A road trip through Uganda is an unforgettable adventure. The country is known for its stunning landscapes, wildlife, rich culture and warm – hearted people. A 3-week itinerary allows you to explore diverse regions from bustling cities to serene national parks. Here is a comprehensive guide to help you plan your ultimate road trip with 4×4 rooftop tent and camping gears.
Upon arrival at Entebbe airport, you will meet our company representative who will transfer you to Kampala for a short city tour. For lunch, you can have street foods or visit the nearby restaurants around Kampala. After visiting some of the places around Kampala like the street markets, Idd Amin’s chamber, independence monument, Kabaka’s lake among others, you will be transferred to your booked hotel to check-in and rest from the long flight. In the evening dinner will be served and spend a comfortable night at the hotel. Accommodation options include; Namirembe Guest House among others.
On day two wake up early, have breakfast and drive for an excursion tour in Jinja town with an en-route stopover at Mabira Forest known as the Uganda’s largest tropical forest for a nature walk and you can also do a sky way zip-lining. A Mabira Forest sky way zipline experience operated by Griffin Falls Camp costs around $50 per person and a nature walk costs USD 15 per person.
Then connect to Jinja crossing the bridge to the Eastern part of Uganda. Jinja is the second largest town after Kampala with plenty of excursions to engage in. Upon arrival, have lunch and then go for an activity of your choice. A variety of activities include water sliding, white water rafting, kayaking, bungee jumping, exploring Itanda falls among others.
In the evening, explore the source of Nile and go for sunset boat cruise on Lake Victoria. After the boat cruise, meet your driver to take you back to your lodge for dinner and resting. Accommodation options include; Jinja Nile Resort, Explorers River, Nile Village Hotel, 2 Friends Guest House, Royal Park Hotel among others.
0n the 3rd day you will have breakfast, check-out of the lodge and embark on your journey to Kapchorwa District of Eastern Uganda to visit Sipi falls located on Mount Elgon. Have your lunch in Mbale town before you continue to the falls. On arrival connect to your lodge, unwind and relax as you wait for dinner. Accommodation options include; Sipi River Lodge, Lacam lodge, Noah’s Ark among others.
On day 4 after enjoying your delicious breakfast, drive to Sipi falls offices for registration and get a guide for Sipi falls hike. Sipi falls has 3 falls at Mount Elgon foothills that stretch to 85m, 75m and 100m accordingly. Hiking to the falls comes with a chance to interact with the community people staying near the falls. Depending on your fitness, you will visit all the 3 falls or 2 falls and then return to your lodge for relaxation, dinner and overnight stay.
On the 5th day, wake up early and have breakfast, check-out of the lodge to proceed to Kidepo Valley National Park. This is a full day drive with en-route lunch in Moroto town. On arrival in Kidepo Valley National Park, check-in at your lodge to rest from a long scenic drive of mountains, people and vegetation. Accommodation options include; Apoka safari lodge, Kidepo Savannah lodge, UWA Banda’s among others.
On the 6th day enjoy breakfast and visit the Narus valley in search for the wild cats and other animals. Kidepo is best known for cheetahs and on a lucky day, you will be able to spot other animals such as leopards, lions, buffaloes, elephants and antelopes. The park has great observation points.
After enjoying your game drive, you return to the lodge for lunch and unwind a bit before embarking on your visit to the hot springs and encounter different bird species especially Ostriches. Return to the lodge in the evening and rest as you wait for dinner to be served.
On the 7th day wake up very early in the morning and have breakfast. Drive through the Narus Valley to spot some of the species you missed to see the previous day and then proceed with your journey to Murchison Falls National Park. An en-route lunch in Gulu town. Upon arriving in the park, connect to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include: Pakuba safari lodge, Paraa safari lodge, Nile safari lodge, Fort Murchison lodge among others.
On day 8 after having your breakfast, go for a boat cruise to the bottom of Murchison Falls along the Victoria Nile and here expect to enjoy a paranomic view. On the boat cruise, you will be able to encounter with some species such as hippos, crocodiles and a variety of bird species.
After viewing the falls at the bottom, hike to the top. This hike is a bit challenging but it is fascinating as you enjoy seeing falls at different points and reaching at the of the falls is a life experience. Spend a good time at the top of the falls before meeting your driver to return to the lodge for lunch.
In the evening, go for a game drive to explore the park’s beauty and expect to see a variety of animals such as giraffes, buffaloes, Jackson’s hartebeest, Oribi, Uganda Kob, lions, leopards, hyenas among others. After, return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
On the 9th day after breakfast, drive to the top of the falls where you will be able to have closer to Murchison Falls. From the falls, you can head to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Have lunch and connect for rhino trekking. Return to Amuka safari lodge and rest as you wait for dinner.
Day 10 is for transferring to Kibale National Park. After enjoying your breakfast, you will meet your driver to embark on your journey to Kibale National Park. You will have an en-route lunch. On arrival, you will check-in at your booked lodge for refreshing, dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include: Kibale Forest Camp among others.
The following day after breakfast, connect to Kibale Forest for your chimpanzee habituation experience with your packed lunch. You will first report at the park headquarters for a briefing before entering the forest for the activity.
Expect to see a lot of primate species including chimpanzees, monkeys and other animals such as elephants, buffaloes, warthogs, reptiles as well as a variety of butterflies. On finding these semi-habituated chimpanzees, you will be allowed 4 hours with them. After, return to the lodge for resting as you wait for dinner.
The following morning after breakfast, go for a nature walk at Bigodi wetland where you will enjoy the birds’ sounds. At Bigodi wetland, you will experience a lot of bird life and un spoilt nature. For bird lovers, this is a great place to spot various bird species. After the walk, return to the for lunch, refresh and connect to Semliki National Park.
Register at the park headquarters and after proceed to check-in at your lodge for dinner and sleepovers. Accommodation options include; Semliki Safari Lodge, UWA Bandas and cottages, Nyati Game Lodge, Ntoroko Game Lodge, Kirumia guest house among others.
On the 13th day after having breakfast, visit the Sempaya Hot Springs and the pygmies at their new settlement at Ntandi. In the afternoon, drive to the wildlife reserve for a game drive and expect to spot a lot of animals such as leopards, elephants among others. In the evening, return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
14th day is for transferring to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Wake up early and then connect to Fort portal and visit Amabere Ganyinamwiru caves, waterfalls and crater lakes. Have an en-route lunch before proceeding to the park. On arrival check-in at your lodge for dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include: Bush Lodge, Engiri Camp among others.
On the 15th day wake up early morning and pass via Ishasha sector for lion trekking. This activity allows tourist to view lions closely. After the trek, return to the lunch, have breakfast and then connect for a game drive in Kasenyi area where you will also encounter other animals such as buffaloes, elephants, water buck, Ugandan Kob and other types of antelopes. Then go back for lunch.
After lunch, go for a launch cruise along the Kazinga Channel. This cruise will let you pass through a place of the highest concentration of hippos; crocodiles and you may also see many animals drinking at the water’s edge. The cruise also offers good platform for photography, bird watching and games. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
On the 16th day wake up early, enjoy your breakfast and depart the park connecting to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Kisoro District. Arrive at your lodge for lunch. Later in afternoon after relaxing, you may go for an optional community tour where you will learn and be entertained by the local people around the park.
Return to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include; Mahogany springs lodge, Ichumbi Gorilla lodge, Volcanoes Bwindi Lodge, Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp, Buhoma Lodge, Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge, Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Lodge, Four Gorillas Lodge among others.
On the following day, have breakfast and transfer to Bwindi’s Park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and guidelines followed during gorilla trekking. The time taken in the jungle depends on the movement of gorillas. Meeting the gorillas unexpectedly is one of the most captivating lifetime experiences.
You will have a chance to observe and take pictures at a very close range. You will observe them feeding, playing, gloaming among others. After an hour with these creatures, your guide and rangers will lead you back to the starting point where your driver will readily be waiting to transfer you back to the lodge. In the evening, you may go for an optional community tour in the Batwa village to learn about these people’ ways of living before you return to the lodge for dinner.
On the 18th after having breakfast, transfer to Mgahinga National Park. Mgahinga National Park is one of the parks on the Virunga Mountains. Upon arriving at the park, you will be briefed about the techniques used in trekking golden monkeys and then set off to start searching for the primates.
This activity takes about 2-5 hours depending on the movement of primates. On finding the golden monkeys, you will be allowed to spend an hour with them while taking pictures and videos.
Return to the starting point and go check-in at your booked lodge for lunch and relaxation as you wait for dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include; Travelers Rest Hotel, Lake Mutanda Resort, Mount Gahinga Lodge, Mucha Hotel Kisoro, Amajambere IbyI’wacu Community Camp, Kisoro Tourist Hotel among others.
On this following morning after enjoying your breakfast, you will set off to Lake Bunyonyi to chill and relax. Lake Bunyonyi is located between Kisoro and Kabale in the southwestern Uganda close to the border with Rwanda. It is believed to be the second deepest lake in Africa.
Take a boat trip to some of the fascinating islands on the lake such as Kahungye Island being known for its zebras, impalas, water bucks, Kobs and also some unique wildlife features including otters, frogs and monkeys.
Visit Akampene island known as a punishment island where pregnant unmarried girls were drowned to death. If you have time, you can also visit the Bwama and Njuyeera where a missionary Dr. Leonard Sharp founded a leper colony.
In the evening, go and check-in at your booked lodge to relax and chill as you wait for dinner and overnight stay. Accommodation options include; Bird nest Resort – Lake Bunyonyi, Lake Bunyonyi View Lodge, Lake Chachafi Resort, Bunyonyi Overland Resort, Mantis Epic Hotel, Byoona Amagara Island Retreat, Arcadia cottages among others.
On the 20th day, wake up very early and drive to Lake Mburo National Park and upon reaching, you will have your lunch. After lunch, you will go for a boat trip on Lake Mburo. On a boat trip on Lake Mburo, expect a tranquil two-hour ride around the eastern banks, potentially spotting hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes and various bird species like fish eagles and shoe bills.
A boat cruise on Lake Mburo gives you the opportunity to experience the park’s stunning scenery, spot wildlife and enjoy the calm waters of the lake. After the boat cruise, then go and check-in at the lodge for relaxation.
After having your dinner at the lodge, you can go for a night game drive along with a park ranger guide for security purposes. Lake Mburo is one of the best places to view wildlife at night. On a lucky night, you can see lions and leopards hunting or feeding the younger ones. After the drive, return to lodge to sleep.
On your last day of the trip, enjoy your breakfast and check-out of the lodge and then drive out of the park to return to Kampala. You will have an en-route stopover at Equator for photography.
Upon arriving in Kampala, you will have your lunch and then proceed to Entebbe International Airport to catch up with your flight to the next destination and that will be the end of your 3 weeks road trip.
