12-Day Hardcore Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda
This 12-Day Hardcore Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda focuses on areas that are rich in biodiversity, especially in the Albertine Rift Valley. This region is home to many unique and endangered bird species, as well as the Mountain Gorillas. The tour visits several top birding sites, including Mgahinga National Park, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Ruhija sector (the top birding location in Africa), Rwenzori, and Semliki. Each location features different ecosystems, offering a variety of species for an incredible birding experience.
12-Day Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe International Airport
Upon arrival you will get a warm welcome from our company representative and after you will be transferred to your booked hotel in Entebbe. Dinner and overnight
Accommodation: 2 Friends Hotel
Day 2: Transfer to Kisoro
Wake up early prepare and have your breakfast, drive southwards to Kisoro where you will bird Echuya forest at a later point in the day towards Kisoro Town. Dinner and overnight stay at Travelers Rest Hotel
Day 3: Birding Mgahinga National Park
Your day 3 of 12-Day Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda will begin early with breakfast and with picnic lunch, drive to Ntebeko Camp from where we shall start our birding as we trek to one of the most stunning areas in Uganda. We shall take the gorge trail that loops half way up Mt. Sabinyo, through a variety of montane habitats harboring the White-napped Raven, Dusky Turtle Dove, Olive Wood-pecker, White-starred Robin, Mountain Yellow Warbler, Rwenzori Turaco, Cape Robin-Chat, Kivu Ground Thrush, White-eyed Slaty and White Tailed Blue Flycatcher, Lagden’s Bush-Shrike, Yellow-crowned Canary, Streaky and Thick Billed Seedeater on our birding today we shall have a bigger focus on the shy Shelly’s Crimson-wing among other birds. Dinner and overnight stay at Travelers Rest Hotel
Day 4: Birding to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest- Ruhija Sector
Wake up early, have breakfast, we shall start our birding in the Rift Valley Area. We will have a stopover in a nearby Swamp towards Echuya forest mostly to look out for the Grauer’s Rush Warbler, Little Rush Warbler plus the one of the rare Bradypterus Warblers within the Albertine Rift corridor also, continue birding to Ruhija with numerous stopovers expecting birds like the Chestnut Throated Apalis, White-browed Crombec, Augur and Mountain Buzzard, Yellow Bellied Waxbill, Doherty’s Bush-shrike, Black-headed Waxbill, Dusky Crimsonwing, Dusky Twinspot, Common Stonechat among others birds. Towards the camp headquarters we look out for the Handsome Francolin, Olive Pigeon Stripe-breasted and Dusky Tit, Rwenzori Batis, , Western Green Tinkerbird, Archer’s Robin-Chat, and much more. We stay at Trekker’s Tavern for two nights.
Day 5: Birding to Mubwindi Swamp
Rise up early, have your delicious breakfast and we embark on birding, our highlight will the beautiful leafy looking broadbill, Black-billed Turaco, Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher, Mountain Greenbul, Grey Cuckoo Shrike, Shelley’s and Yellow-streaked Greenbul, Rwenzori Batis, Regal Sunbird Olive, Elliot’s and Fine-banded Woodpecker, Red-faced Woodland and Mountain Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-throated Collard and Black Throated Apalis, Stripe-breasted Tit, African Hill Babbler, Mountain Illadopsis, Grauer’s Broadbill, Mountain, among other birds. You will conclude your day 5 of 12-Day Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda.
Return to your lodge
Day 6: Birding to Buhoma via the Neck
Rise up and have breakfast, begin your drive to Buhoma in the southern part of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, while birding en-route. On our drive and the stopovers we make, expect to see the elusive Regal and Purple-breasted Sunbird, Strange Weaver, Black Bee-eater, calling out the Red-throated Wryneck and finding it would be a great addition, Mountain Wagtail and the Cassin’s Grey Flycatcher, Stripe-breasted Tit, Sharpe’s Starling, White-starred Robin, Olive Thrush, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Grauer’s Warbler, MacKinnon’s Fiscal, Collared, Mountain Masked Chestnut-throated, and Grey Apalis, Dusky Twinspot etc. Dinner and Overnight at Buhoma Community Bandas or Ride 4 A Woman.
Day 7: Birding Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After your breakfast, we explore the Bwindi Buhoma area searching out for birds like the Pink-footed Puffbuck, Northern Double Collard and Green Sunbird, Yellow Billed Barbet, Bocage’s Bush-Shrike, Bar-tailed Trogon, Black Bee-Eater, Cassin’s and Scaly throated Honey Guide, African Broadbill, Blue-headed, Black-billed Weaver, Many Coloured and Luhder’s Bush-shrike, White-bellied Robin-Chat, Red-throated Alethe, Western Green Tinkerbird, Short Tailed Warbler, Blue Throated Brown, Red-fronted Antpecker, Magpie Mannikin, Mountain Illadopsis, Red Faced Woodland Warbler, Equatorial Akalat, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Black Faced Rufous Warbler, Mountain Masked Apalis, Dusky Tit, White-headed Wood-hoopoe, Black Billed Turaco, Petit’s Cuckooshrike, among others. You will conclude your day 7 of 12-Day Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda.
Day 8: Birding to Kasese
Wake up and have your delicious breakfast, with packed lunch, leave for Rwenzori National Park. While there, expect to search for special birds like the Stripe-breasted Tit, Forest Flycatcher, purple breasted sunbird, Abyssinian, Red faced, Shelly’s and Dusky Crimson-wing, Red-bellied seed cracker, Woodhouse Antipecker, Grey Apalis, Ayres and Cassin’s Hawk-eagle and many others. We stay at the foot hills of Rwenzori Mountains.
Day 9 Birding the Rwenzori then transfer to Fort Portal
Rise up, have breakfast and prepare for birding, especially for the highly localized birds. Expect to see birds like the African Long-eared Owl, which is often linked with the Holarctic Long-eared Owl. This area is one of only two in East Africa where this owl is found, the other being Mt. Kenya. The Greater Double-collared Sunbird is also present, especially in bamboo and heath areas. The Rwenzori Turaco is common here too. There have been recent sightings of the rare Grauer’s Cuckoo-shrike. Dinner and overnight stay is at the Mountains of the Moon Hotel, with full board included.
Day 10: Birding to Semliki
Your day 10 of 12-Day Birding Safari in Southwestern Uganda will begin with early breakfast and embark on birding to Semuliki National Park getting there in time to bird the trails around the hot springs. This gives us a great introduction to the Semliki birds like the Black Bellied Seed Cracker, Chestnut Breasted Negro Finch, Pied Hornbill, Congo Pied Hornbill, several Hornbills, and others then transfer to Bundibugyo. Overnight at Vanilla Hotel.
Day 11: Full day birding Kirumia Trail
Wake up early, have your hearty breakfast and after, proceed for a whole day birding on the Kirumia trail. Depending on the day’s weather condition, here expect to have some of the best birding within the East African region with several species of west African Origin. Search out for birds like Lyre Tailed Honey Guides, Rufous Sided Broadbill, Blue-headed Crested-flycatcher, Black-casqued wattled, Swamp palm Bulbul, White thighed, Piping, Red-billed dwarf, White crested and Black dwarf Hornbill, Blue Billed and Crested Malimbe, Leaf Love, rarely seen are the Capuchin Babbler and African Piculet small bird of its own related to the woodpeckers, among other birds. Dinner and overnight at the lodge
Day 12: Birding enroute to Entebbe
After breakfast, bird your way back to Entebbe to meet your return flight or at your hotel.
