For this tour we meet up in the evening of day 1 in Kigali for ourpredeparture meeting and to enjoy a meal together, as well asget to know the other travellers in the group. We camp togetherat the hostel this night.

Days 1 - 2: Kigali, Rwanda Rwanda is a country with a quite recent turbulent historyculminating in the 1994 genocide during which ethnicdifferences between Hutu and Tutsis exploded in an unparalleledlevel of hatred and bloody violence. We visit the GenocideMemorial in the capital Kigali to honour and reflect on thishorrific past. The exhibition is a profoundly moving memorial tothose killed in the horrifying maelstrom that descended onRwanda in April 1994, following the death of presidentHabyarimana on the 6th April. In our first couple of days spenthere in the capital, some also like to take the time to visit theNyamata Church Memorial, a Women’s Centre, Hotel des MilleCollines (well known from the movie Hotel Rwanda) or simplywander in the local markets.

Distance: NoneEst. Drive Time: NoneMeals: X1 Breakfast, X2 Dinners

Optional excursions: Visit to the Genocide museum andmemorial, Nyamata Church Memorial.

Day 3: Kigali to MusanzeToday we head up through the hills that give this country itsname “The Land of a Thousand Hills”. We stay in the shadowsof the Parc des Volcans at a community based campsite. Hereyou can try your hand at banana beer making and basketweaving at camp where they have established a very simplecultural centre where you can get involved in traditionalactivities. Alternatively a cycle tour in the local area can bearranged.

Distance: 115 kmsEst. Drive Time: 3 hoursMeals: X1 Breakfast, X1 Dinner

Optional excursions: Golden monkey trek, banana beer making,basket weaving, bike tour.

Days 4 - 5: Musanze to Kisoro, UgandaThose wishing to head out on the steep trek to see DianFossey’s grave spend time this morning in the Rwandan forest.

Dian is a widely known researcher who worked for many yearsstudying the gorillas. She was murdered tragically at herresearch centre in the gorilla park in 1985. The movie “Gorillasin the Mist” immortalised Dian’s story with the gorillas. Thesteep hike can provide some further understanding andappreciation for what this inspirational woman devoted her lifeto, and the legacy she has left behind. Her work and those thatfollowed on after her have brought the species back from near-extinction.

If you are not trekking to Dian Fossey Grave, we head off intothe Pearl of Africa – Uganda - for our base for gorilla trekking.For those trekking to Fossey’s gravesite, a transfer to Uganda isarranged for later in the day.

In Kisoro we are based in a simple local guest housesurrounded by the beautiful misty mountainous world of thegorillas.

From the very latest count as at November 2018 there areapproximately 1,000 mountain gorillas left on the planet. Onthe gorilla trek we head out early morning across flower farmswith local trackers to spend an hour with the gentle mountaingorillas in their natural forest habitat, a special and magicalonce in a lifetime experience.

Gorillas spend approximately 25% of their day eating, andusually rest during the middle of the day, whilst the young onesspend much of their time playing with each other, and evenwith the adults in their family.

The trackers know the various gorilla families well and areexpert at locating the habituated groups usually within a fewhours. To protect the gorillas we are allowed an hour to observethe gorillas once they are found as they continue with theirdaily activities playing, eating and relaxing in their forest home.

Whilst in Kisoro there are other activities on offer as well.

Other experiences on offer are a trek to see the goldenmonkeys in the lower reaches of the forest, or a tour to anindigenous group of Batwa or Pygmy can be organised, thisgroup of local peoples sadly having being relocated away fromtheir traditional life in the forest.

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Equator

TANZANIA

UGANDA KENYA

NairobiKilimanjaro

Lake Victoria

Lake Tanganika

The VirungasMountain Gorillas

Zanzibar Island

Queen Elizabeth

ArushaDEMOCRATICREPUBLIC OF

CONGO

Dar Es Salaam

Mt KenyaMasai Mara

KigaliMusanze

Diani Beach

RWANDA Serengeti Ngorongoro Crater

Jinja

Key THE ROUTE GAME PARK ADD ON Jinja & The White Nile ADD ON Masai Mara (✈ flight required) ADD ON Zanzibar Island (✈ flight required)

✈

✈

✈

KampalaChimps

Kisoro

Distance, Day 4: 51 kmsEst. Drive Time, Day 4: 3 hours (depending on border)Distance, Day 5: NoneEst. Drive Time, Day 5: NoneMeals: X2 Breakfasts, X2 Dinners

Included wildlife activity: Gorilla trek, Bwindi ImpenetrableForest, Uganda

Optional excursions: Trek to Dian Fossey’s grave, Goldenmonkeys trek or orphanage visit. Batwa (Pygmy) village visit orcoffee tour. Lake Mutande.

Day 6 - 7: Kisoro to Kalinzu Forest, UgandaThis morning we have time for activities before we head offthrough to Kabale. The option to trek the Golden Monkeys canbe done today. Later we take the scenic drive through the hillsand once in Kabale it is possible to spend the afternoon or earlyevening at Lake Bunyoni where it is one of the few placesswimming is allowed. A great place to relax and enjoy the viewsof the hills that surround this freshwater lake.

The next day as the mist lifts and the sun rises we make ourway through to Kalinzu Forest and this rural campsite. Here welearn about the plight of the chimpanzees that make this habitattheir home. Watch out for baboons also coming to say hello!

Distance, Day 6: 75 kmsEst. Drive Time, Day 6: 3 hoursDistance, Day 7: 145 kmsEst. Drive Time, Day 7: 4.5 hoursMeals: X2 Breakfasts, X2 Dinners

Day 8: Kalinzu to Queen Elizabeth National Park,UgandaThis morning those wishing to trek to see the habituatedChimpanzees that live in this forest head out early and hopefullysee them in their natural environment along with the otheranimals that make the forest their home.

Once the Chimp trekkers return we then have a game drive aswe enter Queen Elizabeth National park. Queen ElizabethNational Park is a conservation success, as is gradually buildingon its wildlife population after the park was decimated duringthe civil wars that occurred in Uganda back in the last century.In the afternoon we head down to the shores of the KazingaChannel where we jump on board our boat for a game cruisewhere we hope to spot elephants, hippos and buffalo as well aslarge varieties of bird species.

After a game the game cruise we head to the shores of LakeEdward and our campsite for the night on the edge of the park.Although outside of the park boundaries the animals andespecially the hippos like to graze on the surrounding fieldsnearby.

Distance: 40 kmsEst. Drive Time: 1 hourMeals: X1 Breakfast, X1 Dinner

Included wildlife activities: Game cruise on the Kazinga Channel,Queen Elizabeth National Park. Conducted in an open cruisevessel.

Slow transit afternoon drive, Queen ElizabethVehicle for game drive: Overland truck

Optional excursion: Chimpanzee trek in Kalinzu Forest.

Day 9: Queen Elizabeth National Park to Kampala,UgandaWe are up early as the sunrises this morning as we make ourway out of the park keeping an eye out for the elephants andkobs along the way as we head up the Albertine RiftEscarpment with the stunning views of the park.

We have a stop today at the equator and the chance to buysome local wares at the craft shops here, look out for drumsand the handcrafted items made from bottle tops. We thenhead into the hustle and bustle of the capital city Kampala, forour last night together and look back over the highlights of thistour.

Distance: 420 kmsEst. Drive Time: 9.5 hoursMeals: X1 Breakfast, X1 Dinner

Please note safari itineraries are given as a guide only. A safari is a journey and true journeys in Africa unfold andare of an adventurous nature. The unexpected can arise, so do allow for this.

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Updated 20/08/19