusiast came true in 2013: The Establishment of the lodge in the South of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest NP. Gorilla Valley Lodge is situated at the southern edge of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park on a hill near Rushaga, close to Rushaga Uganda Wildlife station. Gorilla Valley Lodge a ‘medium range hotel’, consists of 12 rooms, with spacious private bathrooms, Toilets, Dining/Waiting area beautifully situated in lowland evergreen Forest allowing breathtaking views of the African Eden, rich with wildlife and at a close distance the majestic Virunga Volcanoes. Every room has been lovingly furnished with twin beds and decorated in a modern retro style. Gorilla Valley Lodge is a slice of wilderness paradise far from the madding crowd; a place of renewal and reconnection with the natural world. And trust, one could never get closer to Bwindi!!!! The gentle Giants are at home at GVL, Sometimes the gorilla’s come out of the forest to spend some time feeding and playing in our gardens…… From the veranda of the rooms you can almost touch this national park and home of our mountain Gorillas.
Budget Tour: Gorilla Valley Lodge/Travellers Rest Hotel
Comfortable Tour: Gorilla Valley Lodge/Travellers Rest Hotel
Comfortable Tour: Gorilla Valley Lodge/Travellers Rest Hotel
The day of gorilla tracking!
You will travel by car to the starting point of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest NP. Once there you will first receive a briefing (7.45am) and at 8.30am you will start the tracking. Once you have found the gorillas, you will be able to spend up to one hour with them! You will be expected back to the starting point by 7.00pm at the latest. Being physically fit is recommended.
It is always best to hear from other visitors, and this is Stella and Trudy’s story:
“At a distance of about fifteen feet a mountain gorilla with her baby appears. She comes out of the bushes, looks at me and lies down. My presence does not seem to bother her. She just wants to rest, whether I am there or not. I can almost touch her. My heart dances with joy. I am in a good position to take pictures, so I let my camera do its work. It is the thrill of a lifetime. I cannot but agree with the American zoologist George Schaller, the first to study gorillas in the Virunga volcanoes, who once said: ‘No one who looks into the eyes of a gorilla, gentle and vulnerable, can remain unchanged.”
Early in the morning after breakfast you will travel back to Kampala. On the way back to the city you will have lunch in Mbarara town, and after Masaka there will be an opportunity to a stop at the Equator for photo shoots and buying souvenirs and have tea or coffee.
We will then bring you to a guesthouse, campsite or hotel of your choice in Kampala or Entebbe – or, if you continue your holiday somewhere else or back home, we will bring you directly to Entebbe airport for an onwards flight.
Driving time: ± 9 hours
If you need an extra night on this last day, we can book you in our Airport Guesthouse for just $70 a double / $60 a single (including BB and airport transfer)
Route
1. Entebbe (start)
2. Kibale Forest National Park
3. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park/Kisoro
4, Entebbe (finish)
Accommodations
Travellers Rest Hotel is Gorilla Tours’ own hotel located just outside Kisoro, in the extreme southwestern corner of Uganda on the borders with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, offering a perfect base for gorilla trekking in the area.
At the Edge of the Impenetrable Forest you find this lodges. Located at the southern edge of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park on a hill near Rushaga.
Airport Guesthouse Entebbe is the ideal solution for guests arriving late in the evening or departing early in the morning. When staying with us, transfers to and from Entebbe International Airport are provided free of charge, at any time of the day or night.
Departure & Prices
| Single occupancy pays USD $125 or $90 more for single supplement in a Comfortable or Budget room respectively. |
Flights not included.
First and last night in Uganda not included.
Extra night in our Airport Guesthouse Entebbe
Double USD $75 /Single USD $60 /Tripple USD $90
(including BB and airport transfer).
Guaranteed visit to world famous Mountain Gorillas (not included in the price, this is USD $800).
Ready to see some chimps and gorillas?
Don’t hesitate and ask us for all the information!
Prishilla, Sarah & Jenniffer
Tour Consultants & Gorilla Guide
gorilla@gorillatours.com
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Guided by our Ugandan–Dutch team, supported by a fleet of custom-built Land Cruisers and exclusive access to Nature Lodges accommodations, each tour offers the perfect blend of warm Ugandan hospitality, Dutch punctuality, and unforgettable experiences in the Pearl of Africa.
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