Uganda travel guides

Most nationalities need an e-visa, applied for online before travel through the official immigration portal, costing around USD 50 for a single-entry tourist visa. Visa on arrival is no longer reliably available, so do not count on it. A yellow fever vaccination certificate is mandatory and checked on arrival. If you are also visiting Kenya and Rwanda, the East Africa Tourist Visa at USD 100 covers all three and allows multiple movement between them.

June to September and December to February are the dry seasons and the best times for gorilla and chimpanzee trekking, when forest trails are more manageable and park roads passable. Uganda sits on the equator so temperatures are consistent year-round, moderated by altitude. The wet seasons from March to May and October to November bring lush landscapes, fewer visitors and lower rates, but trekking becomes muddy and hard work in Bwindi's steep terrain.

A Uganda gorilla permit costs USD 800 per person, roughly half the Rwandan price for a comparable experience. Permits are issued for Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and Mgahinga, and should be booked several months ahead for the dry season. A gorilla habituation experience, which allows four hours with a semi-habituated family instead of the standard one, costs USD 1,500. Chimpanzee permits at Kibale are far cheaper at around USD 250.

The main tourist circuit through Bwindi, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls is well established and generally safe, with a strong tourism-police presence. Check your government's current travel advisory before booking, particularly regarding areas near the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan borders. Petty crime occurs in Kampala, and road travel is the biggest everyday risk. Malaria prophylaxis is essential, as is care around hippos and elephants in unfenced lodges.

Ten to fourteen days suits a full circuit, because roads are slow and the parks are spread out. A typical route covers Entebbe, Kibale for chimpanzees, Queen Elizabeth for the Ishasha tree-climbing lions, Bwindi for gorillas and Lake Bunyonyi to unwind, returning via Kampala. A shorter seven-day trip can focus on Bwindi and Queen Elizabeth alone. Add Murchison Falls and Jinja for rafting if you have more time; flying between parks saves long driving days.

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