Birding adventure through Uganda and Rwanda, focusing on the Albertine Rift endemics. This concise tour encompasses key birding hotspots, including Mabamba Swamp, the lush canopies of Nyungwe Forest, the impenetrable Forest, the volcanic slopes of Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, and the diverse habitats of Queen Elizabeth National Park, Mburo NP, Semuliki NP. While the primary focus is on avian treasures, opportunities for optional gorilla and chimpanzee trekking can be seamlessly integrated.

You’ll be collected from the airport.

Accommodation before the tour starts can be arranged for an extra cost.

Day 1

Pick in Kigali and Transfer to Nyungwe Forest, Afternoon to Dark Roadside Birding Nyungwe Forest

You’ll transfer to Nyungwe Forest and add an afternoon to dark roadside birding in the forest as you connect to the lodge.

The Nyungwe forest is situated in south-west Rwanda between Lake Kivu and the international border with Burundi. This beautiful birding area lies west of Butare, with the Butare-Cyangugu road passing straight through the middle, providing excellent roadside birding.

About 270 species have been recorded in Nyungwe, reflecting the wide habitat diversity and altitudinal range. These include all the 25 species of the Albertine Rift mountains Endemic Bird Area that occur in Rwanda, Chapin’s Flycatcher, and Rockefellers’ Sunbird (all globally threatened, restricted-range, and biome-restricted). Also, 11 of the 23 species of the Guinea–Congo Forests biome and 71 of the 74 species of this biome of the Afrotropical Highlands that occur in Rwanda have been recorded at this site!

Day 2

Whole Day in the Forest Birding

You’ll have a whole day birding in the park, Uwinka trail for Albertine endemics. Lookout for; Stripe-breasted Tit, Purple-breasted Sunbird, Red-throated Alethe, Archer’s Robin-Chat, Ruwenzori Turaco, Great Blue Turaco, Handsome Francolin, Rockefeller’s Sunbird, Miombo Rock-Thrush, Mountain Masked Apalis, Black-faced Apalis, Chestnut-throated Apalis, Collared Apalis, Grauer’s Warbler, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Kivu Ground-Thrush, White-tailed Blue-flycatcher, Red-chested, SunbirdRegal Sunbird, Olive Woodpecker, Mountain Greenbul, Rwenzori Hill-babbler, Cinnamon Bracken Warbler, Mountain Yellow Warbler, Northern Puffback, White-starred Robin, Rwenzori Double-collared Sunbird, Dusky Crimsonwing, Thick-billed Seedeater, Streaky Seedeater, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo etc.

Day 3

Drive and Cross to Kisoro Town in Uganda for Mgahinga National Park

You’ll transfer while birding to Uganda-Mgahinga National Park via Cyanika border. Mgahinga boasts birding with a list of over 180 species of birds, and at least 14 Albertine endemics can be seen here. An early arrival gives you a chance to do evening birding around.

Day 4

Birding in Mgahinga National Park

Whole day birding in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in search of Rwenzori Turaco, Crowned Hornbill, Black Kite, Crowned Crane, Handsome Francolin, Dusky Turtle Dove, Alpine Chat, Kivu Ground Thrush, White-tailed Blue Flycatcher, Lagden’s Bush Shrike, Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird, Montane Double-collared Sunbird.

Farmland along the Northern edge of the Park is guarded by a dry stone wall that keeps Buffalo in the Park and out of the crops. The trail along the wall is ideal for birding. Along this trail, look out for Chubb’s Cisticola, Banded Prinia, and Doherty’s Bush Shrike, which are vocal yet inconspicuous in habitats of tangles at the forest edge, whilst Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher, and Mackinnon’s Fiscal favor more exposed perches.

Common Stonechat is abundant but shares the habitat with many of the typical African open-country species, including Wing Snapping Cisticola, Yellow-throated Longclaw, Grassland Pipit, and Yellow-crowned Canary.

Day 5

Transfer while Birding on the Roadside to Bwindi National Park-Ruhija sector

Bird watching transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Ruhijja Sector. Forest birding in Bwindi ranks the best in Uganda, with the best sight guides who use their mouth whistles to mimic the birds. A zigzag drive from the main gate to the lodge through the forest gives a chance to spot a handsome francolin on the roadside, plus other birds.

Day 6

Birding in Bwindi Forest (Ruhija Sector) at Mubwindi Swamp Trail

Whole day birding in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Ruhijja sector.

Today, early after your breakfast, you start the day birding the mail trail to Mubwindi swamp.

The main highlights of this trail are the African Green Broadbill and the Grauer’s Warbler, and other birds/or endemics like Chapin’s Flycatcher, Blue-Headed Sunbird, Regal Sunbird, Rockefellower’s Sunbird, Purple-Breasted Sunbird, Strange Weaver, Dusky Crimson-Wing, Red-Collard Mountain Babbler, Chapin’s Mountain Babbler, Neumann’s Warbler, Prigogine’s Greenbul, Black-Faced Apalis, Collard Apalis, Stripe-Breasted Tit, Grauer’s Cukooshrike, Yellow-Crested Helmetshrike, Ruwenzori Batis, Dwarf Honeyguide, etc.

Day 7

Birding in the Community Gardens and Connect Buhoma Sector through the NECK

In the morning, you’ll be birding in the community for species you could have missed on the previous day of birding. You’ll proceed with our transfer to the Buhoma sector of Bwindi via the “NECK”. Several stops will be made on this journey to try several spots for a couple of specialties.

Even further down on our road, cultivated areas provide feeding opportunities for many seedeaters. Our main targets here will be the highly sought-after Dusky Twinspot and Yellow-Bellied, Black-Headed, and Black-Crowned Waxbills. African Stonechat, Streaky and Thick-Billed Seedeaters, African Citril, and Cape Canary may also be found here.

The NECK is another well-known birding locality. Here we will search for species such as Black Goshawk; Bronze-Napped Pigeon; Cinnamon-Chested, Black Bee-Eater, Cassin’s Honeyguide; Petit’s Cuckoo-Shrike; White-Chinned Prinia; the enigmatic Chapin’s Flycatcher; Mountain Wagtail; Pink-Footed Puffback; the rare Tiny Sunbird and the attractive Brown-capped Weaver.

Day 8

Birdwatching at Buhoma Main Trail

Whole day birding in Buhoma sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in search for; Cabanis’sGreenbul, Narrow-Tailed Starling, Grey-Winged Robin Chart, Eliot’s Woodpecker, Northern Double-Collared Sunbird, Black-Billed Weaver, Bocage’s Bushshrike, Pink-Footed Puffback, Petit’s Cuckoo-Shrike, White-Bellied Nigrafinch, Cameroon Sombre Greenbul, African Broadbill, Buff-Throated Flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Yellow Bill, Black-Faced Rufous Warbler, Little Grey Greenbul, Equatorial Akalat, Short-Tailed Warbler, Red-Headed Malimbe, White Browed Crombec, Mountain Black Boubou, Jameson’s Anti-Pecker etc.

Day 9-10

Lake Mburo National Park and Afternoon Game Drive and Optional Boat Tour at Lake Mburo National Park

While in the park, you will look out for birds like: African-Grey Hornbill, Black-Loward Babbler, Red-Headed Weaver, Greater Blue-Eared Starling, Trilling Cisticola, Green-Wood Hoopoe, Brown-Chested Lapwing, Scaly-Throated Honeyguide, Lesser-Masked Weaver,White-Backed Vulture, Tabora Cisticola, Crested-Spurfowl, Red-Faced Barbet, Little Bee-Eater Etc.

And mammals like zebra, eland, topi, impala, Cape buffalo, warthog, etc. Today, you target the boat ride along Lake Mburo, where you hardly miss African Finfoot, White-Backed and Black-Crowned Night Heron, and Giant Kingfisher. A night drive always produces good views of Black-shouldered, Northern Tanzania Fiery-necked Nightjar, Nocturnal Mammals, and Bush Babies.

Day 11-12

Queen Elizabeth National Park Birding and Game Drive with Boat Adventure at Kazinga Channel

You’ll venture into Queens park for birds and mammals. Look out for Common Scimitarbill, Whinchat, Spurb, Bronzy, Olive-Bellied, Marico, Purple-Banded, Orange-Tufted, Scarlet-Chested, Beautiful, Red-Chested Sunbirds, Three-Banded Plover, Caspian Plover, Kittlitz’s Plover, Red-Caped Lark, Brown Babbler, Temminck’s Courser, Northern Wheatear, Black-Winged Pratincole, White-Tailed Lark, Mosque Swallow, Black-Bellied Bustard, Little Swift, Harliquin Quail, Button Quail, White-Winged Warbler, Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl, Ovampo Sparrowhawk, Secretarybird, Caruther’s Cisticola, African Skimmers, Black-Headed Gonolek, Papyrus Gonolek, Red-Faced Cisticola, Red-Chested Cukoo, Northern Puffback, Tropica Boubou, Diederik, Klaas’s, African-Emerald Cukoos, Little Stint, Temminck’s Stint, African-Wood Owl, Black-Shouldered Night-Jar, Yellow-Throated Long-Claw, East-African Swee, Common Waxbill, Crimson-Rumped Waxbill, Fawn-Brested Waxbill, Zebra Waxbill, Village Indigobird etc.

Day 13

Birding at Semuliki Valley National park, DR Congo Biome Species

Birding in Semliki National Park along the famous Kirumia trail. If we slept in fort portal town, we drive for about 1.5 hours to the park. Semliki forest is one of the richest for lowland forest birds in Uganda and marks the eastern extension of the great Ituri Forest. A large number of reach their eastern limits here.

We spend 6– 7hours birding along the Kirumia trail. Key species include Red-billed, Black-wattled, Black-billed and White-crested Hornbills, African Piculet, Zenkel Honey-guide, Black-chested Cuckoo, Red-rumpedTinkerbird, Rufous-sided Broadbill, Nkurengu Rail, White-bellied, Dwarf, and Pygmy Kingfishers, Piping, White-thighed, and African Pied Hornbills, Fire-crested Alethe, Red-bellied and Blue-billed Malimbe, Swamp Palm Bulbul, Lowland Akalat, Forest Scrub Robin, GreentailedBristlebill, Leaf Love, Chestnut-breasted Negrofinches, Black-winged Oriole, etc.

Day 14

Transfer back to Entebbe for Night Return Flight, Detour at Mabamba Swamp Shoebill Site

This is the last day of the tour and quite a long journey to Entebbe. Approximately 6-7hour drive. You will relax eyeing the shoebill at Mabamba Swamp.

Accommodation:No accommodation (End of tour)Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast & lunch (Dinner not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

End of tour 

• Additional accommodation can be arranged for an extra cost.
• You’ll be dropped off at the airport.

Included

• Park fees (For non-residents)
• All activities (Unless labeled as optional)
• All accommodation (Unless listed as upgrade)
• A professional driver/guide
• All transportation (Unless labeled as optional)
• All Taxes/VAT
• Roundtrip airport transfer
• Meals (As specified in the day-by-day section)
• Drinking water (On all days)

Excluded

• International flights (From/to home)
• Additional accommodation before and at the end of the tour
• Tips (Tipping guideline US$10.00 pp per day)
• Personal items (Souvenirs, travel insurance, visa fees, etc.)
• Government imposed increase of taxes and/or park fees