Chimpanzee trekking is the second most popular tourist activity in Uganda after mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park or Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. click here to view mountain gorilla trekking safaris

Gorilla trekking involves moving through the thick forest on foot in search of chimpanzees, and once you find them.

Travelers are allowed to spend an hour with them in their natural environment. Uganda records the highest number of chimpanzees among different destinations, which includes

Kibale Forest national park

Kibale national park is situated in western Uganda and is known as the primate capital because it houses over 13 different primate species, including over a thousand chimpanzees. Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park starts with a morning briefing at the park’s headquarters. click here to see chimpanzee tour

Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale Forest National Park can be done in two sessions: the morning session, which starts at 8:00 a.m., and the afternoon session, which starts at 2:00 p.m.

Each session at Kibale Forest National Park takes between 30 minutes and 4 hours, depending on the chimpanzee's location, since they like moving from one place to another looking for food. Alongside the magical chimpanzees, Kibale Forest National Park harbors other primate species such as grey-cheeked mangabey, red-tailed monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, blue monkeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, bush babies, among others.

Kibale National Park is the only national park in Uganda offering a chimpanzee habituation experience where tourists can spend about four hours with chimpanzees under the habituation process with researchers, game rangers, and others.

Kalinzu forest

Kalinzu Forest is the second destination after Kibale Forest National Park for chimpanzees in Uganda. Kalinzu Forest is a tropical rainforest situated in Bushenyi district, just near Queen Elizabeth National Park, and it harbors over 300 chimpanzees.  The Kalinzu forest starts with a morning briefing regarding the rules and regulations to be followed during trekking to the chimpanzees. 

Budongo forest    

Budongo Forest is the biggest tropical mahogany forest in East Africa, situated in Murchison Falls national park, Uganda’s largest protected area. Budongo Forest is Uganda’s third-best destination for chimpanzee tracking. Budongo Forest harbors approximately 600 chimpanzees and other primates such as red-tailed monkeys, blue monkeys, baboons, and black and white colobus monkeys, among others.

Kyambura gorge

The Kyambura Gorge is the valley of the apes and another destination for chimpanzee tracking, situated in Queen Elizabeth National Park. Kyambura Gorge also harbors other primates such as blue monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys, and black and white colobus monkeys, among others.

Toro-Semuliki game reserve   

Toro-Semuliki Game Reserve is situated in western Uganda, where tourists can see chimpanzees. Chimpanzee tracking in Toro-Semuliki game reserve takes from 30 minutes to 4 hours, During tracking, you may be able to view other primates such as red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, and vervet monkeys, among others

The best time to trek chimpanzees in Uganda is in the dry seasons of June, July, August, September, and December, as well as January, February, and March. Uganda can be visited throughout the year. Uganda lies within the equatorial climate, which means its temperatures are consistent all year round.