5 Top Uganda safari activities in the new normal

As countries begin to gradually reopen their borders to international travellers Uganda is also doing the same with a major focus on travelling in the new normal which will require travellers to follow various precautions during their travel to Uganda. Various SOPS have been put in place to ensure the wellbeing, safety and health of our clients, as well as various guidelines and measures, have been put in place as we return to the new normal post-covid-19. All these are in line with advice, guidelines and procedures for a post-covid-19 traveller put in place by WHO, UNWTO, UWA, AUTO, UTB and Civil Aviation. General recommendations for personal hygiene, cough etiquette and keeping a distance of at least one meter from persons showing symptoms remain particularly important for all travellers and even those without symptoms. Uganda has much to offer for tourists ranging from primates, wildlife and cultural experiences, as we get back on the road in the post-COVID-19 travel here are the 5 Top Uganda safari activities in the new normal on these activities you will be able to explore Uganda in a safe way.

Primate tracking

Primate tracking is one of top Uganda safari activity to do in the new normal, Uganda is home to various primate species including Mountain Gorillas, Chimpanzees, Golden Monkeys, among others. On this activity, you will be able to explore various forests in search for the famous primates major activities include Gorilla trekking, Chimpanzee trekking and Golden monkey trekking. These are all done in a group of 8 tourists trekking a given family and during all treks COVID-19 preventive SOPS, new guidelines and measures will be followed to ensure safety and health of all tourists and the primates.

Gorilla Trekking

Gorilla Trekking in Uganda is done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, for you to be allowed to go for the gorilla trek you will need to have a gorilla permit which costs USD800 for the foreign non-residents, USD700 for the East African Residents and USD70 for the East African Citizens, this gives you an opportunity to spend one hour encounter with the mountain gorillas. You can as well opt for a 4-hour encounter experience that is Gorilla Habituation which costs USD1500 per person per trek, this gives an opportunity to spend more time with the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Forest National Park

Chimpanzee Trekking

Chimpanzee tracking in Uganda is done in Kibale Forest National Park, Kyambura Gorge in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Kalinzu Forest and Budongo Forest close to Murchison Falls National Park. The chimpanzee tracking is done in the morning and afternoon and we can book for you the permits and organize this trek for you depending on the itinerary and timing of the activities. For the normal chimpanzee tracking, a Chimpanzee permit costs USD300 for the foreign non-residents, USD250 for the residents and USD30 for the citizens this gives you one hour encounter with the chimpanzees. You can as well do the chimpanzee habituation experience which gives you a half-day encounter with the chimpanzees; this is only done in Kibale Forest National Park

Golden Monkey Trekking

Golden Monkey tracking is only done in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, Golden monkey tracking permit costs USD100 giving you an opportunity to spend one hour encounter with the Golden monkeys, then a Golden monkey habituation permit costs USD140 giving you 4 hour encounter with the Golden monkeys.

Wildlife viewing

You will be able to do various game drives in savannah national parks of Kidepo Valley National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, Lake Mburo National Park and Uganda’s most popular National park Queen Elizabeth National Park, wildlife to see includes tree climbing lions, Buffaloes, Elephants, warthogs, Giraffes, Zebras, Leopard, among others.

Cultural experiences

Uganda is ranked among countries with most diverse cultures with more than 50 ethnic tribes and languages, you will be able to enjoy the various cultural experience, you will be able to visit many communities in the various national park part of your itinerary where the local community will share with you the hard experience of living near the park and how they have managed to co-exist peacefully with wildlife you will as well enjoy the cultural encounters and traditional dances.

Mountain Hiking and Cycling

Mountain Hiking and Cycling is another amazing adventure activity that you can add onto your safari to Uganda. Uganda is a land of various hills, mountains and various highlands giving you a great opportunity for hiking activities and cycling. Mountains include Elgon, Rwenzori, Moroto, Sabinyo, Muhavura and Gahinga among others which are common for hiking.

Bird watching Safaris

With over 1000 recorded bird species in Uganda, Uganda is one of the best destinations for birding in Africa; it is home to various migrant birds and Albertine endemics with the Shoebill as one of the must-see bird specie the major birding areas include Bwindi Forest, Mabamba swamp, Mubwindi swamp, Bigodi wetland and Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park among others many birds as well can be spotted during game drives in various national parks. Some of the Birds include Collared pratincole, Palm-nut vulture, Pel's fishing-owl, Rare Swamp flycatcher, Grey-crowned crane(Uganda’s National bird), Giant Kingfisher, Giant Heron, Shoebill stork, Abyssinian Ground Hornbills, Nightjars, Marabou stork, Black-headed Lapwing, Back-bellied Bustard, Swamp Flycatcher, Giant Heron, African Jacana, Secretary Bird among others.

Boat excursions

With various lakes and rivers in Uganda boat trips and excursions is one of another top Uganda safari activity to do, Kazinga Channel in Qeen Elizabeth National Park, River Nile Excursions to the top of the falls and the Delta give you an opportunity to enjoy wildlife up-close and various water animals.

What is the best time to Visit Uganda?

Uganda being crossed by the equator has a modified equatorial type of climate with two rainy seasons and because of this people tend to associate drier seasons to be the best time to visit Uganda. This is true because when it is raining, it becomes hard to drive through the park for wildlife viewing because of the heavy rains that make the trails too slippery. The best time for visiting Uganda is during the months of December to February and then June to October which is relatively dry than March to May and November.

About Encounter Africa safaris and how we will book for you in the New Normal

Encounter Africa safaris started in 2011 offering amazing experiences to Uganda and Rwanda but have since expanded to offer safaris to Tanzania, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Our magic in organizing authentic experience stems from the fact that we have overtime assembled a team mixed with young and energetic staff guided by well experienced mature managers and directors who are Ugandans and passionate about what they do. If contacted, one of our staff will assist in providing accurate and timely information that you can rely on. Encounter Africa Safaris is highly rated and reviewed on trip Advisor and safari bookings. In these new and changing times caused by the COVID-19, our core value is to provide you with an authentic safari experience while ensuring your safety and health in line with the set SOPS and preventive measures for various activities and travel we promise you an easy and safe booking procedure and safari experience in Uganda, for more information read here