Day 1: Arrival in Entebbe, Uganda

Karibu! On arrival at Entebbe International Airport, you will be welcomed by your Kaara Adventures guide and transferred to your lodge on the shores of Lake Victoria. Depending on your arrival time, enjoy a relaxed evening before the adventure begins. Dinner and overnight at your lodge.

Day 2: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park

After breakfast, drive north to Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda’s largest protected area, where the Nile River is forced through a narrow gorge before plunging dramatically over the falls. Break the journey at the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for an optional rhino tracking walk before continuing to your lodge overlooking the Nile.

Day 3: Game Drive and Nile Boat Cruise

Rise early for a game drive across Murchison’s open savanna, home to elephants, giraffes, buffalo, and lions. In the afternoon, cruise the Nile to the base of the falls, spotting hippos and crocodiles, with an optional hike to the top of the falls. Dinner and overnight at your lodge.

Day 4: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park

After breakfast, drive south through the Rift Valley escarpment towards Kibale Forest National Park, the primate capital of East Africa. Check into your lodge in the afternoon and relax ahead of tomorrow’s trek.

Day 5: Chimpanzee Tracking and Bigodi Wetland Walk

Head into Kibale Forest for chimpanzee tracking, following trackers through the canopy to observe chimpanzee families. In the afternoon, take a guided walk through the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, rich in birdlife and monkeys. Dinner and overnight at your lodge.

Day 6: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park

After breakfast, continue south to Queen Elizabeth National Park, stretching between the Rwenzori Mountains and Lake Edward. Check into your lodge and enjoy an evening at leisure.

Day 7: Game Drive, Kazinga Channel Cruise and Transfer to Bwindi

Start with a morning game drive across the Kasenyi plains, followed by a boat cruise along the Kazinga Channel. In the afternoon, continue to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to nearly half the world’s remaining mountain gorillas, and attend a briefing on gorilla trekking rules.

Day 8: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi

After an early breakfast, head into the forest with your ranger guide to track a habituated mountain gorilla family through Bwindi’s dense rainforest, spending a magical hour observing them once found. Return to your lodge for overnight.

Day 9: Transfer to Rwanda – Volcanoes National Park

Cross the border into Rwanda and continue to Volcanoes National Park, home to five of the eight Virunga volcanoes. Settle into your lodge and prepare for tomorrow’s second gorilla trek.

Day 10: Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park

Set off early for your second mountain gorilla encounter, this time on the volcanic slopes of the Virungas. Return to your lodge for lunch and a relaxed afternoon, with an optional golden monkey tracking excursion.

Day 11: Transfer to Kigali and Fly to Nairobi, Kenya

After breakfast, drive to Kigali for a short city tour, including a stop at the Kigali Genocide Memorial, before your flight to Nairobi. On arrival, transfer to your hotel for dinner and overnight, marking the start of the Kenyan leg of your journey.

Day 12: Transfer to Masai Mara National Reserve

After an early breakfast, drive across the Great Rift Valley to the Masai Mara, Kenya’s most famous wildlife reserve and part of the wider Serengeti ecosystem. Arrive in time for an afternoon game drive across the open plains, home to lions, cheetahs, elephants, and, in season, the Great Migration.

Day 13: Full Day Masai Mara Game Drive

Spend a full day exploring the Mara’s plains with morning and afternoon game drives, tracking the “Big Five” and the vast herds of wildebeest and zebra that give the reserve its reputation. An optional cultural visit to a Maasai village is available in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight at your camp.

Day 14: Masai Mara to Transfer Day

Enjoy one final morning game drive in the Mara before an optional hot air balloon safari over the plains at sunrise. After breakfast, transfer back towards Nairobi in preparation for the onward journey into Tanzania. Overnight near Nairobi or at the border, depending on your onward flight schedule.

Day 15: Cross into Tanzania and Transfer to Serengeti National Park

Travel across the border into Tanzania, either by road via the Isebania/Sirari crossing or by connecting flight via Kilimanjaro/Arusha, continuing on to the Serengeti National Park, one of the world’s most celebrated wildlife ecosystems. Check into your camp in time for an evening game drive.

Day 16: Full Day Serengeti Game Drive

Spend the day exploring the Serengeti’s endless plains, home to large predator populations and, depending on the season, the Great Migration crossing the Grumeti or Mara rivers. Enjoy a picnic lunch in the bush between game drives. Dinner and overnight at your camp.

Day 17: Transfer to Ngorongoro Crater

After a final morning game drive, drive to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, checking into your lodge perched on the crater rim with sweeping views over the caldera below. Enjoy the evening at leisure.

Day 18: Ngorongoro Crater Floor Game Drive and Transfer to Tarangire

Descend early into Ngorongoro Crater, one of the most concentrated wildlife areas in Africa, where lions, elephants, and black rhino can all be spotted within a single morning. After a picnic lunch near a hippo pool, drive on to Tarangire National Park, known for its ancient baobab trees and large elephant herds.

Day 19: Tarangire National Park Game Drive

Spend the day on game drives through Tarangire, watching elephant herds gather along the Tarangire River, alongside giraffes, zebras, and resident lion prides. Dinner and overnight at your lodge.

Day 20: Transfer to Arusha via Lake Manyara

After breakfast, drive towards Arusha with an optional stop at Lake Manyara National Park, known for its tree-climbing lions and flamingo-lined lake shore. Check into your hotel in Arusha for a final night in Tanzania.

Day 21: Departure from Kilimanjaro/Arusha

Depending on your flight schedule, enjoy a final relaxed morning in Arusha before transferring to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your departure flight, bringing your 21-day East African Combi to a close.

Plan Your 21-Day East African Combi

Ready to experience gorillas, chimpanzees, and the Great Migration across four countries in one seamless journey? Get in touch with our safari consultants to customize this itinerary, or explore our multi-country safaris and combined tours to find the perfect fit for your travel dates, budget, and interests. For trekking preparation tips, see our gorilla trekking checklist before you travel.