5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience

This 5 days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience is made for people who wish to spend more time with the endangered mountain gorillas and to meet two different mountain gorilla families. Therefore, this mountain gorilla trekking safari will take you to Mgahinga gorilla national park to meet one mountain gorilla family and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park also to come face to face with another gorilla family so, on you will have an opportunity to spend two hours with mountain gorillas in their natural habitats. Seeing two separate mountain gorilla families from different national parks, allows you to deeply observe and compare behaviors of mountain gorillas from two different places. Some mountain gorilla families have many members, more than one silverbacks, some have many babies and juveniles which make them to behave differently. The terrain in Mgahinga gorilla national park is more mountainous and mountain gorillas feed mostly on bamboo forest zone and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park on the other hand consists of mostly tropical rainforest. At Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, you will do mountain gorilla trekking from Rushaga sector. Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park is the premium national park for the mountain gorilla trekking safaris. Double mountain gorilla trekking in Mgahinga gorilla national park and Bwindi impenetrable national park will give you more diverse mountain gorilla experience than someone who has done it once.

Safari highlights of the 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience;

• Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe international airport – Meet and greet and drive to your booked hotel in Entebbe
• Day 2: Entebbe town – Drive to Mgahinga gorilla national park
• Day 3: Mountain gorilla trekking safari in Mgahinga gorilla national park – Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park (Rushaga/Nkuringo sectors)
• Day 4: Mountain gorilla trekking safari in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park – Drive to Lake Bunyonyi
• Day 5: Morning boat canoeing safari on Lake Bunyonyi – Drive back to Entebbe international airport
• Detailed 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience itinerary

Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe airport – Meet and greet and transfer to your booked hotel in Entebbe town

On your arrival at Entebbe international airport, you will be warmly met by our company representative who will be your safari guide on this 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience for meet and greet and transfer you to your booked hotel in Entebbe city to check in, freshen up, and later meet your safari guide gain at the hotel reception to brief you about the tour and expectations. Have dinner and an overnight.

NB; If time allows, visit Lake Victoria the best biggest water body in Africa and second biggest fresh water body on the planet after Lake Superior. While at Lake Victoria, you will spot several water birds and if you are a good swimmer, you may decide to swim. Lake Victoria is shared by three East African Countries (Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya) and it is the source of the River Nile which is the longest river on the planet flowing for more than 6,600 kilometers (4,100 miles) from Lake Victoria to the Mediterranean Sea in the north through several African countries such as Egypt Ethiopia, Sudan, and South Sudan.

Accommodation; Protea Hotel by Marriott Entebbe (Luxury), 2 Friend Beach Hotel (Mid-range), Via Via Guest House (Standard)

Meal plan; Dinner

Day 2: Entebbe town – Drive to Mgahinga gorilla national park

Day2 of the 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience, wake up very early in the morning at (0600 am) to prepare yourself, pack your travel bag, enjoy breakfast, check out of the hotel to meet your safari guide and then start the journey to Mgahinga gorilla national park for mountain  gorilla trekking. Mgahinga gorilla national park is nestled in the corner of south-western bordered by the Virunga national park in the DRC to the west and Volcanoes national park of Rwanda to the south standing at latitude of 1o 23′ South and longitude 29o 39′ East and part of the Virunga Conservation Area covering an area of 434 km2. Mgahinga gorilla national park includes three colonic and inactive volcanoes of the Virunga volcanic ranges these include – Mt Gahinga (3,474 m) from which the park got its name, Mt Muhabura (4,127 m), and Mt Sabyinyo (3,645 m). Mgahinga gorilla national park has 39 mammal species that have been recorded, these include the mountain gorilla, buffalo and elephant and the rare golden monkey among others plus over 180 bird species including several endemic to the East Congo Montane region.

On your journey to Mgahinga gorilla national park, you will have a stopover at the Uganda the Kayabwe equator line which is believed to be separating the planet into two parts; the Northern and Southern hemisphere. While at the equator landmark, you will see the water experiment which is done to show how forces move differently on each side of the planet, take some memorial photos with one foot in the southern hemisphere and another one in the northern hemisphere which will give you an opportunity to take a photo while standing in both sides of the world at the same time. It is also said that while standing at the equator line, your body weight is reduced by about 3kgs so, you will have a chance to prove this statement right or false. After the water experiment, have a cup of coffee and then proceed with your journey to Igongo cultural center in Mbarara city to have refreshments, lunch and later tour the museum which is a cultural heritage of south-western Uganda that will take you centuries back into Uganda’s culture and life style and later proceed with your journey to Mgahinga gorilla national park where you will arrive in the evening to check in at your booked lodge to freshen up, relax for some time, have dinner and an overnight.

Accommodation options: Lake Mutanda Resort (Luxury), Lake Mulehe Safari Lodge (Mid-range), Lake Chahafi Lodge (Standard)

Meal plan: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Day 3: Mgahinga gorilla national park – Mountain Gorilla tracking safari – Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park

Day 3 of the 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience, wake up early morning (0600am) to organize yourself, arrange the necessary equipment during mountain gorilla trekking such as camera, binoculars, insect repellants, get well-dressed in a recommend style for mountain gorilla trekking like long khaki /jean trouser, long sleeved shirt, water proof hiking boots, a rain jacket, heavy duty gloves and round hats, have heavy breakfast, get your packed lunch boxes, get enough drinking water and meet your safari guide to be transferred to the park head offices of Ntebeko to join other others guests for briefing about mountain gorilla trekking dos and don’ts, how to behave in the presence of mountain gorillas and the expectations, be allocated a mountain gorilla family to track, UWA ranger and the forest guide. We would recommend you to hire a porter to help you carry your packed bag other and your other items you would need during mountain gorillas. After pre-mountain gorilla trekking session, start your forest walk in search for the endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitats.

The time taken before encountering your allocated mountain gorilla family is not known however, it may be between 45mins to 4 hours depending on the movements and location of gorilla family therefore, you should be physically and mentally prepared to walk a long distance through the forest that is made of hills and with no clear walking trails that are only made on that particular time of tracking by the your guide depending on the direction that can easily lead you to the location of the gorilla family. That is why, it is recommended to carry enough water to keep you hydrated and snacks to keep you with enough energy since you use a lot of energy when walking through the forest in search for the mountain gorillas.

Once you encounter the mountain gorilla family, the excitement of seeing the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat, will outweigh the hardship went through while searching for them. A mountain gorilla family can be made of several members such as the giant silverback who is always the head and protector of the family, mothers, infants and juveniles. The time you will spend with the mountain gorillas, you get to know much about their behaviors, how the socializes and be excited with their actions like the playful babies, mothers grooming their babies and Mr. silverback watching the situation silently as he ready to protect the family from any kind of attack. You will spend a maximum of one hour of the mountain gorillas and you will be free to capture as many photos and recording videos as you would want to keep your great memories with the mountain gorilla family in the jungle. Thereafter an hour with the mountain gorilla family, return to the trekking start point to receive your mountain trekking certificate in appreciation of your contribution to the conservation of the endangered mountain gorillas in Uganda. Have refreshments, enjoy your full lunch and then drive to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park (Rushaga sector) to check in at your booked lodge to freshen up, and spend your evening and memorizing on your first mountain gorilla trekking experience. Dinner and an overnight.

Accommodation options: Rushaga gorilla lodge (Luxury), Rushaga gorilla Camp (Mid-range), Rushaga haven gorilla lodge (Standard)

Meal plan: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Day 4: Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park – Mountain gorillas trekking safari- Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi

Again wake up early morning to prepare yourself for the second mountain gorilla encounter in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, be served breakfast, get your packed lunch box, get your packed bag in the vehicle, check out of the lodge and get in the vehicle to drive to the park information office to attend the must do pre-mountain gorilla trekking briefing by the UWA park guide about the guide lines to follow during the forest walk in search for the mountain gorillas, what are the mountain gorilla trekking expectations, how to behave in the existence of the mountain gorillas, be allocated to a gorilla family and the UWA ranger and guide to take you during the forest walk while looking for the mountain gorillas.

Since Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park has many mountain gorilla families that are trekked, some are nearer to the trekking start point and others far. Therefore, we would recommend you to inform your safari guide to request for you a mountain gorilla family to trek. If you got so tired from the previous mountain gorilla trekking safari, it would be better to choose the nearer family to avoid walking along distance before encountering your allocated gorilla family. However, if you did not get tired and physically fit, it fine to go for any gorillas family and the more time you spend in the forest, it is the more encounter more and different things such as other wildlife species that do live in the jungle such as chimpanzees, L’hoest monkeys, white and black colobus monkeys, forest elephants among others and your guide will give much information about everything that you will encounter which will make your forest walk in search for the mountain gorillas so adventurous.

When you meet your allocated mountain gorilla family, you will again stay with it for a maximum one hour which will give much experience about the mountain gorillas and how they behave differently from different places since you will have an opportunity to meet two mountain gorilla families from different national parks. These families will have different number of members, members of the family will be behaving differently, and the environment where these giants stay will be different which make them to act differently. We would recommend you to keep your camera on standby such that you do not miss any moment with the mountain gorillas uncaptured. You are free to ask as many question as you would want to your guide about the mountain gorillas, other wildlife species that you will encounter during mountain gorilla trekking and the forest at large. Rangers and guide a fully equipped with information. After seeing mountain gorillas for an hour and taking enough photos to keep your memories with mountain gorillas, return to the park gorilla trekking start point to pick your second certificate, enjoy your packed lunch plus other refreshments and then start your drive to Lake Bunyonyi the deepest Lake in Uganda and second deepest in Uganda with fresh and safest water to swim since it is free from bilharzia or any other water cause disease and it does not have any dangerous aquatic animals such as Hippos and crocodiles. So, if you are good swimmer, you can decide to swim or just relaxing while watching birds and enjoying the great views of it is surrounding terraced and forested hills. Dinner and an overnight.

Accommodation options: Bird nest resort @Bunyonyi (Luxury), Bunyonyi rock resort (Mid-range), Bunyonyi view resort (Standard)

Meal plan: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Day 5. Lake Bunyonyi – Morning boat canoeing safari on Lake Bunyonyi – Drive back to Entebbe international airport

Day 5 of the 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience, rise up early morning (0630am) to have breakfast and then go for the morning boat canoeing safari on Lake Bunyonyi which takes approximately 2 hours of the exploring the lake and visiting different islands of the lake with a local canoe guide who is well experienced about the places and all the things around. Lake Bunyonyi is framed with 29 islands of different size across the water making it view the most magical. Each of the 29 islands on Lake Bunyonyi has its unique interesting story behind it which your local guide will narrate to you during the canoeing safari such as the Akampene island also known as the “punishment Island” which was used by the Biga community to punish girls who would get pregnant before official marriage by isolating them there to death as a way to teach a lesson to the rest not to do the same mistake. So, poor men who could not afford to pay bride price, would go on this island to get free wives from amongst those that could have been exiled to this island. In an Africa society, it a disgrace for a girl to get pregnant before her official marriage and this would cause the family to lose its community respect so, this made parents to be strict to their girl children as a way of protecting them. After exploring Lake Bunyonyi, return to your lodge to check out and then embark on the journey back to Entebbe international airport to prepare for your return flight. You will have a stopover at Kayabwe equator landmark to have lunch and refreshments, relax for some minutes and later proceed with your journey straight to Entebbe international airport to prepare for your turn flight back home with the great mountain gorilla experience. This will be end of your 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience.

Meal plan: Breakfast / Lunch

The inclusions of 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience;

• Return airport transfers (Pick up and drop off)
• Private transport using a well-modified safari van / Land-cruiser which is 4×4 and air-conditioned)
• Professional English speaking safari guide for 5 days
• Fuel for 5 days
• Private Luxury/Mid-range/standard accommodation on full board (Breakfast/Lunch /Dinner) for 4 nights
• Bottled mineral water and en-route meals
• A visit to Igongo cultural center
• A stopover to do water experiment at Kayabwe equator land mark
• 2 mountain gorilla trekking permit per person (Mgahinga gorilla and Bwindi impenetrable forest national parks)
• Boat canoeing safari to explore Lake Bunyonyi

The exclusions of 5 Days Mgahinga and Bwindi double gorilla trekking experience;

• Domestic and international flights
• Country entry visa
• Personal travel insurance
• Souvenirs and gifts
• Tips to lodge staffs, safari guide and porter
• Porter fee
• Alcoholic and soft drinks (Wines, beers, sodas, juice and other beverages)
• Telephone and laundry services