Gorillas in the Mist & the Mighty Nile
PLAN MY UGANDA SAFARIChurchill called it the Pearl of Africa. We simply call it home.
Welcome to Uganda — the Pearl of Africa and the finest place on earth to meet mountain gorillas in the wild. At Ancient Africa Safaris, we craft tailor-made luxury Uganda safari packages from our home in Kampala: gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, chimpanzee tracking in Kibale, boat safaris beneath the thunder of Murchison Falls and game drives among the tree-climbing lions of Queen Elizabeth National Park. Travel with our own guides on the roads we grew up on — and let us show you our Africa, the way only locals can.
From Nile boat safaris beneath Murchison Falls and the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha to a misty dawn trek through Bwindi's Impenetrable Forest.
A swift, seamless luxury escape: fly to Bwindi, spend a privileged hour with a mountain gorilla family and be back at Entebbe by sunset on day three.
Track our closest relatives through the primate capital of the world — Kibale shelters some 1,500 chimpanzees — from a crater-lakes lodge on the forest's edge.
The world's most powerful waterfall, private Nile cruises among hippos and shoebills, and big-game drives across the Albertine savannah.
Uganda gathers everything East Africa does best — snow-capped mountains, the source of the Nile, ten national parks and more primates than anywhere on earth — into one green, generous country. Here is why we believe the Pearl of Africa belongs at the very top of your list.
Start PlanningBwindi's ancient forest shelters nearly half of all mountain gorillas left on earth — and an hour among them, at $800 a permit, is Africa's greatest wildlife privilege at almost half Rwanda's price.
Thirteen primate species share Uganda's forests — track chimpanzees in Kibale, golden monkeys on the Virungas and black-and-white colobus almost everywhere in between.
The world's longest river is born here — raft it at Jinja, cruise it beneath the thunder of Murchison Falls and watch elephants drink from it at sunset.
Tree-climbing lions in Ishasha, elephant herds against the Rwenzoris and Kidepo's wild frontier — Uganda's parks deliver big game with blissfully few vehicles.
Ugandans are rightly famous as Africa's friendliest hosts — and as a Kampala-born company, we may be biased, but our guests agree every single time.
Gorilla days begin with coffee at dawn and a briefing in the mist — then the forest closes around you and every sense comes alive.
Tracks read like headlines, alarm calls decoded mid-sentence — decades of bush wisdom turn every drive into your private masterclass.
Forest lodges with gorillas in the garden and Nile-bank suites where hippos graze the lawn — Uganda's finest camps put you deep inside the wild, in complete comfort.
Tree-climbing lions, shoebill storks, leopard in the candelabra trees and Nile crocodiles older than memory — Uganda packs astonishing variety into every single day.
A gin and tonic as the horizon catches fire, dinner under lanterns, and a night sky no city has ever dimmed.
Light aircraft hop you between parks in about an hour — we meet you at every airstrip, handle the luggage and keep the champagne cold.
Drag or use the arrows to explore
Uganda's loftiest lodge — stone cottages with fireplaces and butlers, gazing over the Virunga volcanoes from the rim of the Impenetrable Forest.
View LodgeEight luxury tents inside the forest itself — the only camp where gorilla families occasionally wander through the garden.
View LodgeA reimagined coffee store above the 'Valley of Apes', with chimpanzees below, craters behind and the savannah stretching to the Rwenzoris.
View LodgeTen thatched suites on the southern bank of the Victoria Nile, with hippos on the lawn and the falls thundering upstream.
View LodgeUganda's two dry windows bring the easiest forest trekking and the best savannah game viewing. Gorilla permits ($800) sell out months ahead — we recommend booking six to twelve months early.
Rain feeds the forests, lodges drop their rates and gorilla permits fall to $600 in April, May and November — a superb-value secret for flexible travellers.
A UNESCO-listed rainforest sheltering nearly half the world's mountain gorillas — the single greatest wildlife encounter in Africa happens here.
Tree-climbing lions in Ishasha, hippo-packed waters on the Kazinga Channel and crater lakes beneath the Rwenzoris.
The Nile detonates through a seven-metre gorge — the world's most powerful waterfall, ringed by elephant, giraffe and shoebill country.
The primate capital of the world — 1,500 chimpanzees and twelve other primate species in one towering tropical forest.
Uganda's wildest secret — buffalo herds a thousand strong and lion-filled valleys on the remote northern frontier, all to yourself.
We are Ancient Africa Safaris — a family of East African guides, planners and storytellers who have spent more than fifteen years crafting private journeys through the wild heart of this continent. Uganda is our home: from our base in Kampala we design every safari by hand, on roads we grew up on and trails we have walked ourselves. No templates, no crowds — just our Africa, shared with you.
Karibu sana — welcome to the family.
Still unsure? Tell us what you love about travel — we'll tell you, honestly, whether Uganda is your place.
TALK TO A SAFARI EXPERTThe dry seasons — June to August and December to February — offer the easiest forest trails and clearest skies. Gorilla trekking runs year-round, though, and April, May and November bring discounted $600 permits and wonderfully quiet trailheads.
Currently $800 per person for foreign non-residents, dropping to $600 in April, May and November. The permit buys one privileged hour with a habituated gorilla family, with expert trackers and guides included. Permits are strictly limited — we secure yours the moment your dates are confirmed, ideally six to twelve months ahead.
Treks range from one to six hours through steep forest at 1,500–2,600 metres. A reasonable level of fitness helps, porters (well worth the $20) carry your daypack, and we can request gorilla families with shorter approach hikes for less mobile travellers.
Yes — the safari circuit is long-established and welcoming, you travel with our professional guides throughout, and lodges maintain excellent standards. As anywhere, normal city precautions apply in Kampala.
Most nationalities need the $50 eVisa, applied for online before travel — or the $100 East Africa Tourist Visa, which also covers Kenya and Rwanda. A yellow fever certificate is required on arrival, and malaria prophylaxis is recommended for all safari areas.
Light aircraft from Entebbe reach Bwindi and Murchison in roughly an hour, versus eight or more by road. Many of our guests drive one leg through the beautiful countryside and fly the other — we will design the rhythm that suits you.
Beautifully. Bwindi sits close to the Rwanda border — Kigali is often the quickest gateway — and the East Africa Tourist Visa covers Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya on one document. Gorillas plus the Masai Mara is one of our most-loved combinations.
Gorilla and chimpanzee trekking carry a strict minimum age of 15. Younger explorers are warmly welcomed in the savannah parks — Queen Elizabeth, Murchison and Lake Mburo — where family lodges and private vehicles make Uganda a wonderful family destination.
Tell us your dream — the gorilla dawn, the thunder of Murchison, the lions in the fig trees — and our experts will shape it into a journey that is yours alone. No obligation, no templates; just an honest conversation about extraordinary travel.
