10-Day Kidepo, Murchison & Bwindi Fly-In Private Safari

Day 1 · Entebbe International Airport

Arrival on the Shores of Lake Victoria

Drive · Entebbe International Airport → Entebbe lakeshore · about 10–20 minutes

You are met at Entebbe International Airport and driven a few minutes to a small lodge overlooking Lake Victoria, well away from Kampala’s traffic, which lies about 46 km up the road. The evening’s main job is practical: repacking into soft bags for the flights ahead, where the allowance is typically around 15 kg per person including hand luggage. Anything you won’t need until you fly home can stay in secure storage in Entebbe. Then dinner, a first look at the lake at dusk and an early night before tomorrow’s flight north.

• Private meet-and-greet at Entebbe International Airport
• Repacking into soft bags for the light-aircraft legs
• Sunset over Lake Victoria

Overnight

Entebbe

Meals

Dinner

Day 2 · Kidepo Valley

Flight North to the Narus Valley

Flight · Entebbe → Apoka airstrip, Kidepo Valley · about 2–2.5 hours, sometimes with a stop — Scheduled services run on set days with minimum passenger numbers; otherwise we arrange a charter.

The flight north passes over the papyrus fringes of Lake Kyoga and the long, dry plains of northern Uganda before the mountains of Karamoja rise ahead. At Apoka your guide and vehicle are waiting, and your camp or lodge is a short drive from the airstrip. After lunch and a rest through the heat, you head into the Narus Valley, the park’s main game area and the one part of Kidepo that holds water all year. Buffalo herds, elephants and giraffe gather here, with the surrounding ranges turning amber in the evening light.

• Light-aircraft flight to Apoka
• Afternoon game drive in the Narus Valley
• Sundowner overlooking the valley

Overnight

Kidepo Valley

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 3–4 · Kidepo Valley

Two Full Days in Kidepo

With two full days, your guide can work the Narus Valley at dawn and dusk and leave the hot middle hours for rest. Kidepo is the only Ugandan park where cheetah and ostrich occur, and it adds secretary birds and carmine bee-eaters to a list that already includes lion, elephant and large buffalo herds; nothing is certain, but the open country helps. On one morning you might join a ranger on the Lomej hike, and on another visit a Karamojong homestead near the park with a community guide, to hear how cattle shape life in this corner of Uganda.

• Dawn and late-afternoon game drives in the Narus Valley
• Ranger-led Lomej hike
• Karamojong community visit with a local guide

Overnight

Kidepo Valley

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 6 · Murchison Falls

North Bank Plains and the Top of the Falls

Set out at first light on the Buligi tracks north of the river, where the grassland runs toward the delta at the head of Lake Albert. This is the stronghold of the park’s giraffe, alongside Uganda kob, Jackson’s hartebeest, oribi, buffalo and elephant, and your guide will be listening for news of lions. In the afternoon, drive to the Top of the Falls and follow the short path to the viewpoints directly above the gorge, where the noise of the water drowns out conversation. It is the natural companion to yesterday’s view from below.

• Early game drive on the Buligi tracks
• Top of the Falls hike and viewpoints
• Optional boat trip toward the Nile delta for shoebill

Overnight

Murchison Falls

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 7 · Buhoma

Flight South to the Impenetrable Forest

Flight · Pakuba airstrip → Kihihi airstrip · about 1–1.5 hours — Followed by about 1–1.5 hours by road to Buhoma.

Today’s flight follows the Albertine Rift south, and on a clear day you may pick out Lake Albert, the Rwenzori Mountains or the plains of Queen Elizabeth below the wing. From Kihihi the road winds through smallholdings to Buhoma, where the forest wall rises abruptly from the valley at the park boundary. The afternoon is yours: settle in, lay out boots, gaiters and gloves for tomorrow, and if you want to stretch your legs after the flight, stroll the village road at the park edge with a local guide.

• Light-aircraft flight to Kihihi
• Road transfer to Buhoma
• Gear check for tomorrow’s trek

Overnight

Northern Bwindi · Buhoma

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 8 · Buhoma

Gorillas in Buhoma

Buhoma is where gorilla tourism in Uganda began, when the Mubare family was opened to visitors in April 1993, and it still has the widest choice of lodges close to a trailhead. After the 08:00 briefing at the visitor centre, you set off with your ranger, the trackers and a group of no more than eight. Some Buhoma families range near the forest edge and others deep in steep valleys, so the walk may be short or may fill most of the day. The hour with the family, juveniles tumbling while a silverback feeds nearby, is what the whole journey has been leading to.

• 08:00 briefing at the Buhoma visitor centre
• Gorilla trek with one hour in the family’s company
• Afternoon at leisure beside the forest

Overnight

Northern Bwindi · Buhoma

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 9 · Buhoma

Second Trek or the Waterfall Trail

If you booked a second permit, you trek again today, often with a different family and a different kind of walk. Otherwise the forest has plenty to offer at a gentler pace. The waterfall trail follows a stream under tree ferns to a cascade inside the park, with a good chance of monkeys and forest birds on the way. In the afternoon, a Batwa-led experience or a Buhoma community walk shows how people living beside the park make a living from it today, through crafts, farming and guiding.

• Optional second gorilla trek
• Guided waterfall trail inside the park
• Batwa experience or Buhoma community walk

Overnight

Northern Bwindi · Buhoma

Meals

Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Day 10 · Kihihi Airstrip

Kihihi to Entebbe and Home

Flight · Kihihi airstrip → Entebbe International Airport · about 1 hour 15 minutes direct, longer with a stop — A day room in Entebbe can be arranged before late flights.

After a last breakfast looking out at the forest, you drive back to Kihihi for the scheduled flight to Entebbe, timed to reach the capital’s airport in good time for most evening departures. Your stored bags are waiting, and a day room near the airport gives you somewhere to shower and rest before an evening or overnight international flight. If your departure is late and you still have the energy, the Mabamba shoebill trip can sometimes be squeezed in, although it fits more comfortably on arrival day or with an extra night.

• Transfer to Kihihi airstrip
• Scheduled flight to Entebbe
• Day room before your international flight (optional)

Meals

Breakfast