16 Days Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Safari

16 Days Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Safari : The 16 Days Safari is a well-curated safari package that combines four of the top tourist destinations in East Africa. Offering the most interesting primate tours, including chimpanzee trekking, mountain gorilla trekking, and golden monkey tracking only done in Uganda and Rwanda, combined with a wildlife safari in the Lake Nakuru National Park and Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya, plus a visit to the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. This tour is best done during the peak season when you will be able to witness the great wildebeest migration of the Masai Mara and Serengeti corridor on the Mara River.

Safari Highlights

Day 1: Transfer to Lake Nakuru National Park—evening game drive

Day 2: Game drive and transfer to Masai Mara National Reserve

Day 3: Full day in Masai Mara National Reserve

Day 4: Transfer to Serengeti National Park—Northern Serengeti

Day 5: Wildebeest Migration experience in Northern Serengeti

Day 6: Transfer to Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Day 7: Transfer to Arusha—Fly to Uganda (own booked flight)

Day 8: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park—Bigodi Swamp nature walk

Day 9: Chimpanzee Habituation Experience

Day 10: Transfer to Bwindi Forest National Park

Day 11: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Day 12: Transfer to Volcanoes National Park with a community visit.

Day 13: Golden monkey trekking in Volcanoes National Park

Day 14: Transfer to Nyungwe National Park

Day 15: Chimpanzee tracking—canopy walk

Day 16: Transfer to Kigali—Departure

Detailed itinerary

Day 1: Transfer to Lake Nakuru National Park—evening game drive

Depending on your location in Nairobi, you will be met by our company representative/safari guide to transfer to Lake Nakuru National Park. Lake Nakuru National Park is best known for its large masses of flamingo birds. It’s a 5-6 hour’ drive with an en-route lunch. On arrival at the park, connect for a game drive to find some of the animals that will be available. Later connect to your lodge to refresh, relax, and have dinner and an overnight stay at Lake Nakuru Lodge for a mid-range option, Punda Milias Tented Camp for a budget option, or Sarova Hill Lodge for a luxury option.

Day 2: Game drive and transfer to Masai Mara National Reserve

After breakfast, connect for a morning game drive before you proceed on your journey to Masai Mara National Reserve, which is along the floor of the magnificent Rift Valley, for unlimited game drives and the land of the Masai people, en route to lunch and the Masai community market, where you can buy Masai products like jewelry, clothing, and other products. Enter the park and connect to check in to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay at Zebra Plains Lodge for mid-range, Mara Sentrim Lodge for budget, or Mara Serena Lodge for luxury.

Day 3: Full day in Masai Mara

After breakfast, connect for your morning game drive in the Masai plains with your packed lunch in search of its popular Masai Mara residents. The Masai Mara plains are full of wildebeest during migration season (early July to end of September), zebra, impala, topi, giraffe, Thomson’s gazelle, leopards, lions, hyenas, cheetahs, jackals, and bat-eared foxes. Black rhinos are a little shy and hard to spot but are often seen at a distance if you are lucky. Hippos are abundant in the Mara River, as are very large Nile crocodiles, which lie in wait for a meal as the wildebeest cross on their annual quest to find new pastures. Later Meals and overnight at lodge as above

Day 4: Transfer to Serengeti National Park—Northern Serengeti

After breakfast, check out and embark on your journey to Serengeti National Park in Tanzania with your packed lunch. You will have a game drive on your way to the Isebania border, where you will be crossing to Tanzania. Cross via Olololo Gate in Mara West.

Upon crossing the border and finalizing with the customs office with clearance, proceed to enter Serengeti National Park and continue to your accommodation with an en-route game drive as you enjoy the plains of Serengeti. Serengeti National Park is home to the Big Five game and other wildlife and it is best known for its wildebeest migration that happens every year. Dinner and overnight at your booked accommodation at Mara Heritage Lodge for budget, Mara River Lodge for mid-range, or Mara Mara River Lodge for luxury.

Day 5: Wildebeest Migration experience in Northern Serengeti

Have an early breakfast, get parked lunch and go for a full-day game drive. We start from the far north around the Mara River in case you came in the opposite month when the migration will start from the Serengeti after missing it from the Mara, Kenya side. Now this will be your turn to enjoy the best. Spend the whole day looking for these animals, like hippos, elephants, buffaloes, giraffes, lions, hyenas, cheetahs, antelopes, hartebeests, and zebras, to mention but a few. Later, drive to Central Serengeti and check in at your booked lodge for dinner and overnight at Serengeti Heritage Safari Lodge for a mid-range option, Tukaone Serengeti Camp for a budget option, or Serengeti Serena Lodge for lower luxury.

Day 6: Transfer to Ngorongoro Conservation Area

After your breakfast, transfer to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, which is about a 4-5 hour’ drive, depending on en-route game-viewing stopovers. Upon arrival, connect to enter the park for a game drive into the Ngorongoro Crater, descending over 600 meters into the crater to view wildlife for a half-day safari tour. The crater is supported by a year-round water supply and fodder; hence, it has a variety of animals, which include herds of wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, eland, warthog, hippo, and giant African elephants. Others include lions, hyenas, jackals, cheetahs, and the ever-elusive leopard. Check in for dinner and an overnight stay at Hhando Coffee Lodge for budget, Tloma Lodge for mid-range, or Ngorongoro Serena Lodge for luxury.

Day 7: Transfer to Arusha—Fly to Uganda (own booked flight)

After breakfast, check out and transfer to Arusha. It’s about a 3-4 hour’ drive with sightseeing. Upon arrival in Arusha, the driver will drop you at Kilimanjaro Airport for your onward flight.

Upon arrival at Entebbe Airport, meet your safari guide and connect to your booked hotel for check-in. Dinner and overnight stay at Best Western Garden Hotel for mid-range/Caycad Guesthouse for budget

Day 8: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park—Bigodi Swamp nature walk

After breakfast, you will meet your safari driver and start your 6-7 hours’ drive to Kibale Forest National Park in the western part of Uganda with stopovers to stretch and lunch, depending on your location and time.

Connect to your lodge with an en-route visit to the crater lakes near the park. Explore the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary. The reserve is abundant with butterflies, plants, animals, and, in particular, birds. Spectacular birds like the Great Blue Turaco and rare Papyrus Gonolek will be of great interest to birders. The swamp is also home to more elusive animals such as red colobus monkeys and sitatunga antelope. There is also the opportunity to visit local community projects that have been financed by tourism. Dinner and overnight stay at Chimpanzee Forest Lodge for mid-range, Kibale Forest Lodge for budget, or Primates Lodge for luxury.

Day 9: Chimpanzee Habituation Experience  

Have breakfast very early and later transfer to the park head office for a briefing about the endangered chimpanzees, and later enter the forest with the guidance of a park ranger along with your tracking gear, packed water, and snacks. This trekking is a whole-day experience. On finding the primates, you will spend 4 hours viewing them while studying their behavior and taking pictures. After tracking, return to the lodge for relaxation. Dinner and overnight as above

Day 10: Transfer to Bwindi Forest National Park

After breakfast, transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. It’s about a 6-7 hour’ drive. Upon arrival, proceed to your booked lodge for check-in, relaxation, dinner, and overnight stay at Buhoma Community Rest Camp for budget/Buhoma Haven Lodge for mid-range.

Day 11: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Have an early morning breakfast and head to the park headquarters for a briefing by the ranger guides before embarking on your gorilla trek. Head into the forest and trek until you find the gorillas. Gorilla trekking can take 2 to 8 hours depending on the movement of the gorillas. After finding the gorillas in Bwindi, you will be allowed only 1 hour and then return. Your driver/guide will drive you back to your hotel to relax and spend another night as above.

Day 12: Transfer to Volcanoes National Park with a community visit.

After breakfast, check out and embark on your journey to cross to Rwanda via the Cyanika border and proceed to Musanze. It’s a 3-4 hour’ drive journey with an en-route visit to the Dian Fossey Museum and the Ellen DeGeneres Campus; have your lunch in Musanze. Later in the afternoon, visit the Connect to visit Iby’wacu Cultural Village, a nonprofit umbrella organization that aims at improving the lives of reformed poachers and communities around Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park through the provision of conservation incentives, supporting community enterprise development and livelihood-based projects. It’s a rewarding place where you will be guided around the place as you enjoy the Kinyarwanda traditions, including the Intore dance, traditional ceremonies, and a guided community walk. After the community tour, connect to your booked lodge for relaxation, dinner, and an overnight stay at Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge for mid-range or Amikus Hotel for budget.

Day 13: Golden monkey trekking in Volcanoes National Park

After breakfast, transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the golden monkeys. Volcanoes National Park is also home to the fascinating golden monkeys. The park shares borders with Virunga National Park in Congo; it also has the most scenic views, as it stands at 3 volcanoes: Muhavura, Gahinga, and Sabyinyo. Later you will begin hiking over the volcanic terrains in search of the monkeys in the bamboo forest. It may take you 2-6 hours to find them, depending on their location and you will be given 1 hour to spend with them while taking pictures before returning to your lodge.

Day 14: Transfer to Nyungwe National Park 

After an early morning breakfast at the lodge, you will embark on your journey to Nyungwe National Park. This is a 6-7 hour drive to Nyungwe National Park with lunch en route. Nyungwe Forest is the oldest and largest rain forest in East Africa. Upon arrival late afternoon, check in at the booked lodge for dinner and an overnight stay at Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel (midrange)/Gusakura Visitor Center for budget.

Day 15: Chimpanzee tracking—canopy walk

Enjoy breakfast and go for a briefing about the endangered chimpanzees before entering the forest in search of the active and playful fellows in Nyungwe Forest. The chimpanzees are much easier to spot as they jump from one tree to another, chattering and laughing.  Chimpanzee tracking usually takes about 3 hours. On finding them, spend an hour while taking pictures and videos.

Later in the afternoon, connect on a walking trail that will take you to the Canopy Walk—a swing bridge 50 meters in length that is suspended from large trees. You will be able to see the amazing rainforest with a bird’s-eye view, spotting wildlife moving about below you. Dinner and overnight stay at lodge as above

Day 16: Transfer to Kigali—Departure

Have breakfast at leisure, then embark on a 6-7 hour’ drive to Kigali city with en-route stopovers for lunch and optional sightseeing. Arriving in Kigali, you will either be dropped off at a place you advise or dropped off at Kigali airport for your onward evening flight back home. Marking the end of the 16 Days Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Safari .