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Volcanoes Safaris, better known as the pioneer of gorilla and chimpanzee ecotourism in Uganda and Rwanda since 1997, has announced the opening of its fifth luxury lodge⏤ Kibale Lodge.
Aptly named, Kibale Lodge is located within the environs of Uganda’s Kibale National Park, better known as the Primate Capital of the World, for its rich collection of primates⏤ thirteen in total, including the famous chimpanzees. In total, the park is also home to over 120 other mammal species including elephants, and antelopes as well as 370 bird species.
Kibale Lodge is the fifth in the Volcanoes Lodges collection. Others are Bwindi Lodge, Mount Gahinga Lodge and Kyambura Gorge Lodge in Uganda and Virunga Lodge in Rwanda.
Kibale Lodge will comprise eight bandas, plus a spa and swimming pool. Four bandas will open in July and four more by the end of the year.
“Volcanoes’ fifth lodge is a landmark development: it creates a unique circuit linking the finest gorilla and chimpanzee sites in Africa,” said the developers in a media statement mailed to CEO East Africa Magazine.
“The lodge is built in the renowned Volcanoes’ handmade style by an in-house design and build team of African artisans led by Ugandan-born Volcanoes Safaris founder, Praveen Moman,” the developers further said in a statement adding: “Kibale Lodge sits on a ridge with stunning views of the Rwenzori Mountains looking towards the west, and the Queen Elizabeth plains and the Kazinga channel to the south. The 150-acre site is surrounded by lush homesteads on the rolling hills around Fort Portal, known for its warm and welcoming climate. The lodge is in the heartland of the old Batoro kingdom and the area of the historically important medieval Bachwezi kingdom”.
The statement also further quotes Praveen Moman saying: “We are delighted to be opening Kibale Lodge. There are three important things to share about this lodge. Firstly, as with our other lodges, it has been hand-built by our artisans. Secondly, we are honoured to work with key partners to promote conservation and community activities around Kibale. Finally, Kibale Forest – the Primate Capital of the World – is one of the best parks to view chimpanzees in Africa, with a community of 1,500 chimps.”
Locally Inspired and Built
Kibale Lodge has been hand-built to a new level of elegance and luxury by Volcanoes’ in-house teams of artisans from the countries of the Great Lakes, including local engineers, fundis, decorators and upholsterers.
The team of 400 workers has been led by Cyprien Serugero, who built the iconic Virunga Lodge in Rwanda 20 years ago and John-Bosco Tukamuhabwa, the site supervisor who rebuilt Mount Gahinga Lodge in recent years. They are supported with careful craftsmanship by Joseph Nsabimana, Head Carpenter and furniture maker as well as Wycliffe Tuyambaze, an upholsterer.
Celine Ishimwe, aged 28, is the lead botanist who trained at the University of Rwanda. Over the last year, her team of 50 gardeners has planted 200,000 indigenous plant seedlings in the central 23 acres of land.
Praveen adds, “The whole team has worked with rare passion and dedication and I pay tribute to their spirit. We look to our in-house team for design inspiration. We work in ‘the barefoot villager’ style, sitting down together and working out practical local approaches to aesthetics, making everything locally, whatever the origin of the design, in the renowned Volcanoes Safaris Afro-chic style, reflecting the richness of the cultures and aesthetics of the Great Lakes.
“The lodge’s hospitality will embody the deep traditions of the local Batoro people, which are based on values and respect for family and elders. Each guest will have a personal butler and should expect to be given a pet name, an ‘empaako’, during their stay, which is a mark of respect for visitors. Lodge staff will wear uniforms based on traditional local clothing, including the suuti, which ladies wear on celebratory occasions. The food will include special locally inspired dishes, such as Filinda, a classic delicacy usually served at marriage ceremonies, made with slow-cooked beans and eaten with steamed kalo (millet bread) or matooke (bananas) and served with groundnut sauce and dodo (steamed greens),” Praveen shares.
Community and Conservation Partnerships
Kibale Lodge will, in partnership with the Jane Goodall Institute organise community outreach programs through the Roots and Shoots program, particularly to build up women leaders in conservation.
Volcanoes Safaris is also working with the Jane Goodall Institute and wider participants of the Albertine Apes Alliance to promote responsible ecotourism in Kibale Forest. The Albertine Apes Alliance is an informal advocacy network bringing together stakeholders in conservation and ecotourism in the Albertine Rift. It was established at a conservation retreat at Mount Gahinga Lodge in 2022 as part of Volcanoes Safaris’ 25th anniversary celebrations.
A new cultural partnership with the Rwenzori Sculpture Foundation, set up by the Rungwe Kingdom, will bring sculptures relating to the traditional clans of Uganda to the lodge. Finally, Volcanoes is building a new vocational centre at Sadhguru School, located near the lodge.
New Safari for Great Ape Viewing
As well as opening the new lodge, Volcanoes is also introducing a new 10-day ‘Primates of the Great Rift Valley’ safari. This combines Kibale Lodge with chimpanzee trekking at Kyambura Gorge Lodge and gorilla trekking at Mount Gahinga Lodge. As a special introductory offer, guests booking the new Primates of the Great Rift Valley safari will receive a free night at Kibale Lodge. Rates start at USD12,970 per person in the low season.
Praveen says, “Seeing the different chimp families at Kibale and then continuing to the Lost Chimps of Kyambura Gorge and the wildlife and birds of Queen Elizabeth, ending with the enchanting gorilla family in Gahinga is one of the great safaris of Africa.”
Kibale Lodge is an hour’s drive from the historic hill town of Fort Portal and an hour from the Kasese airstrip, from which there are daily flights to and from Entebbe, and to Volcanoes Safaris’ four other lodges.
Kibale Forest, the base for chimp trekking, is a thirty-minute drive from the lodge.
Rates for Kibale Lodge start from USD990 per person per night on full board in the low season. Rates include accommodation and meals, all soft and alcoholic drinks (except French champagne) including cellar collection wines, cocktails and single malt whiskeys, laundry services, lodge activities, massage and spa treatments.
A USD50 per person per night community fee is applied and donated to Volcanoes Safaris Partnership Trust (VSPT), which was established in 2009 as a non-profit organisation to support long-term, self-sustaining projects that enrich the livelihoods of local communities, promote the conservation of the great apes, restore natural habitats and work with communities to reduce human-wildlife conflict. Guests will be able to visit and participate in the community and conservation projects at Kibale.
Bookings are now open.
To book yourself into the Kibale Lodge, email the sales team at enquiries@volcanoessafaris.com