The source of the Nile river starts in the Rwenzoris, Africa’s tallest mountain range that stretch across western Uganda shrouded in mist and teeming with glaciers, waterfalls and alpine lakes. These ‘mountain’s of the moon’ are the home of Uganda’s mountain gorillas and tracking them through this majestic habitat is one of the country’s most iconic experiences.
We drove through Uganda’s largest national park (🎟️45 USD / 24 hrs, 🚙50 USD) and one of its best. Animals are in plentiful supply, but our main target was the raging Murchison Falls, where the Victoria Nile crashes through the rock and descends dramatically towards Lake Albert. Despite a...
On our way to Murchison Falls, we stopped overnight at Hoima, the city with the palace of King Omukama of Bunyoro. We found parking in the city center at Cultural Lodges (20 USD) and walked to the HB Hotel to swim (10000 UGX). We visited Hoima Market and then drove to the national park...
We arrived from Kampala in an hour through a modern expressway (10000 UGX) to the pleasant and chilled city of Entebbe. It is set just outside Kampala, near the banks of Lake Victoria. This buzzing city is the former capital and has made Hollywood connections through numerous films about...
It was supposed to be an easy drive from Namagunga to Kampala, but 39 kilometers took us 7 hours. Uganda’s capital and largest city occupies a series of hills at an elevation of about 1,190 meters and is situated just north of Lake Victoria. Kampala lies just north of Mengo, the...
We have realized that we could not manage it in Kampala today. So we have decided to overnight next to the perfect Bannz Grill, just a few kilometers from the Sezibwa Falls (🎟️20000 UGX, tip for guide 5000 UGX). After a lovely breakfast in Bannz Grill in the morning, we took a local boda...
We drove slowly from Jinja to Kampala and decided to stop somewhere to explore the Mabira Rainforest. It was pretty unclear where to stop, so we decided to try it in Najembe, where we could find a small car with a driver to go inside the forest.
Our other stop on the way to Kampala was the Mabira Forest, the largest semi-deciduous rainforest in Uganda, situated halfway between Jinja and Lugazi and stretching across 120 sq km. The rainforest is home to 311 tree species, some of which are ancient. Before the 1800s, the forest...
We stopped at the oldest standing historical building in Jinja, where the Uganda Railway Museum (🎟️20000 UGX) is based. It is the country’s oldest remaining former railway station, built in 1928. Visiting this museum is like taking a step back in time. The photographs, artifacts, and...
The other day, we hired a local small car with a driver (85000 UGX) and drove to Itanda Waterfall (🎟️30000 UGX, tip for guide 5000 UGX). The Nile rapids north of Jinja are some of the most sought-after in Africa by adventure seekers due to their incredible power and water volume. Then, we...
