10 Day Uganda Birding Tour

($3571 – 2 Pax/pp)

Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe and birding Mabamba swamp.

On arrival, you will be received by our representative, your drive/guide,who will give you a briefing about your birding safari and then go birding at Mabamba swamp (depending on the time of your arrival). The birds to look out for in this area include Grey Parrots, Great-white and Pink-backed Pelicans, Grey-crowned Cranes, African and Lesser Jacana, White-backed Duck, Black-necked, Baglafecht, Orange, Northern Brown-throated & Weyns’s Weaver.

Here we also expect the Shoebill Stork, African Fish Eagle, African Goshawk, Swamp Flycatcher, Yellow-billed Duck and African Pygmy Goose. We have a lunch break and continue birding  Yellow-throated Greenbul, Great-blue and Ross’s Turaco, Black and White-casqued and Pied Hornbill, Yellow-backed, Brown-throated and Orange Weaver among others. We later check in to the service of 2 Friends Hotel – Entebbe, dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Birding to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary – Masindi. 

After breakfast, we will start birding towards Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, passing through the famous Luwero Triangle, with chances of seeing Hooded Vulture, Black Kite, Marabou Stork, Greater and Lesser Blue-eared Starling, White-crested Helmet-Shrike, Northern Puffback, Piapiac, African Hoopoe & White-crested Turaco.

Also expect the Crowned Hornbill, Meyer’s Parrot, Red-billed, Bar-breasted and African Firefinch, Broad-billed and Abyssinian Roller, Shoebill Stork, Diederic and Claas’s Cuckoo among others. We later drive on to Masindi, arriving in the evening and check in to the service of Masindi Kolping Hotel for dinner and overnight.

Red-billed Wood-dove breeding – Budongo Royal Mile.

Day 3: Whole day birding in the Royal Mile – Budongo Forest. 

You will have an early morning breakfast and with our packed lunch, drive to one of “Uganda’s birding hot spots” the Royal Mile. This is historically known to have been a leisure hunting spot for the traditional King of Bunyoro and that’s where the name Royal Mile came from.

It’s a very rewarding birding area as the forest has been cut back a few meters along the sides of the main trail, inside this tropical rain forest. Here we expect to encounter specialties that include; the Yellow and Grey Longbill, Chestnut-capped, Yellow-footed and Forest Flycatcher, Yellow-crested and Brown-eared Woodpecker, Rufous-crowned Eramomela, Forest Robin, Pale-breasted, Brown and Puvel’s Illadopsis, Blue-breasted, African Dwarf, African Pygmy and Chocolate-backed Kingfisher.

Also the Yellow-browed Camaroptera, Lemon-bellied and Green Crombec, Western Black-headed Oriel, African Crowned Eagle, Hairy-breasted, Yellow-spotted and Yellow-billed Barbet, White-thighed and Black & White-Casqued Hornbill, Jameson’s and Chestnut Wattle-Eye, Sabine’s and Cassin’s Spaintail among others. We later go back to the Hotel in the evening for dinner and overnight.

Day 4: Birding towards Murchison Falls National Park.

After the morning breakfast, with our packed lunch, we will check out and start birding towards Murchison falls national park. This is Uganda’s largest conservation area, covering about 3893 square kilometers, protecting about 78 mammal species and about 450 bird species, within it’s wide variety of habitats like wetlands, open Savannah grasslands, Savannah woodland, marsh, Aquatic and forest habitats.

Here we are likely to encounter specialties that include; the Bat Hawk, Little Sparrow-Hawk, Bruce’s Green Pigeon, Heuglin’s Francolin, Black-bellied and Denham’s Bustard, White-crested Turaco, Black-billed and Blue-spotted Wood-dove, Swallow-tailed, Red-throated and Madagascar Bee-eater, Red-winged Grey Warbler, Fire-crested and Brown-chested Alethe, Rock Pratincole, Pel’s Fishing Owl, Black-crowned and Marsh Tchagra among others. We later check in to the service of Fort Murchison for dinner and overnight.

Day 5: Birding Murchison Falls National Park – Launch cruise.

After an early breakfast, with our packed lunch, we start our birding activity towards the Delta area, here the big game includes; the Elephant, Cape Buffaloes, Kob, Giraffes, Ruth-Child’s Jackson’s Hartbeast, Oribi, Jackals, Common Duikers, Patus Monkeys, Lions and Leopards among others. We also expect to encounter bird specialties that include; the Black-bellied and Denham’s Bustard, White-browed and Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver.

There are also have chances for the Black-headed Lapwing, White-faced and Fulvous Whistling Duck, Broad-billed and Abyssinian Roller, Whistling, Singing, Black-backed, Croacking and Foxy Cisticola, Black-Lored and Brown Babbler, Double-toothed and Black-billed Barbet, Northern Carmine, Red-throated and Swallow-tailed Bee-eater, Red-necked Falcon, Martial Eagle, White-headed Black Chat, African Quail-Finch and Shoebill among others.

We have lunch and go for the afternoon boat cruise on the Nile, towards the bottom of the falls. This provides us with yet another but different wildlife viewing from a close range , as they come to cool off on the showers of this mighty river. The launch normally takes about 3 hours, then come back to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight.

Day 6: Murchison Falls – Kibale National Park.

After an early breakfast, with our packed lunch, we will transfer to Kibale national park. This drive takes us through Bulisa escarpment,  along the Albertine Rift Valley, with good views of lake Albert, it also takes us through Hoima, rolling hills of Kagadi and beautiful tea plantations of Kabarole (Fort-Portal). Today we have some bit of driving with less birding along the way.

Some of the species we are likely to encounter here include the Vinaceous Dove, Morking Chat, Rufous Sparrow, Cut-throat Finch, Beautiful Sunbird, White-browed and Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver, Foxy Cisticola, Black-billed Barbet, Lesser and Greater Blue-eared Starling, White-winged Warbler and Papyrus Gonolek among others. We arrive at Kibale national park in the early evening and check in to the service of Kibale Forest Camp for dinner and overnight.

Day 7: Birding Kibale and Bigodi Wetland.

The day begins early with an early morning breakfast and we will make an early start into the forest that has about 335 recorded bird species. This park is also home to a community of more than 1000 Chimpanzees and about 12 other primate species. So here we look for specialties that include the Green-breasted Pitta, Olive and Afep Pigeon, Black Bee-eater, Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird, Red-capped and Grey-winged Robinchat.

Plus the African Crowned Eagle, Fairy-breasted, Yellow-spotted and Yellow-billed Barbet, African Broadbill, Willcock’s and Thick-Billed Horneyguide, Horneyguide Greenbul, Purple-headed and Chestnut-winged Starling, Dark-backed and Black-necked Weaver, Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoo, Red-chested Owlet, Red-headed Bluebill, Brown and Scaly Illadopsis among others.  We go back to the camp, have lunch and later in the afternoon, go for a nature walk/ birding in the Bigodi wetland sanctuary, for another birding experience.

Here we may have chances for the Buff-spotted and Brown-eared Woodpecker, Shining-Blue Kingfisher, White-collard Oliveback, Joyful Greenbul, Dark-capped and Papyrus Yellow Warbler, Papyrus Gonolek, White-tailed Ant-thrush, Green-backed Twinspot and White-spotted Flufftail among others. We later go back to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight at Kibale Guest Cottages.

Day 8: Birding as we transfer to Semiliki National Park.

After breakfast, with our packed lunch, we start birding towards Semliki national park, which also lays in the Albertine Rift Valley and it’s an Eastern extension of the great Ituri forest from Eastern Congo. Here we expect to encounter large numbers of the Guinea-Congo biome species as they reach their eastern limits. This therefore makes it the best place in Uganda with high chances of seeing some of the West African species that can hardly be accessed from other places in East Africa.

The specialties here include; the Western Bronze-napped Pigeon, Spot-breasted Ibis, Northern Bearded Scrub-Robin, Nkulengu Rail, Orange-Cheeked Waxbill, Grant’s Bluebill, Black-bellied Seedcracker, White-crested, Red-billed Dwarf, Black-Dwarf, Black-casqued Wattled, White-thighed and Piping Hornbill, Shining-Blue, Chocolate-backed and White-bellied Kingfisher, Barred Long-tailed, Olive Long-tailed and Yellow-throated Cuckoo, Long-tailed Hawk and Red-thighed Sparrowhawk among others. We later check in to the service of Bumaga Camp for dinner and overnight.

Day 9: Birding along Kirumya trail in Semliki National Park.

After an early morning breakfast, with our packed lunch, we start a whole day birding activity along the Kirumya trail of Semliki national park. The park poses among Uganda’s birding hot spots and we expect to encounter some of the specialties that include; the African Piculet, Fire-crested Aleth, Lyre-tailed, Spotted and Zenker’s Horneyguide, Yellow-throated Cuckoo, Lemon-bellied Crombec, Yellow-throated Nicator, Long-tailed Hawk, Capuchin Babbler, Swamp Palm Bulbul & Leaf-love.

And the Xavier’s, Icterine, Sassi’s, Olive and Simple Greenbul, Orange-tufted Sunbird, Red-billed Helmet-Shrike, Rufous-sided Broadbill, Chestnut-breasted and Pale-fronted Negrofinch, Forest Scrub-robin, Nkulengu Rail, Green-tailed and Red-tailed Bristlebill, Black-collard Lovebird, Ituri Batis, White-throated Blue Swallow, Red-rumped Tinkerbird and Red-thighed Sparrowhawk among others. We go back to the camp in the evening for dinner and overnight.

Day 10: Transfer to Entebbe – Departure.

After breakfast, we will start birding as we transfer to Entebbe, passing through Mubende and Mityana towns. We arrive at Entebbe in the afternoon and drive straight to the Airport for your flight back home. (Depending on the time of your flight).

Highlights of this 10 Day Uganda Birding Tour:

• Birding watching through some of Uganda’s birding hot spots.
• Birding & Rhino Trekking at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.
• Birding the Royal Mile, Budongo Forest.
• Birding Game drives at Murchison Falls national park.
• Birding boat launch on the Mighty River Nile, MFNP.
• Chimpanzee trekking & Birding at Kibale forest national park
• Bird watching at Semliki forest national park.
• Guinea-Congo Biome Species at Semliki Forest NP.

Safari Summary

Tour Duration: 10 Days & 9 Nights

Departure / Return Location: Entebbe, Uganda

Destinations on Tour:

1. Entebbe
2. Mabamba Wetland Sanctuary
3. Rhino Trekking & Birding at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary
4. Birding the Royal Mile, Budongo Forest
5. Birding Game Drive & Boat Cruise at Murchison Falls NP.
6. Bird Watching at Kibale National Park
7. Birding Nature Walk at Semliki National Park.
8. Entebbe

Quotation 2 Pax / Per Person: $ 3571 High Season & $3207 Low Season.

Terrain Safaris Itinerary

Book your 10 Day Birding Tour Today:
Here are some of our tours; Birding Budongo Royal Mile – Semliki Forest Birding – Birding Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary – Birding Murchison Falls National Park.

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