Uganda Travel Guide

The Ultimate Uganda Travel Guide

Searching through the jungles of Bwindi during our Uganda guide, we aimed to see some of the most scarce animals on Earth. The critically endangered Mountain Gorillas are not like the typical safari. Feelings go numb, and you are speechless at first sight. It is the highlight of our time in Africa.

After the Gorilla experience, we go on Safari to two National Parks. While sitting at the edge of our seats on a boat, we patiently wait for two hippos to go at it. Other hippos are grazing on land, with elephants drinking in the distance. Crocodiles large enough to eat a small buffalo wait patiently. Lions out in the prairie stalk, hunt, and eventually eat, where one can witness the full cycle on almost a daily basis.

Uganda Travel Guide: Safari
Lush Greenery on Safari

At Murchison Falls, aside from the spectacular safari, we hiked up to the top of the falls to feel the mist over our entire body. We saw the greatest waterfall on the Nile river. The power of the river is clear as it growls through the narrow section of land.

After several days of safari, we went to relax at Mount Elgon. While we did not hike, one can hike up to the World’s largest Caldera. Nearby Sipi Falls is a wonderful set of three waterfalls, each very picturesque. Thinking back on our time while relaxing and sipping on some cold Nile Special, we realized we just enjoyed one of the best spots in Africa.

Welcome to the Pearl of Africa…Uganda.

Traveling in Uganda: Countryside
Nothing short of beautiful – The Ugandan countryside

Content and photographs provided by Yana Kogan and Timon.

The Ultimate Guide to Uganda

About Uganda

Uganda is less frequented by visitors than its East African neighbors. Sitting along the Eastern Volcanic Rift with some of the world’s largest and deepest lakes, Africa’s oldest rainforest, Africa’s tallest mountain range, and the source of the Nile River, Uganda is packed with things to do.

Visit the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi National Park, see tree-climbing lions in Queen Elizabeth National park, and see the Nile River’s largest waterfall as well as an excellent safari at Murchison Falls National Park.

Highlights of Uganda: Hunt
The Hunt

Uganda is an excellent place to visit if you have an extended trip. It is travel-friendly and very safe. Locals are very nice, and we found Uganda to have some of the best local food in Africa.

With limited time, don’t exclude Uganda albeit not having a major hub, it is just a quick flight from Nairobi. Uganda should be high on anyone’s list to go, it’s a special place that many do not visit, but has some of the best landscapes in all of Africa.

Best Things to See in Uganda: Giraffe
Giraffe Yoga

Currency in Uganda

Uganda Travel Guide: Women
Women Carry Everything on their Heads

At the time of writing, the Uganda Shilling was worth 3,374 to $1. While Shillings are the National currency, all parks and several areas for lodging only accept USD. Rarely in Uganda does anyone accept credit cards, in particular, no one at any of the National Parks. Park fees also must be paid in cash. ATMs are not readily available and only in bigger towns.

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Food in Uganda

Traveling in Uganda: Chapat
Making Chapati

The availability of supermarkets is primarily in the bigger towns. Small villages throughout the countryside will only have small markets with little available. What seems like the national dish of Uganda is the Ugandan Rolex. Not a watch, but hand-rolled chapati cooked streetside with an omelet and tomato rolled inside is widely available. Chapati is 500 shillings and each egg is 500 shillings.


Hiring Private Drivers

Highlights of Uganda: Countryside
The Stunning Countryside

Hire a private 4×4 van for $80 per day to get a fun-packed 10 to 12 days in Uganda. With more time, you can arrange for transport or take the public matatu bus. Hire with Bwindi Backpackers for a van with a large sunroof (not a pop-top). Price excludes fuel and vehicle and driver entry to National Parks.

Best Things to See in Uganda: Murchison Falls
Looking out at Murchison Falls

If you are coming from Kenya to Uganda overland, it may make sense to do this itinerary in reverse; however, this makes the most sense when coming from Kampala or from Rwanda.

Check out the Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Lake Bunyoni, Queen Elizabeth for an epic river cruise, Murchison Falls for game drives, and the Nile River, before the last stop to Mount Elgon and Sipi Falls.

You will have an all-around vacation filled with adventure. The Gorillas will be the highlight of the trip, but also enjoy some top-notch Safari.


Two-Week Uganda Itinerary

Uganda Travel Guide: Tour
Enjoying our Uganda Tour
  • 2 Days: Bwindi to see the Mountain Gorillas
  • 3 Days: Queen Elizabeth for game drives and a river cruise
  • 3 Days: Murchison Falls for games drives and a waterfall hike
  • 5 Days: Mount Elgon for a 4-day hike and a day at Sipi Falls
  • 1-2 Days: Extra transit and possible stopover between destinations
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Top Places to See in Uganda

1. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Traveling in Uganda: Silverback
Male Silverback

Bwindi is Africa’s oldest rainforest, one of the few surviving the Ice Age. Sitting on the Congo basin, Bwindi is one of four parks that are home to the endangered Mountain Gorillas. While numbers are increasing, only 880 are left in the wild, and Bwindi is home to half of them. Priced lower than Rwanda, but more than Congo, it is the perfect place to come see the Mountain Gorillas.

Costs for Gorilla Trekking

Highlights of Uganda: Gorilla
Young Gorilla Playing

Gorilla Trekking permits cost $600 US per person in Uganda. Rwanda is by far the most expensive at $1,500 per person, and the Congo is the cheapest at $400. Bwindi is an excellent choice, where there are several other activities, including nature hikes, chimp treks, or visiting the Batwa Pygmies ($20).

Where to Stay in Bwindi

Best Things to See in Uganda: Male Silverback
Male Silverback

Bwindi Backpackers is a good option for visiting Bwindi. They help not just with arranging the permits, but also offer transportation and vehicle for hire for the Uganda tours. Camping is $10 per person, and rooms start at $25 with cottages for $60 per person. Dorms are also available from $15 to $20. Meal plans cost $25 per person, or you can eat a la carte. Stay two nights with a meal plan for a one-way transfer included to or from Kigali.


2. Lake Bunyoni

Uganda Travel Guide: Lake Bunyoni
Lake Bunyoni

One of Africa’s deepest lakes, this lake is very scenic and dotted with many islands. Surrounded by rolling hills, it is a wonderful stop to relax for a day. Make sure to drive up to the top of the hillside for excellent views. One of only two lakes that claim to not have bilharzia (however, there are some reported cases from 2012), you can swim, rent a kayak, or hire a boat tour around the lake.

Where to Stay at Lake Bunyoni

Traveling in Uganda: Unique Monkey
A Unique Looking Monkey

Stay at Overland Resort which has rooms for $35, very cute lakeside tents for $40, and cottages for $60. Camping is $8. Enjoy some excellent meals that are well-sized portions as well.

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3. Queen Elizabeth National Park

Highlights of Uganda: Giraffe
Giraffes at Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth is a large game Reserve that during the 70s was a premier park in Africa filled with animals, including the Big Five. During the 1980s, many animals were killed, especially elephants and rhinos.

There are two sections of the park, the Southern section of Ishasha with the famous tree-climbing lions and the Northern section with game drives and the river cruise. The tree climbing lions at Ishasha and the river cruise are the highlights of the park. Hire a guide for $20 for the tree-climbing lions.

Where to Stay at Queen Elizabeth National Park

Best Things to See in Uganda: Lioness
Lioness
  • Ishasha – Enjojo Lodge camping $10, tented camp B&B $35 pp
  • Northern section – Marafiki Lodge $10 camping, luxury rooms from $120

Things to Do in Queen Elizabeth

Uganda Travel Guide: Our Safari
This is How we Safari HAHA!
  • Game drives concentrate around the Kasenyi gate and the royal circuit where you will see some elephants, Ugandan kob, antelope, buffalo, and other gazing animals while searching for Lions. On occasion, you can spot leopards.
  • Kazinga Channel boat cruise – This two-hour cruise with Mweya Safari Lodge (Cost: $28 per person) was the highlight of QE and should be done in the afternoon around 4 pm.
  • Salt Mine at Katwe village – Stop here for a nice view of the crater where they still mine salt today using traditional methods, along with some craft stores.
  • The Crater Loop of the Explosion Craters is a scenic drive that starts at the Main gate of Kabatoro.

Entry Fees to Queen Elizabeth

Traveling in Uganda: Giraffes
Giraffe Fight
  • $40 USD per person for a 24-hour period
  • The car is a one-time 30k shilling fee ($8 USD)
  • The fee for the driver is 15k shilling per day ($4 USD)
  • A guide at Ishasha is $20 USD

4. Murchison Falls National Park

Highlights of Uganda: Lion Couple
A Romantic Couple

Murchison National Park is one of Uganda’s largest national parks and possibly one of Africa’s top parks during the 1960s. The park had some of the highest concentrations of animals in Africa. Troops and poachers nearly killed all of the wildlife here during the 1980s except for grazing antelope.

Wildlife has recovered fast, as this national park is on its way to becoming one of Africa’s top parks once again. Rhinos are expected to be reintroduced to Murchison again, having this the only place in Uganda with the Big Five. In addition to the wonderful game drives where you can witness herds of elephants, buffaloes, giraffes, lions, hippos, Ugandan Kob, and waterbucks, the raging falls of Murchison are the largest along the Nile River.

Where to Stay at Murchison National Park

Staying outside of the national park is cheaper than staying inside. Also, staying inside requires payment to the National Park and starts the 24-hour period. Because we arrived at night, it made sense to stay outside of the park so as to not waste any of our 24-hour period.

Stay Outside the Park

Best Things to See in Uganda: Hippo
Hippo out of Water!

Stay at Yebo Safari Camp where camping is $10 per person, and the tented camps are $25 per person. Banda’s with the full board is $40. Meals cost $10 but are very large and delicious. Note that if you are staying outside the park, the main entrance from the Masindi gate requires you to pay to get to the “outside the park” establishments. Make sure to drive around the park to Lake Albert and through Bulisa to avoid paying park fees.

Stay Inside the Park

Uganda Travel Guide: Murchison Falls
Murchison Falls on the Victoria Nile River

Stay at Red Chili Rest Camp, a wonderful and budget stay, although comes with luxury views, very good food, and great customer service. They are located one minute from the Paraa Ferry for easy access to game drives in the morning. Camping costs $7, tented camps with shared baths cost $44, small banda with shared baths cost $38, and the large banda with ensuite cost $55.

Game Drive

Game drives are the main activity in Murchison. Most of the accommodation is on the south side of the river, besides the Paraa Safari Lodge. The game drives, however, are on the north side of the river. You must take a ferry crossing. It is best to arrive at 6:30 am to make sure you get on the first 7 am ferry. You can hire a guide for four-hour periods for $20 at the entry on the north side of the ferry crossing.

River Cruise

Take a scenic boat cruise from the ferry crossing to the bottom of the falls. You will see animals gathering by the river’s edge and ultimately taken to Murchison Falls. The tour takes in total about 4 hours.

Cost: $32 per person and leaves around 2 or 3 pm.

Waterfall Hike

Traveling in Uganda: Lion
The Staredown

Drive 30 km from Paraa to the top of the falls on the Southside of the river. You can take a short walk to the top of the falls for free. To continue on the trail to where there are much better views costs $15 per person.

Ferry Crossing Times in Murchison NP

Ferries are at 7 am, 9 am, 11 am, 12 pm, 2 pm, 4p m, 6 pm, and 7 pm.
Cost: Ferry crossing fee is 40k shillings for multi-use all-day

Park Fees to Murchison National Park

Highlights of Uganda
Sisterly Love
  • $40 per person for a 24-hour period
  • Car is a one-time 30k fee ($8 USD)
  • The driver is 15k per day ($4 USD)
  • A guide is $20 USD for a 4-hour period
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5. Mount Elgon and Sipi Falls

Best Things to See in Uganda: Sipi Falls
Sipi Falls

Budadiri is a small village that is a great place to stay in the Mount Elgon region. Many hikes, including the summit hike, start just a few kilometers from Budadiri, and the village is big enough to get some basic groceries or lunch out if you need. Sipi Falls is about a 45-minute drive by Boda Boda (moto-taxi) through the beautiful countryside of Uganda.

Where to Stay Near Mount Elgon

Roses Place is a great option, where rooms cost 60k shillings but a very large breakfast and dinner are included.

Activities near Mount Elgon

Uganda Travel Guide: Coffee at Sipi Falls
Coffee Beans and Sipi Falls
  • Mount Elgon Trek: There are several routes up Mount Elgon, including the popular but steepest Sasa Route starting in Budadiri (3-4 days), a Sipi Trail (4-6 days), and the Piswa Trail (7 days). The cost is $75 per day which includes entry fees and mandatory guide fees. Price excludes any gear (tent) and costs for a porter (~$17/day). 
  • Coffee Plantation Tour: Go on a short two-hour walk to a coffee plantation, where you can see the entire process of making coffee and walk through the fields of coffee on the base of Mount Elgon. The cost is 15,000 Shillings ($4.50)
  • Sipi Falls Tour: Sipi Falls is a 45-minute drive by Boda Boda, where you can hire for the day with the driver for 40k shillings. At Sipi, you can hire a guide and decide on a walk to the falls from 35k to 55k shillings depending on the length of the hike. You also can go to each falls on your own where they will charge you at each stop, but for around a total of 25k. The total cost is between 65K and 95K Shillings ($19-$28).

Should You Come to Uganda?

Highlights of Uganda: Lion
The King of The Jungle

Uganda was one of our favorite countries in Africa, and in particular, our favorite in East Africa. East Africa is an expensive place to visit, especially going on safari in Kenya and Tanzania. While not cheap, safaris are more affordable in Uganda and offer incredible landscapes.

Overall, the safaris were some of the best in Africa. The culture is also really great in Uganda. The people are very welcoming and friendly, a vibe we did not always get in other parts of East Africa. We also really enjoyed the food, with some of the best in the region.

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That’s it – have a Wonderful time exploring the beautiful country of Uganda!


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About the Author:

  • Yana and Timon

    Yana & Timon met at college in Boston, Massachusetts. After graduating, they started their professional careers. They moved to San Francisco in 2010, a city they loved living in for nearly six years.

    After working and saving up money for several years, they quit their jobs and set off on an adventure of a lifetime. They started living a nomadic lifestyle in December 2015 and have not looked back since.

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