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Kidepo Valley National Park stands out as a hidden gem due to its remote location—a full day’s drive from Uganda’s capital—keeping visitor numbers low, even during peak seasons. Comparable to renowned parks like Kruger or Masai Mara, Kidepo boasts an impressive variety of wildlife, with the exception of wildebeest. Its untouched wilderness, preserved through strict conservation efforts, offers a glimpse of Africa’s landscapes as they were before colonization.
Once through with your early morning breakfast, our driver guide will pick you up in time for the day long safari to Kidepo. It is a true savannah wilderness with a thriving population of over 470 bird species, 60 of which haven’t been recorded in any other Ugandan park. On the part of mammals, it has 76 mammal species. As you go further, the landscape will start to change from green to semi-arid.
Among the stopovers you will make includes Ziwa rhino sanctuary—where you will track rhinos on foot, and Gulu, a district in Northern Uganda where you will be treated to traditional dishes of the Luo. It is an ethnic group of pastoralists and farmers.
Upon arrival, you will check into your lodge where you will be treated to a full board experience. Thanks to its location in the middle of the park, it offers unobstructed views of its two valleys, mountainous terrain and open grassland interspersed with desert dates, acacia trees and rocky outcrops.
We can’t list everything you will see in the game drive that follows breakfast, but the herds of elephant and giraffe are excellent. In most of our game drives and nature walks, we have been treated to buffalo, Uganda kob, lion, leopard and olive baboons all in the space of about 30 minutes.
You will be able to view all these with ease as all cars in our fleet have pop-up roofs. Kidepo is named after a river that regains its flow in the wet season and turns totally dry in the dry season, unveiling powder soft white sand that is perfect for picnic and volleyball. Not so far from it are water holes which host many predators and prey in the dry season.
In the afternoon, you will visit one of the Karamojong communities neighbouring the park. Like their sister tribe in Kenya (Masai), they are amazing warriors with a strong attachment to their cultural heritage. During your visit, they will host you to their traditional homesteads and treat you to their vibrant dances, preparation of their local cuisines, how they get married and even, how they make extraordinary weapons out of locally available materials.
Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
After today’s morning game drive, you will return to your lodge to enjoy its splendor and cozy ambience. You will have unlimited access to the swimming pool where you can cool off as you view different animals as they come and go.
After lunch, you will check out of the lodge and set off for the journey to Uganda’s highest waterfall, Sipi falls. It is found in the foothills of Mountain Elgon, Uganda’s second highest mountain, 4,321metres above sea level.
Today’s breakfast will be followed by a hike around the three waterfalls of Sipi, the highest of which is 41meters. Throughout this two hours experience, you will experience the sheer force of nature and take in its refreshing breeze as you admire spectacular rainbows.
At midday, you will set off for the six hours journey back to Kampala or Entebbe International Airport ahead of your flight. Thanks for entrusting us with hosting you to our motherland, the Pearl of Africa.
