9 Days Rwenzori Mountain Hiking

Day 1 Entebbe Airport

On arrival at Entebbe Airport, you will be welcomed by our representative and transfer to your hotel in Entebbe. Check into your hotel and relax.

You can spend the rest of the day relaxing at your hotel or visit the beach on Lake Victoria for a beach experience. Use this opportunity to exercise a bit as you prepare for mountain hiking.

Enjoy local food at a local restaurant for your lunch.

Day 2 Entebbe – Rwenzori Mountains NP

After an early breakfast, checkout of your hotel and drive to Kasese Town. You can either travel by domestic flight or by road.

If travelling by domestic flight

Transfer to the airfield in Entebbe and board your flight to Kasese Airfield where another guide will be waiting for you. You will enjoy wonderful aerial views of Uganda on this 3hr flight.

If travelling by road

This 6hr drive is an adventurous journey cutting through small towns where you will have a chance for close encounters with local people and make stopovers to buy roadside fruits and items.

Enjoy on-board refreshments as your guide drives you to Kasese Town.

Upon arrival at Kasese, check into your hotel and relax. Spend the rest of the day at your hotel.

Day 3 Mountain hiking begins: Nyakalengija (1615m) – Nyabitaba Hut (2651m)

After an early breakfast, head to Rwenzori Mountains National Park offices at Nyakalengija for a briefing. Early arrival allows ample time to acquire hiking equipment and meet your guides and porters. After, you will set off for a hike to Nyabitaba Hut – your first stop, 2651m up on the mountain. This hike begins by passing through local farmland to the park boundary, after which it follows a thick forest along the Mubuku River, crossing its Mahoma River tributary, before starting a long, steep climb up onto a massive ridge to reach Nyabitaba Hut.

During the hike, you may hear chimpanzees and see black and white colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, and the beautiful Rwenzori turaco.

Upon reaching Nyabitaba Hut, you will camp there. Dinner and Overnight at Nyabitaba Hut.

Hike time: 6 -7 hours.

Day 4 Nyabitaba Hut – John Matte Hut (3505m)

After breakfast, depart Nyabitaba Hut and follow the trail that slopes through the forest to the Kurt Shafer Bridge, below the confluence of the Mubuku and Bujuku rivers. Passing through bamboo forest, traverse through a long stretch of slippery, moss-covered rock. This part of the trail is rough. From the Nyamuleju rock shelter, Mount Stanley and Mount Speke can be seen before passing into giant heather, lobelia and groundsel. Continue with the trek through the bog and arrive at John Matte Hut where you will camp.

Dinner and Overnight at John Matte Hut.

Hike time: 7 - 8 hours.

Day 5 John Matte Hut - Bujuku Hut (3962m)

After breakfast, depart John Matte Hut and slope to cross the Bujuku River and enter Lower Bigo Bog – the home of giant lobelias. Jumping from tussock to tussock, you will finally cross the bog but not without stepping into some of the freezing ooze below. The Upper Bigo Bog gives way to Bujuku Lake with great views of Mount Baker to the South, and Mount Stanley to the West.

Bujuku Hut, located in the shadow of Mount Baker and Mount Speke, is set in a narrow valley below Stuhlmann Pass. This camp is good for acclimatization if attempting the summits of peaks: Mount Stanley and Mount Speke. Arrive at Bujuku Hut where you will camp. At this point, you will be 3962m up on the mountain.

Dinner and Overnight at Bujuku Hut.

Hike time: 4 - 5 hours.

Day 6 Bujuku Hut - Mt. Speke (4890M) – Bujuku – John Matte   

Early in the morning, start the hike to Mount Speke. You will pass through Stullmans Pass (4192m) where you will enjoy spectacular views of Virunga National Park in DR Congo, after which you will arrive at Victoria Emanuele peak on Mount Speke. This ascent takes 4 – 5 hours. Enjoy the wonderful views and experience on Mount Speke.

After, begin your descent back to Bujuku Hut. Enjoy great views of Bujuku Valley and Bujuku Lake, Margherita and Albert peaks on Mount Stanley, and Mount Baker as you descend to Bujuku Hut.

Continue your descent to John Matte Hut where you will camp. This descent takes 3-4 hours.

Dinner and Overnight at John Matte Hut.

Hike time: 5 - 6 hours.

Day 7 Mountain hiking ends: John Matte Hut – Nyabitaba Hut – Park Headquarters

This is the last day at the mountain. After breakfast, depart John Matte Hut and begin your descent down the mountain. This descent trail along the valley of the Mobuku and Kichuchu rivers is rich in plants and flowers of the heather zone. You will see Kabamba Falls on the way. Arrive at Nyabitaba Hut where you will briefly camp to rest and relax. This descent to Nyabitaba Hut takes 4 hours.

After resting, continue your descent to the park Headquarters at Nyakalengija where your guide will be waiting for you. This descent takes 2-3 hours.

Optional activity: 
From Nyabitaba Hut, go on a 40 minutes’ walk to Lake Mahoma – a beautiful lake and nature experience, after which, you will head back to the Nyabitaba Hut for your final descent to the park headquarters at Nyakalengija.

From Nyakalengija, your guide will drive you to your hotel. Settle in and rest.
Dinner and Overnight at your hotel - FB.

Descent time: 7 - 8 hours.

Day 8 Relaxation at the Hotel

Wake up whenever you feel like. This is your day of resting and relaxing at the hotel.

Dinner and Overnight at your hotel - FB.

Day 9 Rwenzori Mountains NP – Entebbe Airport

This is the last day of your safari. Take your time to wake up if you will be using the flight option to Entebbe. You can board the 10am, midday or 2pm flight to Entebbe Airport.

Otherwise, enjoy a relaxed morning at your hotel while you take your breakfast. After breakfast, opt-in for a complimentary massage at the hotel to relax your body as you prepare for your journey back home.

Check out of your hotel and say goodbye to Rwenzori Mountains National Park.

If travelling by domestic flight

Your guide will drive you to Kasese Airfield. Say goodbye to your guide and board your flight to Entebbe Airport. The flight takes 1-2hrs.

If travelling by road

This is a 6hr journey through Fort Portal City, towns, and communities. You can make stopovers as you wish along the way to buy souvenirs.

Upon arrival at Entebbe Airport, you will have an opportunity to buy more souvenirs.

If your flight is later: Upon arrival at Entebbe Airport, transfer to your hotel in Entebbe and wait for your flight back home.

If your flight is immediate: Board your flight back home.

Thank you for travelling with us.