Uganda is becoming more popular as a safari location. It’s not surprising that you’re considering it for your next vacation, and you’ll need simple procedures to arrange a successful trip to this wildlife hotspot.
The “Peal of Africa,” as enthusiasts refer to it, is nothing short of breathtaking anywhere you see it. From the eastern Elgon Mountains across Lake Victoria to the snow-covered ‘Mountains of the Moon,’ Uganda features some of Africa’s most lush areas.
The area features a lot of rain, a lot of sun, mountain gorilla giants, a lot of rivers and lakes, and a lot of hills and lowlands. There are beautiful national parks, coffee, tea, and banana plantations, as well as numerous cities and villages with interesting people and fascinating history.
If you have yet to visit the “Pearl of Africa,” now is the time to schedule your first safari vacation. Even those who have already visited their country’s territory are more likely to declare they can’t wait to return.
Here are ten easy steps to making your fantasy African vacation in Uganda a reality
- Choose a destination.
- Choose a time to leave.
- Plan your travel activities and accommodations.
- Plan your flights.
- Purchase travel insurance.
- Examine your visa requirements.
- Prepare your travel meds.
- Purchase your travel gear.
- Determine Your Financial Strategy
- Learn more about your destination
Travel experts at Ramaiza Adventure Safaris are dedicated to offering exceptional assistance on precisely designed adventure safari vacations in Uganda and Rwanda, as well as extensions to Kenya and Tanzania. You’ll be utterly fascinated by our amazing options throughout your vacation experience with us.
- Determine your destination.
With ten national parks, four wildlife reserves, and several cities, traditional villages, and communities to visit, picking where to travel in Uganda might be difficult. The first step is to decide what kind of trip you want or what particular activities you want to see and do.
Do you want to go on a traditional safari? Then possibly Queen Elizabeth National Park or Murchison Falls National Park are the places to visit.
Do you appreciate learning about famous ancient cultures? Karamoja in the north or Kidepo Valley in the south may be more to your liking.
Perhaps immersing yourself in nature or hiking through ancient forests is for you. Then there’s the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, which is home to mountain gorillas, and Kibale Forest, where you may encounter our tree-dwelling relative chimp bands.
If you’re an avian buddy wanting to complete your birding list, go birding in Entebbe near Lake Victoria and western Uganda’s protected regions.
Kampala’s capital or colonial Jinja town (where the Nile originates) will keep you awake at night and day for pulsating city culture, people, and adventure.
Assume you’re traveling with little children who aren’t able to take prophylactics. In such scenario, you should avoid Uganda, where malaria is prevalent, particularly at low elevations where mosquitoes thrive in abundance. Otherwise, Uganda is ideal for family vacations, and there are methods to prevent contracting malaria while on vacation.
- Determine when you will leave.
After you’ve decided on your location, the following step is to plan your trip. Most people consider Uganda’s two best vacation seasons: the dry season and the rainy season.
Most tourists visit Uganda during the dry season (June to September and December to February). It is the ideal season for gorilla trekking activities. During this period, the forest floors are less wet, trails are navigable, and your shooting gear will not be soaked by severe downpours. However, you should not count out rain when trekking in Uganda’s jungles.
The dry season is also the perfect time to visit wildlife savannah areas to see herds of animals roaming wide plains. Clear sky, less rain, more sunlight, and greenery are ideal conditions for wildlife photography at this time of year. Animals congregate near major watering holes, making nature more visible.
The dry season is the perfect time to go on a boat launch safari on Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park and the Victoria Nile in Murchison Falls National Park.
If business obligations, school holidays, or global health concerns prevent you from traveling at particular times of the year, you should check into finding the best time on your calendar to coincide with Uganda’s travel calendar before picking which activities to perform.
- Reserve your trip activities and accommodations.
Next, you must determine whether you will go alone or with the assistance of a tour guide. Will you also arrange the trip yourself or use a tour company to handle the local travel logistics?
The majority of international guests choose an all-inclusive guided safari. It is used by your tour operator to manage itinerary information such as lodgings, meals, transportation, activities, and guides. You pay the tour operator, who pays the service provider and manages your whole vacation, chauffeuring you from one location to another.
Even if you opt to book everything yourself, particularly if you are a foreigner, you will almost certainly need to schedule transportation and permits via a professional safari firm.
Unless you are a local who understands the local languages and travel arrangements, a self-game drive to accessible places such as Lake Mburo National Park or Queen Elizabeth National Park is simple to schedule.
Contact your recommended local operator no later than four to twelve months in advance. It’s a good idea to schedule your gorilla permit ahead of time since seeing the mountain giants is limited to just a few individuals each day.
- Reserve your flights.
Flights to Uganda may be pricey depending on where you travel from, and due to a restricted number of airlines, tickets frequently fill up fast. Book as long in advance as possible for the best discounts.
Check if the matching airline travels to Entebbe International Airport (EBB), Uganda’s sole international airport, if you have air miles. If not, utilize a flight comparison service like Skyscanner.com to ensure you get the best deal.
When purchasing foreign flights, try to speak with your local operator so that the ground handler or first-night hotel can arrange airport transfers.
- Purchase travel insurance.
You’ll have spent a large amount of money on flights, excursions, and lodging by this point in the preparation process for your safari vacation to Uganda. It would be preferable if you were protected at this stage.
Travel insurance is critical, particularly in Africa, where airlines often cancel flights without notice and public hospitals are not somewhere you want to wind yourself after an emergency.
Aside from medical expenses, your insurance should cover travel cancellation, assets loss, luggage loss, and theft. If you’re going to a distant location, be sure your insurance covers medical evacuation.
- Confirm the visa requirements.
Check with your consulate many months before your trip date to discover whether you require a visa. This is decided by your nationality rather than your country of residency. Uganda visa restrictions might change at any moment, so verify with an official government source rather than relying on outdated travel websites.
All people wanting to go to Uganda for vacation, tourism, or other purposes must apply for and get a visa online at https://visas.immigration.go.ug/.
Even if you do not need a visa, your passport may be subject to additional criteria, such as being valid for at least six months from the date of entrance.
Uganda grants single-entry visas that are good for three months and multiple-entry visas that are valid for six months. More information may be found at https://www.immigration.go.ug/content/visas-and-passes.
- Gather travel medications.
At least two months before your Uganda trip, you should contact a travel clinic to find out what vaccines are recommended for Uganda.
Hepatitis A, typhoid, and rabies are all recommended. As a condition of entrance, Ugandan immigration will need confirmation of yellow fever vaccination, and malaria is endemic across much of the country.
Before choosing an anti-malaria prophylactic, check your doctor since they all have various adverse effects. Pregnant women should be aware that the Zika virus is a concern in certain places.
Check https://travelaware.campaign.gov.uk/ often to stay up to speed on current COVID-19 advice for travelers.
- Purchase your trip gear.
The exciting aspect of arranging your next safari vacation to Uganda is purchasing all of your specialist equipment. Your shopping list may contain anything from bug repellent to a decent pair of binoculars and a pair of sturdy hiking boots.
Prepare for every kind of weather. Even in the dry season, nights in the southwestern highlands may be frigid. However, the days are unpredictable, with tropical rains and spurts of blazing sunshine.
Consider investing in a nice camera, upgrading your smartphone photo capacity, or purchasing a scrapbook and a spare pair of pens to save your memories.
A first aid kit, along with any personal drugs and all the tools you’ll need to treat minor aches and injuries, is another must-have investment.
- Make a Financial Decision
A few weeks before your trip, decide what you’re going to do with your money. Carrying significant quantities of cash is not secure in Uganda; nonetheless, ATMs are not always present on every street corner. Traveler’s cheques should be avoided since they are seldom recognized as a genuine currency.
In general, your best option is to withdraw enough cash with your credit or debit card at the airport to see you through your vacation. Keep in mind that ATMs may not be able to separate the banknotes. So, upon arrival, go to a Forex Bureaux and exchange some cash for smaller notes and Uganda Shillings (UGX). Tipping service staff is appropriate in the local currency.
Fortunately, virtually all of Uganda’s newer safari camps and lodges accept debit and credit cards. Before your journey, confirm this with your local safari operator.
Divide your money and store it in several places for further security. Check that your credit card has the Visa or MasterCard logo. When planning your Uganda safari, notify your bank to prevent having your card cancelled on suspicion of fraud if you use it overseas.
- Research your destination.
Researching Uganda before you go is a terrific way to amp up your enthusiasm and enhance your local knowledge.
A excellent travel guidebook, such as Bradt Travel Guides, or an online travel guide, such as Destination Uganda Traveler, may provide useful insight into a country’s history, culture, and lesser-known things to see and do.
Phrasebooks are also an excellent choice since understanding even a few local language lines can help you establish acquaintances. For tourists, try Swahili or Luganda-English phrases.
Finally, fictional works authored by African authors or situated in Uganda should be your traveling companion to assist you prepare for your trip.
