East Africa
Uganda
Half the world's mountain gorillas, and the Nile leaving Lake Victoria
01The country
Uganda sits where the East African savannah runs into the Congo Basin rainforest, and it gets the wildlife of both. That collision is why a country roughly the size of Britain holds more primate species than anywhere else on the continent, alongside elephant, lion, buffalo and one of the densest concentrations of birds in Africa.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in the south-west is the centre of it. Its forest holds around half of the world's remaining mountain gorillas, spread across four trekking sectors, and the trees close over the trail in a way that explains the name within the first ten minutes.
North of that, the country opens out. Queen Elizabeth spreads across the floor of the Western Rift between two lakes; Murchison Falls follows the Nile to the point where the whole river is squeezed through a gorge barely wider than a room. Between them, Kibale's forest is the best place in Africa to spend a morning with chimpanzees.
- Region
- East Africa
- Capital
- Kampala
- Gateway
- Entebbe International (EBB)
- Known for
- Gorillas, chimpanzees, the Nile
- Recommended stay
- 7 to 12 days
02Why Uganda
- 01
The largest population of mountain gorillas anywhere
Bwindi holds around half the world total, across several trekking sectors, with Mgahinga adding a smaller group on the Virunga side of the border.
- 02
Chimpanzees in Kibale
Kibale's community is among the most studied and most reliably found on the continent, and the forest around them carries a dozen other primate species.
- 03
The Nile at full force
At Murchison Falls the entire river is driven through a gap of a few metres and falls into the gorge below. The boat trip to the base of it is the single best hour in the park.
- 04
Tree-climbing lions at Ishasha
In the southern sector of Queen Elizabeth, lions spend the heat of the day draped along fig branches. It is a genuinely unusual behaviour, and this is one of only two places it is regular.
03What it is for
- Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
- Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest
- The launch trip to the base of Murchison Falls
- Game drives for tree-climbing lions in Ishasha
- Boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel
- Golden monkey trekking and volcano hikes in Mgahinga
- Birding — over a thousand recorded species
- Source of the Nile and whitewater at Jinja
04Parks & regions
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Dense montane forest in the south-west, home to around half the world's mountain gorillas. Trekking runs from four sectors — Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga and Nkuringo — each with its own gorilla families and its own character of climb.
Kibale National Park
Tropical forest west of the Rwenzoris and the best chimpanzee tracking in East Africa, with twelve other primate species alongside them and outstanding birding in the neighbouring Bigodi wetland.
Queen Elizabeth National Park
Uganda's most visited park, spread across the Rift floor between Lakes Edward and George. Savannah, crater lakes and the Kazinga Channel, plus the Ishasha sector's tree-climbing lions and chimpanzees in Kyambura Gorge.
Murchison Falls National Park
The country's largest park, split by the Victoria Nile. Elephant, giraffe, lion and buffalo on the northern bank, and a boat trip upriver to where the falls compress the Nile into a seven-metre channel.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
Uganda's share of the Virunga volcanoes, on the Rwandan and Congolese border. One gorilla group, golden monkeys, and climbs up Sabyinyo, Gahinga and Muhabura.
Lake Mburo and the Rwenzori Mountains
Mburo is the acacia-and-lake park that breaks up the long drive south-west, and one of the few where walking safaris are straightforward. The Rwenzoris, further west, carry glaciers on the equator and a serious multi-day trek.
05When to go
Trekking is possible year-round. The drier stretches make forest trails and park tracks far easier going.
- JanJan: best time to visit
- FebFeb: best time to visit
- MarMar: shoulder season
- AprApr: quieter
- MayMay: quieter
- JunJun: best time to visit
- JulJul: best time to visit
- AugAug: best time to visit
- SepSep: best time to visit
- OctOct: shoulder season
- NovNov: shoulder season
- DecDec: best time to visit
- The long rains run roughly March to May, the short rains October to November.
- Bwindi is rainforest and can rain in any month — the season affects the mud on the trail more than whether you find the gorillas.
- The wet months are the best for birds, with migrants present and residents in breeding plumage.
06Getting there
- From Kigali · Air
- Roughly 1.5 hours to EntebbeThe usual pairing — Rwanda and Uganda combine easily on one trip.
- From Kigali · Road
- Around 4 to 6 hours to the Bwindi sectorsThe southern gorilla sectors are closer to Kigali than to Entebbe.
- From Europe and the Middle East · Air
- One-stop routings to Entebbe (EBB)
- From Entebbe to the parks · Road or light aircraft
- 6 to 10 hours by road; roughly 1 to 2 hours flyingDistances are long. Most itineraries fly at least one leg.
07Where to stay
- Each Bwindi sector has its own lodges, and which sector you trek from decides where you sleep — this is the one booking decision worth getting right first.
- Queen Elizabeth and Murchison both have lodges inside the park, which is worth it given how much of the wildlife happens in the first and last hour of light.
- Kibale's lodges sit close to the briefing point at Kanyanchu, so the early start is manageable.
08Planning it
Uganda on its own, or combined with Rwanda
Our published itineraries are Rwandan, because Rwanda is where we operate day to day. Uganda we build to order, routed around your dates and usually paired with a Rwandan leg — the two do different things and the borders are short hops.
Rwanda is the shorter trip: two hours from Kigali on sealed road, and a trek is realistic in three or four days. Uganda's Bwindi takes longer to reach but has far more gorilla families, a wider spread of trekking sectors and a lower permit cost, and it sits beside chimpanzees and savannah that Rwanda would need a separate leg to match. If you have a week or more, Uganda usually gives the fuller trip.
Plan Uganda
Build a trip through Uganda
Tell us roughly when you want to travel and what you want to see. We will come back with an itinerary built around it, not a package pulled off a shelf.