10-Day Uganda Self-Drive Safari Itinerary

The route

1. Day1

   Kampala to Murchison Falls NP

   260 km5 hrs

   Depart Kampala by 6 am north via the Gulu Highway. Enter Murchison Falls NP via the Kichumbanyobo gate (south bank). Take the Paraa ferry to the north bank — ferry runs approximately every 2 hours, cash UGX required. Afternoon north bank game drive: lion, Rothschild giraffe, elephant.

   • Murchison park entry: USD 45/person/day
   • Paraa ferry: UGX 30,000 per vehicle

   Overnight: UWA Paraa campsite

2. Day2

   Murchison Falls — Full Day

   6 am north bank game drive — lion activity highest at dawn around the Buligi circuit. Return to Paraa by 9 am for the 9 am Nile boat trip (3 hrs to the base of the falls and return, USD 35/person). Afternoon: drive to the top of Murchison Falls for the viewpoint — a 30-minute walk from the car park above the falls gives the most dramatic view of the Nile forcing through the 7-metre gap.

   Overnight: Paraa campsite

3. Day3

   Murchison Falls to Fort Portal

   310 km5.5 hrs

   Depart Murchison by 6 am via the south bank and Masindi town. Drive south through the Budongo Forest (chimpanzees — if time allows, a Budongo Forest Centre chimp walk is possible on the drive through). Continue to Fort Portal.

   Overnight: Fort Portal

4. Day4

   Kibale Forest Chimp Trek

   8 am chimp trek at Kanyanchu (Kibale NP). 1 hour with the habituated chimp community. Afternoon drive south to Queen Elizabeth NP (150 km, 2.5 hrs).

   • Chimp permit: USD 200/person

   Overnight: Mweya campsite

5. Day5

   Queen Elizabeth NP — Kasenyi and Kazinga Channel

   Full day at Queen Elizabeth: dawn Kasenyi game drive, 9 am Kazinga Channel boat trip, afternoon Kasenyi circuit. Key targets: lion on Uganda kob hunts, hippo on the channel.

   Overnight: Mweya

6. Day6

   Queen Elizabeth — Ishasha Sector

   Drive south to Ishasha (90 km, 2 hrs). Afternoon tree-climbing lion circuit.

   Overnight: Ishasha

7. Day7

   Ishasha to Bwindi Buhoma

   90 km3 hrs

   Drive north via Kihihi to Bwindi Buhoma sector. Afternoon Bwindi community walk. Evening gorilla trek briefing.

   Overnight: Buhoma

8. Day8

   Bwindi — Gorilla Trekking

   8 am gorilla trek briefing. Trek with ranger to the allocated gorilla family. 1 hour with the gorillas. Return to camp.

   • Gorilla permit: USD 800/person

   Overnight: Buhoma

9. Day9

   Bwindi — Second Gorilla Day (Optional) or Lake Mburo

   Option A: Second gorilla trek permit (book two permits on the same day as the first — different family, different experience). Option B: Drive east to Lake Mburo NP (180 km, 3 hrs) — Uganda's smallest park, excellent zebra, impala, and hippo on a short afternoon circuit.

   Overnight: Lake Mburo campsite

10. Day10

    Lake Mburo or Bwindi to Kampala

    265 km4 hrs

    Dawn boat ride on Lake Mburo (hippo, birds, sitatunga — the semi-aquatic antelope). Depart by 9 am for Kampala via Mbarara. Arrive Kampala by 2 pm.