Traveling to visit the mountain gorillas, the golden monkeys and the chimpanzees was a challenge.

VISAS, PERMITS AND CAR

First and foremost the permits for the Mountain Gorillas and Chimpanzees have to be purchased months before you arrive in Uganda or Rwanda. They can be purchased directly from the Uganda Wildlife Authority and picked up in Kampala when you arrive but the website https://ugandawildlife.org/contact-us/doesn’t work very well  and I finally booked directly with the Lifetime Safari Experiences, https://www.lifetimesafaris.com/  I had booked a car with driver for my excursion through Uganda and Rwanda.  Visas for Uganda apply online https://visit-uganda.org/

MONEY AND PAYMENTS

For those who choose not to plan their own trip, Lifetime E will organize your trip for you. I did have them purchase my permits and I did have to pay for these months in advance. The other thing to remember as quite a few places do not accept credit cards, I had to install Revolut https://www.revolut.com/  on my phone, (a money transferring app) another choice would be world remit https://www.worldremit.com/en-us/mobile-apps. Lastly, money to take must be unmarked and 2017 or newer. If the money had any marks, tears or blemishes it was rejected by many people. Of course, you can go and exchange this money at the Forex counters when you arrive in Uganda or you can use a ATM if you find one but it is best to be prepared.

We collected our car and permits and packed our car with water for the long rides between cities. The basic plan was to start in Entebbe and then head to Jinja to raft the Nile, followed by trekking the Rhinos at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary relaxing at Murchinson Falls followed by Queen Elizabeth park to visit the tree climbing lions and then Kibale National Park to trek the Chimps and ending up in Bwindi National Park to trek the Gorillas. We would then leave Uganda and head to Rwanda to rest recuperate and explore. If going to Rwanda, have the car company organize the proper paperwork to cross the border and pay them beforehand so as not to have to worry about another expense on the road. In Rwanda we headed to Gisenyi, then Kigali the capitol. The option to drive to see the canopy walk followed by a few stops before returning to Entebbe to carch our flight.

MUST HAVE ON TRIP

The important things to have on this trip of course are your vacinations. Yellow fever certification is requested but not checked while I was there. A visa from the Uganda embassy which you can apply online cost is $125 https://visit-uganda.org/. Then face mask (required when viewing gorillas and chimps), snake gaters (trekking in the jungle), walking stick (I bought one in africa and I love it but this makes it much easier for trekking) and of course enough money to pay for incidentals.

PLACES TO STAY

Spending the first night in Entebbe, the 2Friends Lodge https://www.2friendshotel.com/ was charming with views of the lake.  Across the road the hotel offered massages which were welcomed after the long flight. A night to recuperate here and then headed to Jinja staying at the Jinja Nile Resort https://madahotels.com/jinja-nile-resort-uganda. Here you can do Bunjee Jumping, River Cruise, and of course the Nile river rafting which was great fun.  Leaving Jinja to trek the Rhinos at the Ziwa National Park https://ziwarhinoandwildliferanch.com/. The option to spend the night at the property was offered but we decided to head onwards to spend the night in Kissoro. Trekking the rhinos was fun the galoshes did not keep the water out but the private guide was easy and affordable at $50 per person. The exciting option of seeing the Rhinos walking around the property during the night. In Kissoro, the guide at the hotel offered us an unexpected deal of trekking the chimps at the community Budongo Forrest http://www.budongo.org/. This was only $20 and we had a private guide and not another tourist in sight. Not only did we see many chimps we also saw quite a few bamboons. Leaving Kissoro the next day, as we had to wait for the gate into the park to open. Crossing the park to get to Murchinson Falls. Again, another complexity as if you enter the park even to exit out the other side you need to pay $40 per person plust $50 for the car. Therefore as it is a 24 hour window if you enter later in the day you can reenter the park during the morning. In Murchinson Falls, we stayed at the Bush Lodge. The accommodations are lovely with a swimming pool  In Murchinson we climbed to the top of the falls and we also took the book cruise and enjoyed the bottom of the falls. The safari to see giraffes, elephants, lions was fun but the waterfalls was the highlight of Murchinson Falls. Leaving Murchinson Falls, we headed to Fort Portal https://isungalodge.com/  for game drives and boat safari. The next safari was at Queen Elizabeth Park and my favorite place to stay Mweya Lodge https://mweyalodge.com/inside the park,  known for its tree climbing lions. We took the tour and tried to find these lions but only saw them sleeping in the Savannah.   Kibale National Park for our chimp trekking. This was $200 for the permits but we did get the opportunity to see the chimps for 1 hour. The trek was fun, cutting through the bush with machettes was primal and exciting. Chasing the chimps through the woods while they tried to escape the mob of tourists chasing them was a bit crazy but another experience. In Kibale National Park we stayed at Turco Treetops. The food at this location was delicious, the pool was lovely and the lounge was welcoming. Leaving the Kibale we headed to Bwindi National Park to visit the Gorillas. This was the moment we were waiting for and for $700 per person with our permits and our passports to verify. The permits cannot be transferred or given to someone else. We stayed at the Chameleon Lodge near the Park so we could be up bright and early to arrive at the park on time.   The option to take the easy, medium or difficult hike was offered. We debated but with my friend having a knee replacement and myself with a torn acl we opted for the easy hike. I wouldn’t say it was easy. I hired a porter to help me along at $20 per helper. Climbing over trees, wading through streams, clutching the mountain side and leaping across ditches it was exhilarating but not easy. The easy hike took 4 to 5 hours the medium hike took 5 6o 6 hours and the difficult hike…well im sure this was a bit longer. I could not have done it without my walking stick and helpful porter to pull be up and over the mountainside. Ready for the final end of our trip we headed to Rwanda. A safari here is $1400 for a safari. But we choose to go to Kigali the capitol to visit the genocide museum and explore the craft market staying at the Kigali Marriott https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/kglmc-kigali-marriott-hotel/overview/?scid=f2ae0541-1279-4f24-b197-a979c79310b0 which was lovely and then headed to Gisenyi staying at the Serena Hotel. Relaxing at this hotel for a few days was wonderful. Our trip was exciting, exhilarating and exhausting. Our trusty driver had no issues on the road and we had no problem with parking or finding gas.

The journey, rich in both excitement and exhaustion, was an unforgettable experience. Throughout, our dependable driver skillfully navigated the roads, eliminating any concerns about parking or finding fuel stations.  I did meet many people who did the self driving tour but realized google maps was not up to date on road closures, therefore, a driver is essential in this part of the world.  I loved Uganda and found the people in Rwanda amazing.