Safari Destinations in East Africa

safari destinations

The fastest way to visit East African destinations – Fly – in Safaris

Though East African safari destinations like Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania generally have good road infrastructure, the distances needed to reach attractions and national parks can be long and tiresome.

Fly-in safaris allow travelers who have limited time to cut out long road transfers and combine various destinations in East Africa by charter light aircrafts. There are various small airstrips where charter planes can land to access remote wildlife destinations with comfort.

East Africa’s most famous wildlife safari destinations

A wild realm of safaris is found in Africa and East Africa particularly is one of the greatest safari destinations in the world if not the greatest. Diverse landscapes and iconic terrains are found here and some of the best must see include Uganda’s  Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, volcanoes national park, Kidepo valley national park in northeastern Uganda, masai mara wildlife reserve, Serengeti and Ngoro Ngoro crater. These can be combined into one fly in safari itinerary or on a short safari. Opportunities for wildlife viewing activities are endless including gorilla trekking in Uganda or Rwanda, game drive for big five and wildebeest viewing, bushwalks, hot air balloon safaris, boat rides among others.

Fly in safaris make long drives short and provide spectacular aerial views of the east African scenic landscapes. However, there will be short distance transfers in air conditioned root top safari vehicles between airstrips and lodges.

Fly -in safaris use small light aircrafts which can carry up to 13 passengers using some of the safest and reliable charter plane operators such as Aero link, Eagle Air, Jumbo jet. These provide more comfort and the best quickest way to get to your safari destination. Flights do overlap with road transport where you arrive at an airstrip and transfer shortly to the lodge.

Contact us for your tailored fly-in-safari through: https://ebstoursandsafaris.com/make-a-reservation/

Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda

chimpanzee trekking

How to choose your destination for chimpanzee trekking in Uganda?

If you desire to do chimpanzee trekking, Uganda offers the best chances than any other place in East Africa. Because, there are four places which you can visit to see chimpanzees.

Where to see chimpanzees in Uganda

1. Kibale Forest National Park

Home to over 1400 chimpanzees and 12 primate species, Kibale forest is regarded as the primate capital of the world. There are more than 10 troops of chimps that have been habituated since 1993. They are accustomed to humans which means the chance to see chimps is almost 100% guaranteed. Chimpanzee trekking permit is $200 per person. Chimpanzee trekking can be done during the morning at 8:00am or 2:00pm afternoon. Visitors spend up to 1 hour with chimps. It’s great and definitely one of your must do activities in Uganda. Besides chimp trekking, Kibale forest offers chimpanzee habituation experience where you observe chimps for full day at $250 USD per person. Optional activities to view more primates in Kibale include Bigodi community swamp walk and night walk.

2. Budongo Forest Reserve

This eco-tourism spot is home to over 700 chimpanzees including 6 troops that are habituated for tourism. The chance to see chimps in Budongo forest is high because of there are no reports of visitors missing to see chimps despite the time of the year. Chimpanzee trekking at Budongo is done in the morning session starting 08:am or afternoon at 2:00pm. This forest reserve is located south of Murchison Falls Conservation Area which presents an opportunity to view more wildlife in Murchison falls national park. Options also include visiting Ziwa Rhino sanctuary.

3. Kalinzu Forest Reserve and Kyambura Gorge

The two central forest reserves located in Queen Elizabeth, Uganda’s most visited National Park. Kalinzu forest is the most popular for chimp trekking than Kyambura gorge because of the following reasons Kyambura gorge also known as the valley of apes has a rough terrain that make it difficult to locate chimps. On the other hand, the terrain of kalinzu forest is gentle and undulating making it relatively easier to search for chimps. The chance of seeing chimps is high like 80% and while in Kyambura its 50% thus the price to see chimps is $50 USD per person.

4. Toro-semuliki Wildlife Reserve

The number of days you wish to spend on safari in Uganda will determine where to see chimps. Sample itineraries for chimpanzee trekking tours in Uganda.

For shorter trips less than 4 days, you can still see Chimps and view Wildlife.

This is suitable for travelers with less than a day in Entebbe or Kampala and includes a boat cruise on Lake Victoria.

What is the difference between Chimpanzee Trekking and Habituation Experience?

The two offer visitors a chance to see chimpanzees in their natural habitat. However, chimpanzee tracking provides the chance to observe chimps for 1 hour. At Kibale forest, it is done in 2 secessions. The morning secession starts at 8:00am and the 2:00pm in the afternoon.

On the other hand, chimpanzee habituation experience involves watching chimpanzees for a full day starting between 6 to 6:30am in the morning when chimps leave their nests up to 7:00pm. There’s much more to learn about chimps and their behavior because visitors can observe chimps leaving their nests as they begin their day to hunt for food. Chimpanzee groups allocated for habituation are less accustomed to humans than those for tracking. In East Africa, the other places to see chimps include Nyungwe Forest National Park Rwanda, Mahale Mountains National Park in Tanzania.