What to do on a tour in Uganda in 2025/2026.
What to do on a Uganda tour in 2024/2025? Uganda, called the Pearl of Africa, is found in East Africa. If you’re planning a trip in 2024 or 2025, consider Uganda. It has amazing wildlife, primates, a rich culture, friendly people, warm weather, and beautiful scenery. If you’re a tourist planning a safari in Uganda, this piece will help you know the best activities to do on your trip.
Gorilla trekking
Gorilla trekking is a popular activity to do on your vacation in Uganda. Gorilla walking happens in two national parks in southwestern Uganda: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. Trekking to see mountain gorillas begins early in the morning with a meeting at the park headquarters. During this meeting, you’ll learn the rules, laws, and what to expect. After the briefing, you will begin your hike in the jungle. This can take anywhere from 2 to 7 hours, based on where the mountain gorillas are. They often move around to find food. When the gorillas are found, you can spend one hour with them in their home.
Going on a chimpanzee trek.
Chimpanzee trekking is the second most popular activity in Uganda, after gorilla trekking. It takes place in several areas, including Kibale Forest National Park, which has the most chimpanzees, Kyambura Gorge in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Kalinzu Forest, and Budongo Forest in Murchison Falls National Park. Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda begins early in the morning with a meeting at the park offices to go over the rules and guidelines. After the briefing, you’ll begin hiking in the forest. This hike can last between 2 to 5 hours, depending on where the chimpanzees are. Once you find them, you’ll have one hour to observe them in their natural habitat. This time lets you learn about their behaviors, watch their daily activities, and take photos or videos.
Watching animals in their natural habitat or going on a safari.
Wildlife viewing/game drive is an interesting activity where you will be able to visit the national parks in a comfortable pop up safari vehicle with a professional driver guide. In Uganda, game drives can happen early in the morning, in the afternoon, or at night. These drives take place only in grassland national parks, such as Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Lake Mburo National Park, and Kidepo Valley National Park. On the game drives, you can see animals such as elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs, lions, leopards, hyenas, cheetahs, waterbucks, bushbucks, giraffes, zebras, reedbucks, impalas, elands, oribi, and duikers, among others.
Golden monkey trekking
Golden monkey trekking is an exciting action you can try during your safari in Uganda. Golden monkey trekking takes place only in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. It begins with a briefing at the park headquarters, where you learn about the rules, laws, and what to expect, similar to gorilla and chimpanzee trekking. Golden monkey hiking in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park lasts about 2 to 5 hours. Once you find the golden monkeys, you can spend one hour with them. During this time, you can watch them play, jump in the trees, and take photos or videos.
Climbing mountains and hikes.
Mountain climbing is an exciting sport you can do while on your safari in Uganda. Uganda has great spots for mountain climbing and hiking. Some of the best places include Mount Rwenzori, which has Africa’s third highest peak, Mount Stanley. Other notable mountains are Mount Elgon and the three volcanoes: Mount Muhabura, Mount Gahinga, and Mount Sabyinyo. There are also shorter hikes, such as the Sipi Falls hike and the hike to the top of Murchison Falls.
Watching birds.
Uganda is a great place for birdwatching, with more than 1,073 different bird species. These include unique birds from the Albertine Rift Valley, forest birds, water birds, grassland birds, and migratory birds. You can go bird watching in Uganda at various places, including Mabamba Swamp, Mabira Forest, Mpanga Forest, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Kibale Forest National Park, Kidepo Valley National Park, Budongo Forest, Mount Rwenzori National Park, Lake Mburo National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, and Semuliki National Park. When you go bird watching, you’ll have an experienced guide to help you find various bird species. This includes the Shoebill Stork, African Green Broadbill, Rwenzori Turaco, Black Bee-eater, Karamoja Apalis, Green Breasted Pitta, Puvel’s Illadopsis, Nahan’s Francolin, Martial Eagle, Short-tailed Warbler, Green Pigeon, Yellow-billed Stork, African Darter, Goliath Heron, African Harrier Hawk, Grey Crowned Crane, Giant Kingfisher, Mountain Greenbul, Western Green Tinkerbird, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, Yellow-footed Flycatcher, and Brown Twinspot, among others.
Cultural experiences.
Uganda has a rich and unique culture with more than 56 tribes. During your cultural experience, you will meet local people, learn about their culture and traditions, see their homes, try their local food, hear their old stories, buy handmade gifts, and enjoy their traditional entertainment.
Boat trip
Boat Cruise
A boat tour in Uganda is a fun experience where you can enjoy cruising on various lakes and rivers. In Uganda, you can enjoy boat cruises in various places. These include boat trips on Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale, cruises on Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park, trips to the bottom of the falls and on the Nile Delta in Murchison Falls National Park, boat rides in Lake Mburo National Park, and cruises at the source of the Nile, among others. On the boat cruise, you can see various animals, such as hippos and Nile crocodiles in the water, and elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks, warthogs, Uganda kobs, and giraffes along the shores. You will also spot water birds like cormorants, fish eagles, hornbills, kingfishers, and bee-eaters.
Best time to go on a Uganda tour in 2025/2026
You can go on a trek in Uganda at any time of the year, but the best time is during the dry season. This peak season happens in June, July, August, September, December, January, and February. In the dry season, there is little rain in the national parks, so the plants are sparse. This makes it easier to see animals, and the roads, walking paths, and game drive paths are dry and easy to use. This helps with game drives, gorilla trekking, and chimpanzee trekking.
For more details about going on a trip in Uganda in 2025/2026, contact us.
