Wild Route Trips

Uganda

Queen Elizabeth National Park

Savanna between two lakes, with lions in the fig trees.

See the journeys

Why Queen Elizabeth

The boat is better than the game drive.
That is unusual, and it is true here.

Uganda's most visited park sits between Lake Edward and Lake George, with the Kazinga Channel running between them and carrying the densest concentration of hippo in the country. In the south, lions lie in fig trees, which they do almost nowhere else on earth.

The Kazinga Channel is 32 kilometres of water joining two lakes, and a two-hour boat along it puts you level with more hippo, buffalo and elephant than a morning in a vehicle usually will. The animals come to the water because they have to, so the boat does not depend on luck the way a drive does.

It is also one of the great bird stretches in Africa. The park records around 600 species, which is more than some countries, and a slow boat is the easiest way to see a serious number of them without being a birder.

The Ishasha sector in the far south is the other reason to come. Lions there rest in the branches of fig trees through the heat of the day. Nobody has fully settled why, and no sighting is promised, but it is an hour and a half on the road south toward Bwindi, which makes it an easy addition rather than a detour.

Need to know
Known forTree-climbing lion, elephant, hippo, 600 bird species
Best monthsDecember to February, June to September
Quietest monthsApril, May, November
Time neededTwo nights, three with Ishasha
Getting there6 hours from Kampala, 2 from Kibale
Altitude910 to 1,390 metres
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Where to go

The places worth the drive

Two hours by boat

The Kazinga Channel

Hippo in hundreds, buffalo, elephant coming down to drink, and a wall of birds along the bank.

Afternoon is the right time. The light is behind you and the animals are at the water.

The tree-climbing lions

Ishasha

The southern sector, open and quiet, where lions lie in fig trees through the afternoon.

Never promised, often seen. It sits on the road to Bwindi, so it costs you very little to try.

Chimpanzees

The Kyambura Gorge

A forested gorge cut 100 metres into the savanna, holding a small isolated chimpanzee community.

Sightings are much less certain than Kibale. Go for the gorge itself and treat the chimps as a bonus.

Where most people stay

The Mweya peninsula

The headland between the channel and Lake Edward, with the widest choice of lodges and the shortest run to the boat.

Warthogs on the lawns, mongoose everywhere.

When to go

The year in Queen Elizabeth National Park

June to September

The long dry season

Firm trails, short grass and predictable roads. The busiest stretch of the year and the easiest walking.

Gorilla permits for these months sell out first, so they are booked before flights rather than after.

October and November

The short rains

Rain arrives in the afternoon and rarely lasts the day. Green country, few vehicles.

November carries the USD 600 gorilla permit. If your dates move, this is the best value in the calendar.

December to February

The second dry season

Hot and clear. Busy over Christmas and the new year, then quiet through January and February.

February is the driest month in the south and the strongest window for the Rwenzori.

March to May

The long rains

The wettest stretch. Harder underfoot, some northern tracks go difficult, a few lodges close.

April and May carry the USD 600 permit, birding peaks, and you will have the forest very nearly to yourself.

Before you go

What we tell everyone about Queen Elizabeth

01
Take the afternoon boat, not the morning one. The light sits behind you and the animals are already at the water.
02
Ishasha is a sector, not a guarantee. The lions are wild and the trees are large. Build it into the drive south to Bwindi so a blank afternoon costs you nothing.
03
Kyambura's chimpanzees are not Kibale's. The community is small and isolated and sightings run well under half. If chimpanzees are a priority, do Kibale and treat Kyambura as a walk in a spectacular gorge.
04
It pairs naturally with Bwindi, two hours from Kibale and on the road to the gorillas. Almost nobody comes here on its own and nobody should.
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