Visit the beautiful National Parks and enjoy wildlife safaris in some of Africa’s best kept secrets.
A safari to Uganda would be incomplete without visiting one of the ten (10) beautiful National Parks in this country. Each one of these National Parks has unique wildlife species and activities that makes it stand out from the crowd. Visiting all the national Parks would be a fantastic idea to be able to experience what each of them offers. It would be costly to visit all the Parks at once. You can visit one at a time to be able to explore all of them. Murchison Falls National Park in Northern Uganda is a home of over 76 mammal species and 451 bird species including the exceptional Shoebill stork.
Several activities like Launch cruise, game drives and forest walks can be relished from this Park.
- Queen Elizabeth National Park -A medley of wonders is located in western Uganda and is a home to 95 mammal species and 600 bird species
- Kidepo Valley National Park a true African Wilderness is situated in North-eastern Uganda and is where you will sight predators that are nowhere else in other Parks including Cheetahs, the striped hyenas and more than 475 species of birds.
- Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga National Parks are known for the iconic mountain gorillas
- Kibale National Park is known for Chimpanzee tracking.
- Other National Parks worth visiting include Semliki National Park, Mount Elgon National Park, Rwenzori National Park and Lake Mburo National Park.
For the wildlife lovers who desire to view the Big Five and see nature in all its fullness, then game safaris are the appropriate formula. A game safari is also sometimes referred to as a game drive and this is an activity that involves tourists embarking on a vehicle and driven around the national park with a purpose of viewing different wildlife species.
These drives are usually guided by armed park rangers to protect you from potential harmful animals that may pose threat, but most importantly the rangers help to identify the animals and provide relevant information about each spotted animal.
Out of Uganda’s 10 national parks, four of them offer the most ultimate experience for the game safaris. Encounter all the African big five game on your safari in Uganda’s Murchison falls, Queen Elizabeth, Kidepo valley and Lake Mburo national parks.
About national parks that offer the best game drive experience, Kidepo valley national park is one of Uganda’s most amazing places you can ever visit to have a typical wilderness experience in a natural setting. It is the most isolated game park located about 700km away from Kampala in north eastern Uganda. It is a habitat to over 77 different mammal species and a game drive here exposes you to 80% of the animal species in the park.
Wildlife is most active in the Narus Valley during early mornings and late afternoon. A game ranger will help you spot some of the park’s lions that may be seated on the valley’s raised rock outcrops. Also view other bug mammals like elephants, leopards, bush duiker, jackal, bushbuck, bush pig, Kavirondo bush baby, herds of buffaloes and much more. A drive to the Kanangorok Hot springs goes north of Apoka through the rock outcrops and hills and then descends to the Kidepo sand river. A game drive in Kidepo valley national park is just an experience for life.
Game drives in Queen Elizabeth national park will expose you to a wide range of animals like the lions, buffaloes, elephants, Uganda Kobs, bush bucks, warthogs, leopards and so many others. But most exciting of it all is a drive to the Ishasha sector that offers you an opportunity to view the most sought after tree climbing lions. A game drive in Queen Elizabeth national park will also enable you to view the beautiful landscapes of Kigezi hills and various crater lakes formed due to historical volcanic eruptions that happened in the Albertine rift.
Game drives in Murchison falls national park are also another thrilling experience that all wildlife lovers around the world desire to have. It is a dwelling ground for over 76 different wildlife species, including Buffaloes, Jackson hartebeests, Antelopes, Lions, Kobs, Giraffes, Hyenas, Bushbucks and Warthogs among others. These animals are widely spread all over the Savannah grasslands, grazing or hunting for prey making the park’s landscape so stunning for game viewing.
For Lake Mburo national park, the best way to explore the park fully is by road. Game safaris in the park give the best opportunity for spotting the countless herds of Impala and Zebras. It is the only park in Uganda to see the majestic impala and the closest and quickly accessible home for the Burchell’s zebra. Different paths are always taken on during the game drive depending on weather and seasons. In the dry seasons, animals usually gather around swamps and lakes. If you ever thought of a game drive, Lake Mburo national park should be on your bucket list.
Note that the most suitable time for game drives in all these parks are the early morning and afternoons, making 6am and 4pm the most appropriate time for setting off for scenic game drives amidst Uganda’s undulating savannah vegetation.
