Kimkim Trip Reviews for Uganda

4.5
Based on 14 ratings
Read 14 verified reviews by travelers who booked their trip to Uganda on kimkim. You can also read reviews about kimkim on 3rd party sites including Google, TrustPilot and Yelp.

Incredible vacation of a lifetime!
Uganda | May 17 - May 30, 2024

Darla
Darla D.
Canada | Reviewed on Jun 06, 2024
If I could give this trip more stars, I would. From the early stages of planning the trip month before into the days leading it, Agnes was great to work with and I was delighted to meet her the evening I arrived in person - what a nice surprise after months of talking virtually. She listened closely to what I wanted from the holiday and followed through with a trip plan carefully tailored to exactly what I wanted around Gorillas (habituation and trekking), Chimpanzee (habituation) and... Read more

If I could give this trip more stars, I would. From the early stages of planning the trip month before into the days leading it, Agnes was great to work with and I was delighted to meet her the evening I arrived in person - what a nice surprise after months of talking virtually. She listened closely to what I wanted from the holiday and followed through with a trip plan carefully tailored to exactly what I wanted around Gorillas (habituation and trekking), Chimpanzee (habituation) and Golden Monkeys (trekking), with the addition of many wonderful experiences and game drives. All the lodges were carefully chosen together and I had a wonderful stay at each one. Particularly, I have dietary restrictions and she was very careful to let them know far in advance what I require successfully. I couldn't have asked for someone better to plan my trip! Agnes was a knowledgeable, efficient, friendly, attentive planner at all times.

When I arrived in Entebbe, I was greeted by Olive, a lovely addition to the Umoja team who was on hand throughout my trip if anything went wrong (it didn't, though!) and Khalif, my driver and guide in the first twelve days I was there.

Khalif was incredible as a guide and an amazing driver. His knowledge about all wildlife, culture, and all things his country added immeasurable value to my trip. He's also very easy to get along with as a person - great guy - and was able to stick handle any issues or concerns I had along our route with no difficulties. He called each place I was eating at (lodge or restaurant) to let them know about my dietary restrictions as well and helped me communicate where needed on them. Any group or person in his jeep will be lucky to have him as guide!

Shout out also to Bright, who drove me on the final two days of the trip to make sure I got to and from the airport - very knowledgeable and friendly as well - great job.

I would recommend Agnes and her team to anyone for a trip to East Africa! Thank you so much and hopefully I will see you on my next one!

Local specialist: Agnes Mirembe

One of the most enriching African experience
Uganda | Dec 26 - Dec 31, 2023

Prachi
Prachi S.
India | Reviewed on Jan 02, 2024
Our trip to Uganda was right out of a National Geographic documentary thanks to Agnes! Agnes is one of the friendliest, nicest, and most capable agents I have come across, having traveled to 28 countries. She is very aware and always answers all your questions and queries and helps put any concerns you have at ease.
Even during peak season, Agnes was able to get us the lodges and hotels we wanted to book and get the timely gorilla permits - the local guides Khalif and Mr Muha were very...
Read more

Our trip to Uganda was right out of a National Geographic documentary thanks to Agnes! Agnes is one of the friendliest, nicest, and most capable agents I have come across, having traveled to 28 countries. She is very aware and always answers all your questions and queries and helps put any concerns you have at ease.
Even during peak season, Agnes was able to get us the lodges and hotels we wanted to book and get the timely gorilla permits - the local guides Khalif and Mr Muha were very hands on and answered all our queries on the local Ugandan culture, customs, food, etc.
we had a very enriching experience and I will definitely book with Umoja again in the future for any other countries they plan tours to!

Cheers to Umoja team for a wonderful experience 😊

Hotel Reviews
Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp
buhoma

A wonderful luxury lodge amidst the BWINDI forest- a must stay for all visitors for gorilla trek - amazing food, friendly staff, and lovely cocktails

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Elephant Plains Lodge

One of the best architecture and spacious rooms- i would highly recommend a minimum 3 night stay and the food was the best I have had in Uganda

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
David at elephant plains was amazing and took care of every detail during our stay
Cleanliness & Comfort
Local specialist: Agnes Mirembe
Agnes
Agnes Mirembe
Local specialist in Uganda | Replied on Jan 02, 2024

Thank you so much Prachi

RUINED HONEYMOON
Uganda | Dec 5 - Dec 14, 2022

O
Oncu K.
United Kingdom | Reviewed on Dec 28, 2023
It has been slightly more than one year since we have completed our honeymoon in Uganda and Kenya, both of which were arranged through Kimkim. Reason I am this late to post this review is because I promised myself I will never look back and remember all the negative aspects of our honeymoon - however, Kimkim kept spamming me with e-mails, and here we are. Luckily, my wife and I both have taken good notes of these incidents, have screen recordings, videos etc. if anyone is interested... We... Read more

It has been slightly more than one year since we have completed our honeymoon in Uganda and Kenya, both of which were arranged through Kimkim. Reason I am this late to post this review is because I promised myself I will never look back and remember all the negative aspects of our honeymoon - however, Kimkim kept spamming me with e-mails, and here we are. Luckily, my wife and I both have taken good notes of these incidents, have screen recordings, videos etc. if anyone is interested... We spent majority of our time in Uganda and this is going to be all about Uganda.

Here we go:
1- You should know that Kimkim outsources its clients' queries onto so-called 'local expert's. What's worse is these 'local expert's than in turn outsource it again to someone local. As an example, when we contacted Kimkim, we were introduced to a 'local expert' called Vivian Kironde (Magic Africa), who was in fact living in Germany, and who had outsourced our trip to another agency in Uganda, and who had in turn hired our guide, Gideon. I do not think anywhere on this web-site you can clearly see this through, though I'm pretty sure they make you sign some disclosures which actually tells the customers that they will outsource everything. In short, these guys have zero accountability / responsibility, which I will tell you more later on.
2- On the original itinerary we were provided with, there were 15-hour travel distances by car & by plane, including a flight at 3AM (which included travel to and from the airport of another 4-5 hours each). Instead of Vivian, we found our own flights and actually did all of the connections ourselves. This all had to happen 2 weeks prior to our trip because of Vivian's incompetence.
3- 2 days prior to the trip, we were asked to pay an extra $820 without any explanations. This was originally asked by Vivian, once again, two days prior to the trip. We had paid our money weeks / if not months before. Imagine paying a huge amount of money, only to be asked for more, and when you ask where does it stop, Olivia from Kimkim tells you these are 'legit' expenses but they will 'gift' it to us
4- We had agreed to an all inclusive 'full board food' with Vivian and Kimkim. However, on the first day of our trip, our guide Gideon told us that this was not the case, instructed by Vivian... I cannot explain the level of 'he said she said' on this trip, and especially with the amount of money we had paid
5- During the trip, when we wanted to change the itinerary for an extra day of stay somewhere, we were quoted $170 / per night, instead of $145 that was communicated originally for that extra night on the Kimkim platform... Luckily, we had written proof, similar to our 'full board food'.

If you have read this far - please read the below as it gets better:
- We were supposed to stay for 3 nights in our final hotel in Bwindi National Park and on our last day, leave for the airstrip at 3AM. However, our guide told us that we should leave and go to a different hotel on our 2nd day, given the roads were very dangerous because of rains and heavy landslide. When we asked if Vivian / Kimkim was in the loop, he said, yes they are
- On our second day, we left to go to a different hotel in Bwindi, closer to our airstrip. After we have left and we moved closer to our destination, our guide told us that we were actually going to stay in a 'homestay' with a 'private butler' etc. We were slightly suspicious, but given we had moved from the original hotel already, had no connection / wifi etc., and was instructed that Kimkim was in the loop, we obliged thinking this should be okay. When we arrived to this 'homestay', it was shocking. The place where we were asked to stay had no doors. I do not want to go into more details out of respect for the lovely people who had opened up their home for us - but clearly something was wrong given we had paid tens of thousands for this trip.
- We then pressured our guide to find us a different hotel and he took us to 2-3 other hotels, which were similar to the homestay, and not at all in line with the hotels we so far stayed in Uganda. Finally, we charged our batteries in one of the hotels we were taken by our guide, and was just searching online, trying to find a connection to contact Kimkim
- We had to find our own accommodation (Engagi Lodge), without any help from Kimkim or Vivian (MagicAfrika), or our guide who was trying to put us through different terrible hotels. We were then promised by each of Kimkim, Vivian, and our guide that somebody other than us would be paying for our alternative accommodation, which in the end was denied by all parties. I'm not at all surprised by the guide or Vivian, but mostly by Kimkim. One word, disgusting behavior from everyone involved. They did not even take our calls and closed all channels of communication. I even tried to contact the founder on Linkedin, after all hopes were gone, and he blocked me...
- We were so lucky to have some of the best people in Engagi Lodge, who had heard our guide Gideon promise us that Kimkim / Vivian / Gideon would take care of our stay. When Gideon turned on his promise, the lovely people of Engagi Lodge told us that they will impound Gideon's car until they get their money from either one of Gideon / Vivian or Kimkim.

To recap - my wife and I paid c.$20k for this trip. A quick calculation back in the day would give us c. $8k for the same trip, if we had done it on our own. We knew that we had overpaid, but we were okay with it, given Uganda is a relatively hard to navigate country and we needed accountability from Kimkim and local expertise from Vivian. However, none of this mattered.

It was extremely stressful and unsafe at certain points in time, with zero accountability from Kimkim.

Do not ever use them. I am more than happy to speak to anyone (just a concerned citizen) - feel free to email.

Thanks,
Oncu
[email protected]

Hotel Reviews
The Boma Hotel
Entebbe
Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Bakiga Lodge Bwindi
Twin Lakes Safari Lodge
Zebra Plains Mara Camp
Location
Local specialist: Vivian Kironde

Lucy organised a most fantastic itinerary for...
Uganda | Mar 29 - Apr 13, 2023

D
Dee B.
Australia | Reviewed on May 02, 2023
Lucy organised a most fantastic itinerary for us in Namibia and Mauritius. Nothing was too much trouble in the planning stage and she was very flexible and patient in helping us adjust the details of our trip, answering our queries and choosing the right accommodation. Everything went smoothly once we were there. Read more

Lucy organised a most fantastic itinerary for us in Namibia and Mauritius. Nothing was too much trouble in the planning stage and she was very flexible and patient in helping us adjust the details of our trip, answering our queries and choosing the right accommodation. Everything went smoothly once we were there.

Hotel Reviews
Hotel 20 DegrÊs Sud - Relais & Châteaux
Grand Baie

True luxury boutique hotel with amazing food and wonderful helpful staff

Authenticity & Character
Location
Cleanliness & Comfort
Guesthouse Voigtland
Windhoek

Fantastic place to stay in rural setting, with stunning views and charming rooms. The food was also fabulous and the absolute highlight was feeding the resident giraffes.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Namib Desert Lodge
Solitaire

Pleasant lodge with great views and friendly staff

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Atlantic Villa Boutique Guesthouse
Swakopmund

Clean pleasant accommodation but not really boutique (a large complex and part of a conference centre) Quite a distance from city centre

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Grootberg Lodge

Remote but Stunning location and character cottages with amazing views very friendly staff

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Am Weinberg Boutique Hotel
Windhoek

Luxury hotel with beautifully appointed rooms. Fantastic breakfast Really good restaurants/dining options onsite, but need to book ahead

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Etosha Safari Lodge
Okaukuejo

A Large complex, with Very spacious cottages in lovely grounds. View from our room was great, but would vary depending on which cottage you stay in. fabulous pool with great views. Excellent restaurant area /outdoor dining with buffet meals of good standard

Authenticity & Character
Location
Short drive from Etosha NP
Staff
extremely friendly and helpful staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Peermont D'oreale Grande Hotel at Emperors Palace
Kempton Park

Excellent standard for an airport hotel - a green oasis! Comfortable and opulent decorated rooms. Spacious grounds and pool, and very good restaurants onsite and next door in casino complex

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Local specialist: Lucy Berndt
Lucy
Lucy Berndt
Local specialist in Cape Town | Replied on May 04, 2023

Dee, thank you so much for this wonderful and helpful review.
I am so pleased you had a great holiday. Was such a pleasure working with you on perfecting this trip!

Great guide, poor accommodation choices
Uganda | Nov 10 - Dec 3, 2022

Jeff
Jeff H.
Union Hill-Novelty Hill, WA | Reviewed on Dec 06, 2022
Gideon, our guide was great, and provided excellent service, and should have been consulted when Vivian was developing our itinerary. The micro-lodges Vivian booked us into were not necessarily the best choices for us, and we suspect a conflict of interest. The Budda Guest House in particular was well out of the way, causing extra travel time.
We will write more about this
Read more

Gideon, our guide was great, and provided excellent service, and should have been consulted when Vivian was developing our itinerary. The micro-lodges Vivian booked us into were not necessarily the best choices for us, and we suspect a conflict of interest. The Budda Guest House in particular was well out of the way, causing extra travel time.
We will write more about this

Hotel Review
Buddo Guest House
Buddo, Wakiso
Location
Move it to Entebbe
Staff
Training in chicken purchasing. One dinner included meat from an old rooster, and it could not be eaten. It was too tough, and Patricia chipped a filling.
Cleanliness & Comfort
Little space in the bedroom, and awkward arrangement of rooms.
Local specialist: Vivian Kironde
Vivian
Vivian Kironde
Local specialist in Uganda | Replied on Dec 10, 2022

Jambo Jeff,

many thanks for your feedback. Thank you for the time for the telephone conversation today.

We are sorry that the Lodges did not match exactly the expectations. We are always trying to find special accommodation that is either fitting into the budget and/or has a special beautiful setting that we think is matching the customers wishes.

Asante sana,

Vivian and team.

Unforgettable trip to Uganda!
Uganda | Aug 13 - Sep 1, 2022

I
Irene F.
Austria | Reviewed on Sep 02, 2022
Our trip through Uganda was amazing!
The tour was perfect organized, our driver and guide Teo (Able Safaris, a local office, 19 days) was perfect, he managed everything in a good way.
The gorilla-tracking, the beautiful landscape, the game drives, the friendly people,.. all that we will never forget!
Read more

Our trip through Uganda was amazing!
The tour was perfect organized, our driver and guide Teo (Able Safaris, a local office, 19 days) was perfect, he managed everything in a good way.
The gorilla-tracking, the beautiful landscape, the game drives, the friendly people,.. all that we will never forget!

Hotel Reviews
Isunga Lodge
Fort Portal, Uganda

A extremely beautiful lodge! The architecture, the design, everything well deliberated. Nice and professional people, amazing view,..

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Rushaga Gorilla Camp
Bugambira

Nice lodge, nice location, amazing activity (gorilla-trakking), one of our best lodges!

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Forest Cottages
Kampala

I would never choose this hotel again! Extremely loud music during the whole night (because it is a wedding hotel), the cleanliness in the room especially the bathroom was disgusting.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Arcadia Lodges Lake Bunyonyi
Kabale
Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Kidepo Savanna Lodge
Kampala, Uganda
Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Topi Lodge
Kampala, Uganda
Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Hotel Kontiki Hoima
Hoima
Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and on to Gulu
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and on to Gulu
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Kidepo Valley National Park
Kidepo Valley National Park
Kidepo Valley National Park
Quality of Experience
Chimpanzee Tracking & Bigodi Community Walk
Chimpanzee Tracking & Bigodi Community Walk
Kibale National Park
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Lion tracking in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Lion tracking in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth National Park
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Gorilla Tracking/ Village Walk
Gorilla Tracking/ Village Walk
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Local specialist: Joseph Thuo
Joseph
Joseph Thuo
Local specialist in Nairobi, Kenya | Replied on Sep 21, 2022
Hello Irene,

Thanks so much for your review, I'm really happy that you enjoyed your trip, we have taken note of some the hotels that didn’t meet your expectations. Many thanks as well for your patience and kindness throughout, you have been so great during the whole planning process, and it was such a pleasure to work with you. We will definitely share your comments with all the partners involved.

We really appreciate for trusting us with your trip plan. We hope to see you again in the...
Read more

Hello Irene,

Thanks so much for your review, I'm really happy that you enjoyed your trip, we have taken note of some the hotels that didn’t meet your expectations. Many thanks as well for your patience and kindness throughout, you have been so great during the whole planning process, and it was such a pleasure to work with you. We will definitely share your comments with all the partners involved.

We really appreciate for trusting us with your trip plan. We hope to see you again in the near future with more trips to East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda) or any other part of the world.

Best wishes for your future travel journeys.

Many thanks & kind regards,
Joseph

Absolutely perfect! Didn’t have to worry ab...
Uganda | Nov 14 - Nov 24, 2021

Manar
Manar A.
Kuwait | Reviewed on Feb 17, 2022

Absolutely perfect!

Didn’t have to worry about any arrangements. The hotels were exactly what we wanted. Every single hotel was more beautiful than the next. Truly a dream holiday!

Local specialist: Joseph Thuo

Phenomenal Trip! 18-Day Trip to Uganda
Uganda | Jul 31 - Aug 17, 2021

N
Nancy L.
Phoenixville, PA | Reviewed on Aug 23, 2021
We just returned from an 18-day trip. What an amazing experience!!! We want to say it was a Trip-of-a-Lifetime, but we loved it so much, we plan to return. This trip was two years in the making due to Covid restrictions. Thank you, Taf, for coordinating this entire trip for us. It was perfectly planned! And we appreciate your prompt replies to all our concerns prior to going. Once we arrived to Uganda, we realized our fears were due to social media/political issues of our own country. ... Read more

We just returned from an 18-day trip. What an amazing experience!!! We want to say it was a Trip-of-a-Lifetime, but we loved it so much, we plan to return. This trip was two years in the making due to Covid restrictions. Thank you, Taf, for coordinating this entire trip for us. It was perfectly planned! And we appreciate your prompt replies to all our concerns prior to going. Once we arrived to Uganda, we realized our fears were due to social media/political issues of our own country. To anyone on the fence of visiting Uganda - Just go! You won't regret it.

Upon arrival to Uganda, we were greeted by Agnes and Nasser. These two took care of our every want and needs. Besides the game drives, we asked for cultural experiences. Each day was exciting and we always looked forward to the next day.

Activities we did:
Jinja - Sunset boat ride to Source of the Nile
Game drive of Murchison Falls National Park
Boat Ride to Murchison Falls, also went to the Top of the Falls
Ziwa Rhino Santuary
Fishing on Lake Victoria
Game drive of Lake Mburo National Park
Long Horned Cattle Milking
Water safari on the Kazinga Channel
Chimpanzee trekking
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park - Gorilla Tracking
Batwa Pygmies Cultural Experience
Tour of a private school with boarding and converse with head teacher
Stopped at the Equator
Tour in Kampala - Idi Amin Torture Chamber
Craft markets
Searched for Shoebill bird
Toured Entebbe arboretum
Local community village experience

I could go on and on about our time in Uganda. Loved every minute of our time there and we were sad to leave. Again, thank you, Taf, for organizing this trip. Thank you, Agnes, for accommodating us on the trip. And thank you, Nasser, for guiding and driving us around the entire time.

Local specialist: Taf Chindove
Taf
Taf Chindove
Local specialist in South Africa | Replied on Aug 24, 2021
Dear Nancy Thank you so much for your kind words and for the detailed account of your trip. I am glad you had a wonderful time and were able to have an adventurous and authentic cultural experience. I will make sure to pass on your kind comments and praise to our partners in Uganda who make us proud every time and loved having you in Uganda. We trust we will host you again, hopefully you can visit Southern Africa next time. It has been an absolute pleasure to assist you in planning this... Read more

Dear Nancy

Thank you so much for your kind words and for the detailed account of your trip. I am glad you had a wonderful time and were able to have an adventurous and authentic cultural experience. I will make sure to pass on your kind comments and praise to our partners in Uganda who make us proud every time and loved having you in Uganda.

We trust we will host you again, hopefully you can visit Southern Africa next time. It has been an absolute pleasure to assist you in planning this trip and thank you for your patience during these uncertain times.

All the best and warm regards to you both
Taf

Gorillas, safari and new Ugandan familia :)
Uganda | May 12 - May 18, 2021

Ivette
Ivette C.
| Reviewed on Jun 03, 2021
Long story short, I have planned this trip since last year but as we all know covid; came along and things got cancelled. My initial contact was Anne; which now I consider her as part of my family. She always responded to my questions and she took time from her busy schedule to meet me at the airport. My journey started with Bob; which he was a great guide. I am a solo female traveler and I never felt unsafe. I had a wonderful experience trekking for the silver back gorillas; it’s a feeling... Read more

Long story short, I have planned this trip since last year but as we all know covid; came along and things got cancelled. My initial contact was Anne; which now I consider her as part of my family. She always responded to my questions and she took time from her busy schedule to meet me at the airport. My journey started with Bob; which he was a great guide. I am a solo female traveler and I never felt unsafe. I had a wonderful experience trekking for the silver back gorillas; it’s a feeling you need to experience on your own. The entire team tracking the gorillas and guides were amazing. Never seen how well a group of people worked together in such a remote location to facilitate a great experience. After the trekking I had a wonderful time with game drives, another kudos for Bob because he carries binoculars with him, books of the native animals and he’s well experience and communicates with others within the parks to get you to see more wild life. The accommodations were great, the staff members, the food and service were outstanding; taking in consideration these places are in the middle of nowhere. Driving was fun and relaxing; enjoying the African massage and enjoying the views of various people & scenery. At the end of my trip, I had some discrepancies with CoVid and I had to stay in Uganda. Luckily, I had a best friend at the end of my journey and I was able to get my situation under control and I finalized my trip. Thanks to everyone that made this possible in such a difficult time to travel. Totally recommend!!!

Local specialist: Anne Nakure
Anne
Anne Nakure
Local specialist in Kampala, Uganda | Replied on Jun 04, 2021

Dear Ivette,
Thank so much for your great review.
It was an absolute pleasure having you in Uganda.
We look forward to hosting you again.
Best regards,
Anne

Fantastic Uganda trip thanks to KimKim/Natureissan and Vivian!
Uganda | Jan 22 - Feb 1, 2020

E
elizabeth c.
Shaw, DC | Reviewed on Feb 06, 2020
We just returned from an amazing trip to Uganda. Vivian was a true pleasure to work with. She is super responsive and planned us a first-class trip with one week notice. She arranged for the best guide ever in Hamid, who stopped us up at the airport and showed us all over his country for 12 days. We saw the rare African shoebill, chimpanzees in Kibale, lions and elephant in QE park, rare golden monkeys in MGhahinga--each a special trek or exploration. We stayed in beautiful lodges, especially... Read more

We just returned from an amazing trip to Uganda. Vivian was a true pleasure to work with. She is super responsive and planned us a first-class trip with one week notice. She arranged for the best guide ever in Hamid, who stopped us up at the airport and showed us all over his country for 12 days. We saw the rare African shoebill, chimpanzees in Kibale, lions and elephant in QE park, rare golden monkeys in MGhahinga--each a special trek or exploration. We stayed in beautiful lodges, especially the Volcanoes Kyambura Lodge. Vivian thought of everything and planned a logical and effective loop to end with an epic trek with a four-hour habituation permit to see mountain gorilla in Bwindi. It was a trip we will never forget, nor will will ever forget our new friend Hamid.

Local specialist: Vivian Kironde

Trip to Uganda
Uganda | Jan 6 - Jan 26, 2019

Seyed
Seyed Z.
Palo Alto, CA | Reviewed on Feb 04, 2019
I planned my very first trip to Africa (specifically Uganda) using kimkim and I could not be happier with the outcome. I was picked up at the Entebbe airport upon my arrival and dropped again at the airport after 3 weeks to fly back, and in between I had quite a few memorable adventures which I will remember for the rest of my life.
Uganda is a wonderful country full of natural parks, lakes, and wild animals, but I should say the most amazing part of my trip was interacting with Ugandan...
Read more

I planned my very first trip to Africa (specifically Uganda) using kimkim and I could not be happier with the outcome. I was picked up at the Entebbe airport upon my arrival and dropped again at the airport after 3 weeks to fly back, and in between I had quite a few memorable adventures which I will remember for the rest of my life.
Uganda is a wonderful country full of natural parks, lakes, and wild animals, but I should say the most amazing part of my trip was interacting with Ugandan people on different parts of the country. Ugandans are extremely warm and friendly and no matter on which part of the country you see them, they always greet you with warmth and smile and I should emphasize once again that having the opportunity to travel around the country and meeting these wonderful people has been the highlight of my trip.
I had a wonderful and knowledgable guide (Paul Buzinde) who drove me around the country for 21 days. He knew all the roads in the country, the name of all the birds we encountered in the natural parks, and most importantly made utmost effort to make the trip as smooth and enjoyable as possible. I want to use this opportunity to thank Paul for making this trip a memorable experience for me.
If you're interested in visiting Uganda, 3 weeks of road trip should take you to most of the places that tourists generally visit, but if you want to plan a shorter trip then there are some places that in my idea you should definitely visit. In no particular order they are:
1) Kidepo Valley National Park - Many visitors don't go to this place since it's in a pretty remote area but I think a trip to Uganda should definitely include visiting this wonderful natural park. I visited some 6 national parks in Uganda and by far Kidepo was the most beautiful of them because it has a very open savannah where you can see miles and miles of grasslands with overwhelming beauty. Most of my wildlife sightings also happened to be in Kidepo. In addition, since not many people travel to this park, you might easily happen to have the whole park to yourself, which was the case with me while doing my safari. Keep in mind that traveling to Kidepo will also take you through the remote northeast region of Uganda which is home to Karamojong tribe. Consider this as an added bonus in traveling to Kidepo.
2) Murchison Falls National Park - You will not see hippos and crocodiles in Kidepo but there are plenty of them in Murchison, the views of Nile river is just breathtaking, and hiking to the top of the Murchison Falls and seeing the drop from the top is just an amazing experience.
3) Gorilla tracking in Bwindi National Park - Much have already been said about this elsewhere, but I have to emphasize again that tracking gorillas and spending an hour with them is truly, truly a remarkable experience. If you plan to do only one thing in Uganda, this is it.
4) Lake Bunyonyi - Serene, beautiful lake with plenty of isolated islands scattered on top of it. You will have the opportunity to hike on the hillsides surrounding the lake and interact with local people living on the hillsides.
I would have liked to spend more time visiting the villages on the road but unfortunately this is something which I didn't think about before planning my trip. I suggest for anybody who plans to visit Uganda to consider a couple village walks in different regions of the country, specially in the Karamojong region. It will be a wonderful experience.

Local specialist: Sander van Zanten
Sander
Sander van Zanten
Local specialist in Netherlands and Uganda | Replied on Feb 04, 2019

Dear Seyed, thank you so much for the wonderful review! Indeed Kidepo and Karamoja are one of the hidden gems in Uganda definitely worth visiting.

Warm regards, and we hope to welcome you again one day!
Sander

Uganda habituation experiences
Uganda | Dec 22 - Dec 28, 2018

K
Kat Z.
San Francisco, CA | Reviewed on Dec 30, 2018

I wanted to travel to Uganda for gorilla habituation, golden monkey habituation, and chimpanzee habituation. Agnes was a great help in answering all my questions promptly, and she helped organize the whole trip itinerary for me given the activities I wanted to do. From the moment I landed in Uganda to the moment I left, everything was well taken care of. I had a great time seeing many different types of primates in Uganda, and I highly recommend Agnes and her tour company.

Local specialist: Agnes Mirembe
Agnes
Agnes Mirembe
Local specialist in Uganda | Replied on Jan 01, 2019

Thank you for traveling with us Kat

View Gorillas in Uganda
Uganda | Oct 1 - Oct 7, 2018

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William G.
Los Angeles, CA | Reviewed on Oct 15, 2018
The trip was fantastic driving from Rwanda through Uganda the experience seeing the people, small towns was wonderful. The Gorilla Trekking was much harder than we thought at 7,500 ft above sea level. We live at sea level. Our idea was doing the Habitational on the first day and a regular trek the following day...bad idea as we were very sore after a 10 hour up and down hills including 4 hours following the gorilla family. Following day we just bailed out of the trek as we needed the rest,... Read more

The trip was fantastic driving from Rwanda through Uganda the experience seeing the people, small towns was wonderful. The Gorilla Trekking was much harder than we thought at 7,500 ft above sea level. We live at sea level. Our idea was doing the Habitational on the first day and a regular trek the following day...bad idea as we were very sore after a 10 hour up and down hills including 4 hours following the gorilla family. Following day we just bailed out of the trek as we needed the rest, yet “What an Experience” I even got false charged by the large Silver Back...a real African adventure!
The food at Nkuringo Bwindi lodge was not up to par and I’m not a picky eater so I suggest you make other arrangements at that location. The staff was very nice but even when we write everything we wanted to eat down on paper, it never was correct.... a communication problem. Even Moses our driver translated but it never worked.
The best lodge was Kyaninga. A beautifully log cabin lodge with great food and wonderful staff.
Now for Kim Kim...a great tour company which allows you to deal with the tour operator in the area your traveling in. My questions about our trip were answered within an hour which gave me a feeling of confidence about the upcoming African adventure. Our driver and guide “Moses”was with us at all times if we needed anything... he was great. Overall trip was a 9 out of 10.
Bill & Sue Gordon

Local specialist: Sander van Zanten
Sander
Sander van Zanten
Local specialist in Netherlands and Uganda | Replied on Oct 17, 2018

Dear Bill and Sue,
thank you so much for the review, it is wonderfull to see you enjoyed the pearl of africa. Thank you for the feedback about the lodge in bwindi. I will follow it up!

I hope you will come back one time to see the rest of the country!
Warm regards,
Sander

Trip to Uganda
Uganda | Jul 3 - Jul 5, 2018

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james m.
Saint Augustine, FL | Reviewed on Jul 16, 2018

Aron Mugisha, our guide was incredible. He went out of his way to meet our needs and show us so much more than we had planned on. 5 stars!

My only complaint (which I feel turned more favorable to us) was that our lodging and area to see the gorillas was changed without notifying us. We had no idea until we checked into a new place that was not on the itinerary. All in all, we loved the change...but it would have been nice to be notified.

I will definitely use your services again. Thank you.

Local specialist: Katharina Bertram