Kibale Chimpanzee & Crater Lakes
Track our closest cousins through the canopy of Kibale (Africa's primate capital with 13 species), then unwind among the volcanic crater lakes and the birdsong of the community-run Bigodi wetland.
- Duration
- 3 Days / 2 Nights
- Group size
- 2-6 people
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Best time
- Jun-Sep & Dec-Feb (easier forest trails)
- Ideal for
- Primate lovers & nature walkers
- Destination
- Kibale Forest National Park
Your Journey, Day by Day
- 1Day 1 of 3
Kampala to Kibale
Drive west through Mubende to Fort Portal, about five hours, the last of it running between tea estates with the Rwenzori range standing on the horizon: snow on the equator, when the cloud lifts for it. You arrive in the afternoon in the Ndali-Kasenda field, where dozens of crater lakes sit in the hills south of the forest, each one a near-perfect circle of green water in a collapsed volcanic cone. An optional walk between two of them before dinner is the best possible introduction to the region.
Tea-country sceneryRwenzori range viewsNdali-Kasenda crater lakesOptional crater walkMeals:Lunch, DinnerOvernight:Kibale / crater-lakes lodge - 2Day 2 of 3
Chimp Tracking at Kanyanchu & Bigodi
A morning briefing at the Kanyanchu trailhead, then into Kibale, thirteen primate species in one forest, the densest concentration in East Africa. You track a habituated community by sound as much as sight: the pant-hoot carries a long way through the canopy, and the guides read it. Your permitted hour begins once they are settled, whether that is feeding overhead in a fig or resting on the forest floor within a few metres of you. In the afternoon, a guided walk through the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary (run by the community themselves through KAFRED, with the fees going back into local schools) takes you along boardwalks over the Magombe swamp for red colobus, L’Hoest’s and blue monkeys, the great blue turaco, and upwards of 200 recorded bird species. (Keen primate-watchers can swap the trek for the full-day Chimpanzee Habituation Experience.)
Kanyanchu briefingOne hour with the chimpsBigodi wetland walkGreat blue turacoMeals:Breakfast, Lunch, DinnerOvernight:Kibale / crater-lakes lodge - 3Day 3 of 3
Crater Lakes & Return
A last morning with a choice: a hike around the crater rims for the view down into the lakes, a Fort Portal coffee experience, or the short walk to the Amabere ga Nyina Mwiru caves, where mineral formations behind a waterfall carry one of the Tooro kingdom’s founding stories. Then the drive back to Kampala or Entebbe, arriving late afternoon.
Optional crater-rim hikeFort Portal coffee experienceAmabere caves & Tooro legendScenic return driveMeals:Breakfast, LunchOvernight:Departure
What's Included
- Chimpanzee tracking permit (Kanyanchu)
- Bigodi wetland guided walk
- 4x4 vehicle with driver-guide
- Lodge accommodation (2 nights)
- Park fees, meals as specified & bottled water
Not Included
- International flights
- Uganda visa
- Chimp Habituation upgrade (optional)
- Drinks
- Tips & personal expenses
