10 Top Things to do on a Safari in Uganda

Uganda is one of the best destinations is Africa to do a once-in-a-lifetime safari, there are many things to do on safari in Uganda and here in this article, we bring you our 10 Top Things to do on Safari in Uganda. For a long time now the world has been hit hard with the Covid 19 restrictions which have directly halted travel and safari activities to Uganda, however after good management of the virus worldwide countries have gradually started to open up their borders to international travelers which as well Uganda is doing following various precautions. Various SOPs have been put in place to ensure the wellbeing, safety and health of our clients, as well various guidelines and measures have been put in place as we return to the new normal post-covid-19. General recommendations for personal hygiene, cough etiquette and keeping a distance of at least one meter from persons showing symptoms remain particularly important for all travelers and even those without symptoms. Uganda has much to offer for tourists ranging from primates, wildlife and cultural experiences, as we get back on the road in the post-COVID-19 travel here are the 10 Top Things to do on a Safari in Uganda in the new normal on these activities you will be able to explore Uganda in safe way.

Primate tracking

Primate tracking is one of top Uganda safari activity to do in the new normal, Uganda is a home to various primate species including Mountain Gorillas, Chimpanzees, Golden Monkeys, among others. On this activity you will be able to explore various forests in search for the famous primates major activities include Gorilla trekking, Chimpanzee trekking and Golden monkey trekking. These are all done in a group of 8 tourists trekking a given family and during all treks COVID-19 preventive SOPS, new guidelines and measures will be followed to ensure safety and health of all tourists and the primates.

Gorilla Trekking

Gorilla Trekking in Uganda is done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, for you to be allowed to go for the gorilla trek you will need to have a gorilla permit which costs USD700 for the foreign nonresidents, USD600 for the East African Residents and USD70 for the East African Citizens, this gives you an opportunity to spend one hour encounter with the mountain gorillas. You can as well opt for a 4 hour encounter experience that is Gorilla Habituation which costs USD1500 per person per trek, this is gives an opportunity to spend more time with the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Forest National Park

Chimpanzee Trekking

Chimpanzee tracking in Uganda is done in Kibale Forest National Park, Kyambura Gorge in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Kalinzu Forest and Budongo Forest close to Murchison Falls National Park. The chimpanzee tracking is done in the morning and afternoon and we can book for you the permits and organize this trek for you depending on the itinerary and timing of the activities. For the normal chimpanzee tracking, a Chimpanzee permit costs USD200 for the foreign non residents, USD150 for the residents and USD30 for the citizens this gives you one hour encounter with the chimpanzees. You can as well do the chimpanzee habituation experience which gives you a half day encounter with the chimpanzees; this is only done in Kibale Forest National Park

Golden Monkey Trekking

Golden Monkey tracking is only done in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, Golden monkey tracking permit costs USD100 giving you an opportunity to spend one hour encounter with the Golden monkeys, then a Golden monkey habituation permit costs USD140 giving you 4 hour encounter with the Golden monkeys.

Gorilla Habituation Experience

Gorilla Habituation Experience is a gorilla activity done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park that involves trekking/walking and hiking through the forest to search for semi-habituated mountain gorillas which leave together in a given gorilla family group but are not used to human presence, once you find them you will participate in activities geared to making these mountain gorillas get used to human presence. Gorilla Habituation Experience gives you an opportunity to spend much time with the mountain gorillas that is four hours encounter different from the one hour encounter during the normal gorilla tracking. This experience is unique given the fact it gives you an opportunity to learn more about mountain gorillas. It is done is a group of 4 visitors tracking a given semi-habituated gorilla group.

Wildlife viewing

You will be able to do various game drives in savannah national parks of Kidepo Valley National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, Lake Mburo National Park and Uganda’s most popular National park Queen Elizabeth National Park, wildlife to see includes tree climbing lions, Buffaloes, Elephants, warthogs, Giraffes, Zebras, Leopard, among others.

Experiential Tourism Activities

Experiential tourism activities is one of another item you should not miss including in your itinerary, these include lion tracking, Mongoose tracking, Hippo Census and Bird counts these are all done in Queen Elizabeth National Park. Depending on the time you have on your safari you will you do one of the activities which normally give you a great up-close experience with animals in their natural habitat.

Cultural experiences

Uganda is ranked among countries with most diverse cultures with more than 50 ethnic tribes and languages, you will be able to enjoy various cultural experience, you will be able to visit many communities in various national park part of your itinerary where the local community will share with you the hard experience of living near the park and how they have managed to co-exist peacefully with wildlife you will as well enjoy the cultural encounters and traditional dances.

Mountain Hiking and Cycling

Mountain Hiking and cycling is another amazing adventure activity that you can add onto your safari to Uganda. Uganda is a land of various hills, mountains and various highlands giving you a great opportunity for hiking activities and cycling. Mountains include Elgon, Rwenzori, Moroto, Sabinyo, Muhavura and Gahinga among others which are common for hiking.

Bird watching

With over 1000 recorded bird species in Uganda, Uganda is one of the best destinations for birding in Africa; it is home to various migrant birds and Albertine endemics with the Shoebill as one of the must see bird specie the major birding areas include Bwindi Forest, Mabamba swamp, Mubwindi swamp, Bigodi wetland and Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park among others many birds as well can be spotted during game drives in various national parks. Some of the Birds include, Collared pratincole, Palm-nut vulture, Pel’s fishing-owl, Rare Swamp flycatcher, Gray crowned crane(Uganda’s National bird), Giant Kingfisher, Giant Heron, Shoebill stork, Abyssinian Ground Hornbills, Nightjars, Marabou stork, Black headed lapwing, Back-bellied Bustard ,Swamp Fly catcher, Giant Heron, African Jacana, Secretary Bird among others.

Boat Safari excursions

With various lakes and rivers in Uganda boat trips and excursions is one of another top Uganda safari activity to do, Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park, River Nile Excursions to the top of the falls and the Delta give you an opportunity to enjoy wildlife up-close and various water animals in Murchison Falls National Park.

What is the best time to Visit Uganda?

The best time for visiting Uganda is during the months of December to February and then June to October which is relatively drier than March to May and November. Uganda is crossed by the equator making it experience a modified equatorial type of climate with two rainy seasons and because of this people tend to associate drier seasons to be the best time to visit Uganda. This is true because when it is raining, it becomes hard to drive through the park for wildlife viewing because of the heavy rains that make the trails too slippery. 10 Top Things to do on a Safari in Uganda

Book your trip to Uganda with Eco Adventure Safaris

At Eco Adventure Safaris we are committed to the well-being of our staff and guests as well as to having a positive impact on the communities and wild places that our operations reach. Contact us here to book your safari to Uganda. 10 Top Things to do on a Safari in Uganda