Guided by nature, lit by stars
A Ugandan-owned safari company in Kampala, started by local guides. We design and run private journeys across Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania, with honest advice from people who know the ground.
From guides on the ground to our own company
We didn’t begin in an office. We began in the field, as local guides and agents taking other companies’ guests across Uganda.
For years we drove the roads, waited at the briefing points and sat in the boats. We learned which gorilla sector suits which traveller, how long the drive to Bwindi really takes, which lodges deliver on their promises and how a safari day should be paced so that nobody is exhausted by day three.
In time we asked ourselves why a local team with that knowledge was working under other people’s names. So we built our own company. Dusk 2 Dawn Explorers Co. Limited is Ugandan-owned, based in Kampala and licensed by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB/RTT/TO/2026/102529).
Our name comes from the safari day itself: out before dawn for the first game drive or the shoebill boat, and home after dusk under a sky full of stars.
Private safaris across East Africa
Every trip is private and built around your dates, budget and interests. We work in four countries.
- Gorilla and chimpanzee trekking in Bwindi, Mgahinga, Volcanoes National Park and Kibale, with permits secured first.
- Wildlife safaris in Uganda’s savannah parks and in the Masai Mara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater.
- Birding and shoebill trips, from a morning at Mabamba Swamp to a full birding safari.
- Honeymoons, family trips and beach extensions, including Zanzibar and Kenya’s coast.
- Tailor-made itineraries. Tell us what matters to you and we design the route, lodges and pace around it.
Why travellers choose us
Licensed & local
Dusk 2 Dawn Explorers Co. Limited is a registered Ugandan company, licensed by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB/RTT/TO/2026/102529).
Permits first
Gorilla and chimp permits are secured before lodges and transport are confirmed.
Private vehicle
Your own 4×4 safari vehicle and an English-speaking driver-guide.
Honest pacing
Real drive times, no impossible days, and rest where the route needs it.
One point of contact
The same planner from first message to the airport, reachable on WhatsApp.
Honest advice
We are not a middleman, so we have no reason to sell you what you don’t need. We tell you what is worth the money and what isn’t.
Travel that gives back
The parks we visit exist because local communities live alongside them. We plan so that more of your money stays with those communities.
- Community-run experiences such as the Bigodi Wetland walk and Batwa visits, where fees go directly to the community
- Community stays such as Ride 4 A Woman in Buhoma on our standard itineraries
- Local poler-guides at Mabamba and local site guides at Kasubi
- Strict wildlife etiquette: distance, time limits and no flash around primates
Dusk to dawn, done properly
Your driver-guide collects you early, with coffee for the road. The morning is for the best light and the most active animals, whether that is a gorilla trek, a game drive or a boat through the papyrus. Midday is for lunch and rest, not another long drive. The afternoon brings a second activity or a gentle walk, and the evening is yours at the lodge, under the stars that gave us our name.
Talk to the people who will run it
Tell us when you would like to travel, how long you have and what you most want to see. We reply with a clear plan and a price, with no obligation. Get safari pricing, read how to book or contact us.
Dusk 2 Dawn Explorers Co. Limited
Nyago, Makindye, Kampala, Uganda
info@dusk2dawnexplorers.com · +256 709 780 625
Licensed by the Uganda Tourism Board: UTB/RTT/TO/2026/102529
Photo credits
Photographs of cranes, Ankole cattle, the hippo, giraffe, the savannah sunset, the Nile boat and the lake are our own. The following images are used under Creative Commons licences from Wikimedia Commons:
- Mountain gorilla, 2-year-old, Mubare Group, Buhoma, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda.jpg: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Chimpanzee Kibale 01.jpg: Jedesto, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Western white-bearded wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus mearnsi) Mara River crossing 2c.jpg: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Amboseli Park – Kilimanjaro elephant.jpg: Lafleursauvage, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Serengeti-Landscape-2012.JPG: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Dhow boat Zanzibar.jpg: This photo was taken by Anton Zelenov., CC BY-SA 3.0
- Murchison Falls from above.jpg: Oliver Sedlacek, Public domain
- Lake Bunyonyi, Uganda.jpg: flowcomm, CC BY 2.0
- Tree-climbing lions (Panthera leo).jpg: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Nyungwe Canopy Walk.jpg: Alex Niragira, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) yawn.jpg: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kigali city.jpg: GATETE Pacifique, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Nature of Ngorongoro Conservation Area (129).jpg: Zenith4237, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2-Bwindi Lodge-DJI 0771.jpg: Esme Stewart, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Flamingos in Lake Nakuru 1.jpg: Daryona, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Elefanten fressen Baobab-Rinde.jpg: Leyo, CC BY-SA 2.5 ch
- Akagera National Park Rwanda.jpg: Emery045, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Lake Kivu at dawn.jpg: Kisambira, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kidepo Riverbed.jpg: Keitsist, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Ruwenpflanzen.jpg: Manuel Werner, Germany(Wikipedia-Kontakt: de:Benutzer:Werner, CC BY-SA 2.5
- Sunset and acacia tree, Maasai Mara, Kenya.jpg: Daniel Case, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Silverback02 Bwindi.jpg: RomanoPhileas, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Queen Elizabeth National Park. Elephants near Kazinga Channel.jpg: Yakov Fedorov, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 004 Sunrise at Serengeti National Park Photo by Giles Laurent.jpg: Giles Laurent, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sunset Over the Nile – Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda00.jpg: BMKME, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Golden monkey (Cercopithecus kandti) eating.jpg: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
Start planning your East Africa journey
Tell us when you’d like to travel and what you want to see. A specialist from our Kampala team will reply within 24 hours with a first itinerary and an honest price.