Wild Route Trips

An African fish eagle perched on a fallen branch at the edge of a lake, acacia trees beyond

Where to see the shoebill and the Albertine Rift's forest birds

Birding Safaris in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania

Private birding safaris with the vehicle and the guide to yourselves, planned around the birds you most want to see.

Plan a birding safari for your dates

Birding routes in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania, planned around your bird list

We plan private birding safaris in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania. The vehicle and the guide are yours, so you stop for a bird and stay as long as it takes.

BirdLife International counts 1,002 bird species in Uganda, 239 of them migratory. A birding route is set as much by where each bird lives as by the month: swamps for the shoebill, the mountain forests of the Albertine Rift for the birds found nowhere else, and open grassland for the secretarybird.

We plan the route around your list. Tell us which birds matter most, and we choose the parks, the walks and the boat trips that give you a good chance of them.

Find the places that hold your birds

A guide and two travellers on a walk through long grass, one raising binoculars, Uganda
  • 1,002 bird species in UgandaBirdLife International's count. It counts 1,059 in Kenya, 1,076 in Tanzania and 638 in Rwanda
  • 34 Important Bird Areas in UgandaBirdLife's sites for birds, from Mabamba Bay on Lake Victoria to Kidepo Valley
  • The shoebill is VulnerableBirdLife estimates 3,300 to 5,300 mature shoebills in the world
  • 16 places in the planner belowEach one named for a bird by BirdLife, the Ramsar Convention or the park's own authority

Choose the birds you most want to see, and find the places that hold them

Tick the birds on your list. The places that hold the most of them come first. Under each bird is the source that names it there: BirdLife International, the Ramsar Convention, or the park's own authority.

Your birds

Every place and the birds it holds.

  1. Mabamba BayUganda. A papyrus marsh on Lake Victoria, close to Kampala
    • ShoebillRamsar Convention; BirdLife
    • Papyrus gonolekBirdLife
  2. AkageraRwanda. 490 bird species observed, Visit Rwanda says
    • ShoebillVisit Rwanda; BirdLife
    • Papyrus gonolekAkagera National Park
  3. Murchison FallsUganda. 556 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority saysA stop on our Best of Uganda safari
    • ShoebillUganda Wildlife Authority
  4. SemulikiUganda. A shoebill trip by boat, in the Uganda Wildlife Authority's tariff
    • ShoebillUganda Wildlife Authority; BirdLife
  5. ZiwaUganda. A rhino sanctuary; the Uganda Wildlife Authority lists a shoebill trekA stop on our Best of Uganda safari
    • ShoebillUganda Wildlife Authority
  6. Lake MburoUganda. Patches of papyrus swamp, the Uganda Wildlife Authority says
    • ShoebillBirdLife
  7. Queen ElizabethUganda. Over 600 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority saysA stop on our Best of Uganda safari
    • Papyrus gonolekUganda Wildlife Authority
  8. BwindiUganda. Over 350 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority saysA stop on our Best of Uganda safari
    • African green broadbillBirdLife; Uganda Wildlife Authority
  9. VolcanoesRwanda. 200 bird species, 17 of them Albertine Rift endemics, Visit Rwanda saysA stop on our Rwanda Gorilla Trekking safari
    • Rwenzori turacoBirdLife
    • Handsome spurfowlBirdLife
  10. NyungweRwanda. Montane rainforest with 322 bird species, Visit Rwanda says
    • Rwenzori turacoBirdLife
    • Handsome spurfowlBirdLife
  11. MgahingaUganda. One of BirdLife's Important Bird Areas
    • Rwenzori turacoBirdLife
    • Handsome spurfowlBirdLife
  12. KibaleUganda. About 370 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority saysA stop on our Best of Uganda safari
    • Rwenzori turacoBirdLife
  13. Kidepo ValleyUganda. 476 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority says
    • SecretarybirdUganda Wildlife Authority
    • OstrichUganda Wildlife Authority
  14. TarangireTanzania. Over 550 bird species, Tanzania National Parks saysA stop on our Best of Tanzania safari
    • Yellow-collared lovebirdTanzania National Parks
  15. Lake ManyaraTanzania. A soda lake, with a walkway through the tree canopy
    • Lesser flamingoTanzania National Parks
  16. Tsavo WestKenya. A corridor for birds from Europe and Asia, BirdLife says
    • Migrant birds from Europe and AsiaBirdLife

A place is listed for a bird only where one of these sources names it. Many birds live in more places than this; tell us your list and we check the rest.

Where to see a shoebill in Uganda and Rwanda

BirdLife estimates 100 to 150 shoebills in Uganda, possibly over 200, and fewer than 50 in Rwanda. It lives in swamps, often among papyrus, and BirdLife calls it mostly sedentary, so you look for it where it lives.

  • Mabamba Bay, near KampalaThe Ramsar Convention calls it “the only swamp close to Kampala where one can easily find” the shoebill. Local bird guides and boats take you inRamsar Convention; NatureUganda
  • By boat at SemulikiThe Uganda Wildlife Authority's tariff lists a shoebill trip by boatUganda Wildlife Authority
  • The delta at Murchison FallsWhere the Uganda Wildlife Authority says the shoebill is “commonly spotted”Uganda Wildlife Authority
  • A shoebill trek at ZiwaThe Uganda Wildlife Authority lists a shoebill trek and canoe ride at the rhino sanctuaryUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Akagera, RwandaVisit Rwanda says the shoebill is seen there “fairly regularly”Visit Rwanda; BirdLife International
A shoebill standing among tall reeds

A shoebill among the reeds.

  • The shoebill: Vulnerable, and decreasingBirdLife's category for the shoebill, last assessed in 2018BirdLife International
  • Shoebills eat lungfish and catfishTheir main prey in Uganda, BirdLife saysBirdLife International

The Albertine Rift: forest birds found nowhere else

The mountains and forests of the Albertine Rift hold 41 bird species found nowhere else, a 2007 study counted, across a region that takes in Bwindi, Nyungwe and the Rwenzori Mountains.

Those three hold the most of them in Uganda and Rwanda. Kibale holds a few, and the savanna parks, Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls, hold none, though they record more species overall.

  • African green broadbillIn Uganda, only in Bwindi. Vulnerable, BirdLife saysBirdLife International
  • Rwenzori turacoBirdLife lists it only in Burundi, DR Congo, Rwanda and Uganda: here, Mgahinga and Kibale, Volcanoes and NyungweBirdLife International
  • Handsome spurfowlBirdLife lists it only in Burundi, DR Congo, Rwanda and Uganda: here, Mgahinga, Volcanoes and NyungweBirdLife International
ParkBird speciesAlbertine Rift endemicsGlobally threatened
BwindiUganda381246
NyungweRwanda280267
Rwenzori MountainsUganda241214
SemulikiUganda44179
KibaleUganda32733
Queen ElizabethUganda59407
Murchison FallsUganda47607

Plumptre and others, Biological Conservation, 2007, table 2. Counts have changed since; the parks' own counts are below.

Crowned cranes, secretarybirds and saddle-billed storks in Uganda

Some of the birds people travel for are big enough to watch from the vehicle, out on the grassland or along the shore.

  • Grey crowned craneUganda's national bird is the crested crane, which the government describes as a subspecies of it. BirdLife lists the grey crowned crane as EndangeredUganda Ministry of Foreign Affairs; BirdLife International
  • Secretarybird“Often seen striding across the open plains” at Kidepo Valley, the Uganda Wildlife Authority says. Endangered, BirdLife saysUganda Wildlife Authority; BirdLife International
  • Saddle-billed storkAmong the water birds the Uganda Wildlife Authority lists at Queen Elizabeth, with pink-backed pelicansUganda Wildlife Authority
Two grey crowned cranes foraging in dry grassland
A secretarybird walking through golden grass
A hamerkop perched on a branch

Grey crowned cranes; a secretarybird; a hamerkop, a bird of the water's edge.

Bird species in 12 parks in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania, as each park counts them

Each figure is the one the park's authority publishes. They were counted in different years and in different ways, so they do not rank the parks against each other.

A golden weaver hanging from its woven nest
A superb starling perched on a branch

A golden weaver at its nest; a superb starling.

  • BwindiUganda350+bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • KibaleUgandaAbout 370bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Kidepo ValleyUganda476bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Lake MburoUganda315+bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Murchison FallsUganda556bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Queen ElizabethUganda600+bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • SemulikiUganda435+bird speciesUganda Wildlife Authority
  • AkageraRwanda490bird speciesVisit Rwanda
  • NyungweRwanda322bird speciesVisit Rwanda
  • Lake NakuruKenyaAbout 450bird speciesKenya Wildlife Service
  • SerengetiTanzania500+bird speciesTanzania National Parks
  • TarangireTanzania550+bird speciesTanzania National Parks

A birding day: gate hours, guided walks and boats

Forest birds are found on foot, with a guide; water birds from a boat; the plains from the vehicle. Gate hours differ from one authority to the next.

  • Uganda's park gates: 07:00 to 19:00One time for every Uganda Wildlife Authority parkUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Guided birding walksSold per person by the Uganda Wildlife Authority, in the forest parks and the savanna parks alikeUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Boat trips on the Kazinga Channel and the Nile: about 2 hoursThe Uganda Wildlife Authority's launches in Queen Elizabeth, where it lists pink-backed pelicans and saddle-billed storks, and at Murchison FallsUganda Wildlife Authority
  • Akagera's boats: 07:30, 09:00, 15:00 and 16:30On Lake Ihema, and private trips at other timesAkagera National Park
  • Lake Nakuru and Kakamega open 06:00 to 18:00Unless you are spending the night insideKenya Wildlife Service
  • Stay on the track, and no hornsUganda fines drivers who leave the track or sound their horn in a parkUganda Wildlife Authority
Travellers on a forest trek photographing up into the trees

When to go: the rains, migrant birds and where the flamingos are

What changes with the month is the rain on the trails, the migrant birds passing through, and where the flamingos are.

Zebra and wildebeest at the soda lake with flamingos massed behind, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania
A lilac-breasted roller perched on a branch, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Flamingos in Ngorongoro Crater; a lilac-breasted roller in the Maasai Mara.

Rainy seasons in Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda

  • Rwanda: two rainy seasonsAround March to May and around October to December, Meteo Rwanda saysMeteo Rwanda
  • Kenya's rains: March to May, and October to DecemberThe main rains, then a second major season, the Kenya Meteorological Department saysKenya Meteorological Department
  • Bwindi: open to visit any time of yearThe Uganda Wildlife Authority says so, with up to 2,390 mm of rain a yearUganda Wildlife Authority

Birds that come and go

  • Migrant birds from Europe and AsiaThey pass through eastern Kenya “especially in November/December”, BirdLife says of Tsavo WestBirdLife International
  • Flamingos move between the lakesLake Nakuru held 1,347,063 in January 2006 and about 500 in January 2025, the Kenya Wildlife Service counted; numbers “can change dramatically within weeks”Kenya Wildlife Service
  • The shoebill stays putBirdLife calls it mostly sedentary: it lays at the end of the rains, as the water starts to fallBirdLife International

Three safaris in Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania to build a birding trip on

Best of Uganda stops at Ziwa, Murchison Falls, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth and Bwindi, all places in the planner above. Rwanda Gorilla Trekking stays two nights at Volcanoes, and Best of Tanzania includes Tarangire. We add the walks and boat trips for your list to any of them.
Elephant and buffalo herds along the water below a green escarpment, Queen Elizabeth National Park, UgandaTypically 10 to 14 daysUgandaBest of Ugandafrom USD 3,950per personSee the itineraryA table laid for breakfast in a garden, with a volcano rising beyond the plainTypically 3 to 5 daysRwandaRwanda Gorilla Trekkingfrom USD 3,900per personSee the itineraryLions resting on a rock kopje above the plain in the Serengeti, TanzaniaTypically 6 to 9 daysTanzaniaBest of Tanzaniafrom USD 3,250per personSee the itinerary
Not on the list
Then it gets written

Longer, shorter, a different month, two countries in one run. Say what you have in mind and a first route and a real price come back within one working day.

Start with a date

Questions about birding safaris

Where can we see a shoebill in Uganda?

Mabamba Bay on Lake Victoria, which the Ramsar Convention calls the only swamp close to Kampala where one can easily find the shoebill. The Uganda Wildlife Authority's tariff lists a shoebill trip by boat at Semuliki, it lists a shoebill trek at Ziwa, and it says the bird is commonly spotted along the Albert Delta at Murchison Falls. In Rwanda, look in Akagera.

How many bird species are there in Uganda?

BirdLife International counts 1,002, of which 239 are migratory, and 34 Important Bird Areas. Queen Elizabeth alone records over 600 bird species, the Uganda Wildlife Authority says.

When should we go on a birding safari?

You can bird all year: BirdLife counts 239 of Uganda's 1,002 species as migratory, and the shoebill stays put. The rains matter more: Meteo Rwanda gives two rainy seasons, around March to May and October to December, and Kenya's main rains run March to May. Migrant birds from Europe and Asia pass through Kenya especially in November and December, BirdLife says.

What are Albertine Rift endemics, and where do we find them?

Birds found only in the mountains and forests of the Albertine Rift: 41 species across the Rift, a 2007 study counted. In Uganda and Rwanda, Bwindi, Nyungwe and the Rwenzori Mountains hold the most. The African green broadbill, in Uganda, lives only in Bwindi.

Will we see flamingos at Lake Nakuru?

We do not promise them. The Kenya Wildlife Service counted 1,347,063 at Lake Nakuru in January 2006 and about 500 in January 2025, as rising water changed the Rift Valley lakes. Flamingos move between the Rift Valley lakes, and their numbers can change within weeks. Tanzania National Parks describes lesser flamingos on Lake Manyara.

Can we go birding by boat?

Yes. In Uganda the launches on the Kazinga Channel and the Nile at Murchison Falls take about two hours, with up to 40 and 45 people. Akagera's boats leave at 07:30, 09:00, 15:00 and 16:30, and private trips run at other times. The shoebill trip at Semuliki is by boat too.

What is Uganda's national bird?

The crested crane, which Uganda's government describes as a subspecies of the grey crowned crane. It is on the flag and the coat of arms. BirdLife lists the grey crowned crane as Endangered.

Which safari suits birders, and what does it cost?

Any of our safaris can be planned around your bird list; the three below are a good start. Each is private, with a vehicle and driver-guide for you alone. Each safari's page shows its current price per person, and we price your own route when you send your dates.

Tell us your bird list and when you can travel, and we email you a route and price.

Tell us roughly when you can travel, how many days you have, and the birds you most want to see. We email you a route and a real price.
  1. Send your list and your datesThe birds that matter most, roughly when, and how many days.
  2. Get a route and a price by emailParks, walks and boat trips chosen for your birds, with the cost per person.
  3. Change the route until it fitsThe month, the parks or the length.
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