8 Days Murchison falls, Kibale & Semuliki Tour
8 Days Murchison falls, Kibale & Semuliki Tour
8 Days Murchison falls, Kibale & Semuliki Tour is an amazing safari that starts and ends in Kampala. The safari will give you an opportunity to visit Murchison falls national park which is the largest national park located in northwestern Uganda. The park is bisected into the northern and southern sectors by River Nile and offers game drive and boat cruise activities. During the safari you will also visit Kibale national park where you will be able to spend time with the endangered chimpanzees in their natural habitat during the chimpanzee trekking activity. You will wrap up your safari with a tour to Semuliki national park where you will engage in a boat cruise and also visit Sempaya hot springs.
Highlights of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour
- Day 1: Arrival and transfer to a hotel in Kampala
- Day 2: Transfer to Murchison falls national park
- Day 3: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise
- Day 4: Transfer to Kibale national park
- Day 5: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
- Day 6: Visit the crater lakes and transfer to Semuliki national park
- Day 7: Nature walk to Sempaya hot springs and boat cruise
- Day 8: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1: Arrival and transfer to Kampala, depending on the time of arrival at Entebbe international airport on the first day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour you will be welcomed by our representative who will brief you about the safari and then transfer to a hotel in Kampala for dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Transfer to Murchison falls national park
On the second day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour, you will have breakfast and your driver guide will pick you up from the hotel to start the journey to Murchison falls national park which is located in the north western part of Uganda. The journey takes about 5 to 6 hours drive and on the way you will have a stopover at Ziwa rhino sanctuary where you will be able to track rhinos. From Ziwa rhino sanctuary you will continue to Masindi town for lunch. After lunch you will proceed the journey to Murchison falls national park and upon arrival you will drive directly to the top of falls where you will have spectacular views of the waterfalls, beautiful scenery, bird species among others. After the top of the falls drive you will transfer to check into the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise
Morning game drive, after an early breakfast on the third day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour you will meet up with your driver guide to go for a morning game drive in the park. During the game drive you will have great views of animals like elephants, giraffes, Uganda kobs, buffaloes, waterbucks, warthogs, Jacksons hartebeest among others grazing in the open savannah plains, view predators like lions, leopards, hyenas before they go back to their hiding places, view different bird species among others. After the interesting game drive you will return to the lodge for lunch.
Afternoon boat cruise, after lunch you will drive to Paraa landing site for an amazing boat cruise to the bottom of the falls. During the boat cruise which takes about 2 hours you will be able to see large concentrations of hippo in water, Nile crocodiles basking along the shores, animals like elephants, buffaloes, warthogs along the water banks, view water birds like cormorants, kingfishers, fish eagles, hornbills among others. The boat will continue to the bottom of the falls where you will either hike to the top or return back to the starting point. After the boat ride you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Transfer to Kibale national park
On the fourth day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour, you will have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kibale national park also known as the primate capital in western Uganda. It’s a full day journey and on the way you will have great views of tea plantations, crater lakes, Rwenzori Mountains, beautiful landscape among others. You will also have stopovers to stretch your legs and upon arrival in Kibale national park you will continue to check into the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Chimpanzee trekking, after an early breakfast on the fifth day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour you will meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kanyachu park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a habituated chimpanzee family to trek and an experienced park guide who is knowledgeable about trails in the forest. Trekking of chimpanzees in Kibale national park starts at around 8:00am and takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on where the chimpanzees are located because they like to move from one place to another in search of food. During trekking you will have views of other primates like grey cheeked mangabey, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, baboons, views of different plants, birds among others. Once the chimpanzees are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment which gives you an opportunity to learn about their behaviors, habits, watch them feeding, breastfeeding, playing, fighting, resting, take great pictures and record the moments. After the face to face encounter with the chimpanzees you will drive back to the lodge for lunch.
Bigodi swamp walk, after lunch you will go for an interesting nature walk in Bigodi sanctuary. The swamp walk starts with a briefing about the safety precautions and expectation, where after you will be allocated a local guide who is well conversant with walking trails in Bigodi swamp. During the swamp walk you will be able to see primates like l’hoest monkeys, baboons, grey cheeked mangabey, vervet monkeys, bird species like the great blue turaco, different plants among others. You will also be able to see beautiful butterflies, enjoy the cool breeze, take pictures among others and after the swamp walk you will return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Crater lakes tour and transfer to Semuliki national park
Crater lakes tour, after breakfast on the sixth day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour your driver guide will pick you up from the lodge to go and visit the crater lakes near Kibale national park. Upon arrival you will hike to the crater lakes where you will have spectacular views of Kibale national park, Rwenzori mountain ranges, Lake Gorge, Kichwaba escarpments among others. After the crater lakes tour, you will drive back to the lodge for lunch.
After lunch you will check out of the lodge and start the journey to Semuliki national park which is located in Bundibugyo district at Uganda’s border with Democratic Republic of Congo. The journey takes about 4 to 5 hours drive and upon arrival you will check into the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 7: Nature walk to Sempaya hot springs and boat cruise
Nature walks to Sempaya hot springs, after breakfast on the seventh day of the 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour your driver guide will pick you up from the lodge to go for an exciting nature walk. You will be allocated an experienced park guide who is knowledgeable about hiking trails and then start hiking to Sempaya hot springs. While hiking you will walk through the forest where you will have great views of primates like black and white colobus monkeys, red tailed monkeys, grey cheeked mangabey, bird species, plants, colorful butterflies among others. The hot springs are divided into two the male and female spring which is the most interesting with water that boils at approximately 103 degrees Celsius, upon arrival at the hot springs you will be able to boil eggs, cook Matooke in hot water, see local women who go there to offer sacrifices and prayer to appease the ancestor among others. After the hot spring tour you will return back to the lodge for lunch.
Boat cruise, after lunch you will go for an interesting boat cruise which is done along river Semuliki up to Lake Albert. During the boat ride which takes about 2 hours you will be able to see animals like hippos and Nile crocodiles in water, view elephants, buffaloes, warthogs among others drinking water along the shores, view water birds like the rare shoebill stork, red billed dwarf hornbill, cormorants, kingfishers, fish eagles, bee-eaters, have stunning views of the sundowner among others. After the boat cruise you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Departure to Kampala
After a relaxed breakfast on the last day of 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour, you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer back to Kampala. On the way you will have en-route lunch and upon arrival you will be dropped off at Entebbe international airport for your departure flight or drop off at any place of advice.
End of 8 days Murchison falls, Kibale and Semuliki tour
Tour includes
- Boat cruise fees
- Ziwa rhino tracking permit
- Chimpanzee trekking permit
- Bigodi swamp walk
- Park entrance fees
- Nature walk to Sempaya hot springs
- All mentioned activities
- Services of a professional English speaking driver guide
- Full board accommodation
- Ground transfers (in a 4WD vehicle)
- Vehicle and fuel
- Bottled water
Tour excludes
- International Air flight tickets
- Visas
- Optional activities not included on the itinerary
- Life insurance
- Personal expenses like buying souvenirs, crafts, drinks, laundry services, hiring a porter, tips among others.
