They are a variety of tourist activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park and these include; Game drives, Launch trips, Bird watching, Chimpanzee tracking, Lion tracking, Mongoose Tracking, Hiking and nature walks & Cultural visits.

1. Game Drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park

A game drive is an unmissable Uganda safaris experience for any visitor to Queen Elizabeth Park and forms one of the best activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park.

While on the game drive, you will be wowed by the park’s natural shimmering beauty with a myriad of crater lakes scattered around along with areas of open savanna and the tropical rain forest with a variety of primates and birds.

Game viewing in Queen Elizabeth National Park is best done in the early morning when animals are most active. An expert UWA guide will take you to strategic points where you see the largest groups of animals and the most engaging animal behaviors.

You will encounter tree-climbing lions, herds of buffaloes, elephants, warthogs, waterbucks, Uganda kobs, Topis, and even the rare semi-aquatic Sitatunga antelopes that have webbed toes.

Your experienced Uganda safari guide will also add value to your game drive by sharing the park’s rich history, local folklore, native traditions, conservation information, and much more insight.

Visitors to Queen Elizabeth Game Park also have options to undertake afternoon and night game drives. On your Night Game Drives, you will see nocturnal animals lions, leopards, civet cats, and Serval cats.

The tracks through Kasenyi plains, the North Kazinga plains, and the Ishasha sector offers guaranteed sightings of several animal species and a variety of birdlife.

Kasenyi Game Drive Circuit

Half an hour’s drive from Mweya, the vast grasslands of Kasenyi is Queen Elizabeth National Park’s most popular game drive circuit thanks to the resident herds of Uganda kob and the lions that prey on them.

This circuit traverses the bushy plains running east from the Kasese-Ishaka Road to the rundown fishing village of Kasenyi on the western shore of Lake George.

Kasenyi harbors 3 lion prides and it is one of the best sites to see the majestic African lion, especially if you are there shortly after sunrise, accompanied by a guide who knows the areas currently favored by the plains’ resident prides.

Kasenyi experienced ranger guides can usually locate lions but predator sightings can be guaranteed by signing up for a tour with the Mweya-based Uganda Predator Project which monitors the movement of lions, leopards, and hyenas fitted with radio collars.

Aside from lions, this area is home too conspicuous herds of buffaloes and Uganda Kobs, the main prey of lions. In fact, the Kasenyi game-viewing circuit does tend to be rather lacking in mammalian variety, a newly opened lakeside picnic site, and a viewpoint about 6 kilometers to its northwest.

An interesting feature of the plains, only 2 kilometers west of Kasenyi village, is the scenic Bunyampaka Crater Lake, overlooked by a cluster of kiosks selling handicrafts and chilled drinks and still active as a traditional salt extraction site.

Logistically, the Kasenyi plains are easily accessed from most lodges in Queen Elizabeth National Park, and there is no better base for locating lions in the early morning when they tend to be most active, and before the traffic from further afield starts trickling in – than the two upmarket lodges overlooking Bunyampaka Crater or their budget counterpart in Kasenyi village.

Ishasha Game Drive Circuits

The Ishasha sector game drive in the remote southern region of the park is the perfect opportunity to see the rare tree-climbing lions.

It is a very breathtaking sight to see the King of the animal kingdom perched up high on one of the branches of the huge fig trees in this area, lazily resting away as the day goes by.

Two Main Game Circuits Run Out Of Ishasha:

• The northern circuit and
• The southern circuit

The Southern Ishasha Game-Viewing Circuit

For lion sightings, the southern circuit is more productive because it passes through the main kob breeding area, as the predators often remain close to their prey in Kasenyi, and their presence is often revealed by warning calls from the job.

The area also has trees that are favored by lions. However, this circuit is a bit tricky to navigate, it is a good idea to take a guide.

The Northern Ishasha Game-Viewing Circuit

Although the open countryside and boundless horizons on the southern section of the loop offer some of the finest wilderness in southwest Uganda, the northern circuit is best for general game watching, even though it is actually 4 kilometers from the main road to Katunguru.

The sector of the Northern circuit also overlooks the floodplain of the Ntungwe River, along a low trough punctuated by pools and wallows enjoyed by buffaloes, look out here for red buffaloes related to forest buffaloes of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The boggy buffalo wallows of this circuit develop into a full-blown wetland at the northern part of the loop where birdwatchers might look out for black coucal, compact weaver,  and several other water birds.

A stack in this area marks an 8-kilometer track extending north towards the marshy Lake Edward flats. The papyrus fringed site is good for waterbirds, such as herons, shoebill storks, and plovers. They also harbor a decent concentration of elephants, buffalos, kobs, topis, and waterbucks.

The Ishasha River which can be explored on foot supports a healthy hippo population that can be observed from the nearby campsite. The forests that fringe the banks of Ishasha River host a good number of bushbucks, and Black and white colobus monkeys or Mantled guereza.

Away from the river, light acacia woodland and savannah support large herds of Uganda kob, topi, and buffalo, while elephants are seasonally common.

Chanel Drive Circuit

Running roughly parallel to the Kazinga Channel’s northern shore, Channel Drive now serves mainly as a through route between Katunguru Bridge and the Mweya Peninsula.

However, the compact network of tracks that emanates from the main road can provide some excellent game viewing, albeit a little more hit-and-miss than the Kasenyi Plains due to its dense cover of euphorbia trees protruding above the tangled scrubby thickets.

The most common large mammals in the area are warthogs, bushbucks, and waterbucks, but elephants often cross through from midday onwards, heading to or from the water.

Leopard Track and the side road to Channel Campsite are the best places to look for the usually habituated- leopards that frequent the area, while lions are seen fairly regularly, and it is also a good place to spot the localized giant forest hogs.

Because it lies close to Mweya and consists of several interconnecting tracks, the circuit can easily be explored from the lodge over 2 hours.

Night Game Drives: For visitors who are interested in night game drives while on their Uganda safari tours, the rewarding night drives are also permitted on this route but you must be with a ranger/guide which costs USD 30 per person and can be arranged from Mweya Visitor Information Centre.

Crater Drive Circuit

The landscape north of Mweya is dotted by dozens of volcanic craters which remind us of the Albertine Rift’s violent tectonic history.

The 27 km Crater Drive between the Kabatoro and Crater gates follows a breathtaking route around the rims of extinct craters filled, variously, with lakes, forests, and grassland.

The Queen’s Pavilion, at the Crater Gate on the eastern edge of the crater area, has been visited three times by British royalty.

A small information center and coffee shop stand on the site. The equator markers straddling the adjacent Kasese highway provide a popular photo opportunity for visitors on a vacation in Uganda.

The drive is particularly beautiful in the early morning when the low eastern sun illuminates forested crater walls overhung with mist, and the clouds sometimes lift to reveal the glacial peaks of the Rwenzori.

Wildlife volumes are low but the craters frequently attract large elephant and buffalo herds in the dry season and the thick woodland is the best site in Queen Elizabeth National Park to look for acacia-associated birds.

The explosion crater track is a rough and rocky road, so it is best tracked in a 4×4 or another high-clearance vehicle.

Guided Day Game Drive Fees In Queen Elizabeth National Park Include;

• US$ 20—Foreign non-resident and Foreign resident visitors
• UGX 20,000—East African Citizens.

2. Boat Trips On Kazinga Channel

One of the most popular activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park at Mweya is the 2-hour boat trip from a jetty below the Mweya safari lodge to the mouth of the Kazinga Channel. The Kazinga Channel boat cruise is indeed one of the best activities to do while on your holiday in Uganda.

During the cruise, one gets to enjoy the various sights and sounds that the park’s rich aquatic life extravagantly offers.

Elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks, Unda kobs, and large hippo pods are seen daily and giant forest hogs, leopards, and lions are observed with unexpected frequency.

Keep an eye open for enormous water monitor lizards, which are common in the riverine scrub as well as fierce Nile crocodiles basking lazily on the channel banks for a feel of the warm sun.

Waterbirds are plentiful, more especially water thick-knee, yellow-billed stork, and various plovers, while pink-backed pelicans and white-bellied cormorants often flock on a sandbank near the channel mouth.

One smaller bird to look out for is the black-headed gonolek, a type of bush shrike with a dazzling red chest. Not to miss are the Pied Kingfishers attempting to grab a meal.

Launch Cruise Time on Kazinga Channel

• UWA trips leave daily at 09.00, 11.00, 13.00, 15.00, and 17.00
• Mweya Safari Lodge boat leaves at 11.00, 14.00, and 16.15, as well as at 07.00 and 09.00 by special request for groups.

The 14.00 and 15.00 departures are most likely to yield good elephant sightings, particularly on hot days, sometimes bathing in the channel.

The odds of seeing the predators and other nocturnal creatures coming to drink are highest in the late afternoon.

Boat Trips Fees

• Boat trips operated by UWA and cost US$30 Per person and
• Boat trips are operated by Mweya Safari Lodge and cost US$28 per person.

3. Bird Watching In Queen Elizabeth National Park

Visitors on a Uganda bird watching tours are one of the top activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park because of an impressive checklist of 612 bird species– reputedly the most of any African safari park, despite Queen Elizabeth being only one-tenth the size of the likes of Kruger National Park or Serengeti National Park.

Queen Elizabeth is classified as an Important Birding Area (IBA) by Birding International. The park’s confluence of savanna and forest, linking to the expansive forests of DR Congo allows visitors on bird-watching safaris in Uganda to spot East as well as Central African species.

For the best birding in Queen Elizabeth National Park, don’t miss these birding hot spots below:

Bird Watching At Kazinga Channel

The 40km wide Kazinga Channel is a stretch of water linking Lake George in the east and Lake Edward in the west. This channel attracts several unique species of aquatic birds and it is one of the best bird-watching sites in Uganda.

It is categorized among the important birding areas in Africa by the International Birding Organisation. In fact, the launch trip on the Kazinga channel is considered one of the great bird-watching trips in the world. Key bird species to look for at the Kazinga channel while on your birding tours in Uganda include;

• Water thick-knee,
• Saddle-bellied stork,
• Pink-backed pelicans,
• Black-headed gonolek,
• Various plovers,
• Yellow-billed stork,
• White-billed stork,
• African Spoonbill,
• African fish eagle,
• Marabou stork,
• African jacana,
• Weaver birds,
• White-faced Whistling duck,
• Knob-billed Ducks, etc

Bird Watching At Kasenyi Area

The vast Kasenyi plains are another of Queen Elizabeth National Park’s superb birding sites. Kasenyi is situated on the western shores of the adjacent stunning Lake George, just near the area where the Kazinga Channel confluences with this lake. Kasenyi is situated within the northeastern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Key bird species to look for at Kasenyi Area during a bird watching safari trip in Uganda include;

• Grey-crowned crane
• Red-throated spurfowl
• Yellow-throated longclaw
• White-backed vulture
• White-headed vulture
• Palm-nut vulture
• Hooded vulture
• Flapet lark
• Long-crested eagle
• Black-bellied bustard
• Sitting cisticola
• Grey-backed fiscal, etc

Bird Watching at Mweya Peninsula

Covering an area of 10 square kilometer-Mweya peninsular is the focal point of Queen Elizabeth National Park. It is an elevated arrowhead of bushland protruding between lake Edward, George, and Kazinga Channel, immediately where the two waters merge.

A variety of bird species reside at Mweya Peninsular including;

• Red-chested sunbird
• Black-headed gonolek
• Variety of weavers
• African mourning dove
• Swamp nightjar
• Little bee-eater
• Swifts
• Swallows
• Martins
• Nubian woodpeckers, etc

Bird Watching in Maramagambo Forest

Maramagambo Forest occupies the southern sector of Queen Game Park. It is a medium-altitude rainforest and runs west from Katunguru−Ishara road, nearly as far as Lake Edward. The forest harbors a variety of forest birds and several others.

Key bird species to look for in Maramagambo Forest during your Uganda safari tours include;

• African finfoot
• White-napped pigeon
• Chestnut wattle-eye
• Snowy-headed robin chart
• Scaly-breasted illadopsis
• Brown illadopsis
• Forest greenbuls
• Sunbirds
• Woodpeckers
• Rwenzori turaco
• Forest flycatchers
• African emerald cuckoo
• Red-throated wryneck
• African mustached warbler, etc

Bird Watching in Ishasha Sector

The remote southern Ishasha sector is bounded by Lake Edward to the north, the Ishasha River (also the border of DR Congo to the west), and River Ntungwe to the East. Visit the Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth, and you will love the birding tours in Uganda.

Key bird species to look for in the Ishasha sector during your Uganda trips include;

• Cassin’s grey-flycatcher
• Black bee-eater
• Broad-bellied roller
• Shoebill stork
• Plover
• Several herons
• Black coucal
• Compact weaver
• Fan-tailed widow
• Several waterbirds, etc

Bird Watching in Kyambura Gorge

Also known as the  ‘Valley of Apes’, Kyambura gorge is located on the north-eastern side of the Queen Elizabeth National Park, roughly 30 km from park headquarters.

Kyambura gorge offers spectacular sightings of colorful bird species and key species to look for at Kyambura while your Uganda wildlife safaris include;

• Black bee-eater
• Blue-bellied kingfisher
• Great blue turaco
• Black-and-white cascade hornbill
• Martial eagle
• Verreaux’s eagle owl
• African fish eagle
• Pelican
• African broadbill
• African falcon
• Black-headed bee-eater
• Papyrus canary
• White-winged Warbler, and
• Black-rumped buttonquail, etc

Bird Watching In Katwe Area

The area consists of Lake Munyanyange a bird sanctuary, as well as a migratory location for the lesser flamingos from August to November.

Other bird species to look for in Katwe Area during your Uganda bird watching tours include;

• White-breasted Nigro finch
• Chestnut wattle eye
• Marsh tchagra
• Sulphur–breasted bush shrike
• Black bishop, etc

Bird Watching At Lake George Ramsar Site

Designated a Ramsar site in 1988 the lake and its papyrus swamp are found in the northern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park. It hosts the highest diversity of bird species than any wetland in Uganda. Over 491 bird species, including 167 wetland specialists and 9 listed as globally threatened have been recorded.

Key bird species to look for at the Large George Ramsar site while on your visit to Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park include;

• Shoebills
• White-winged warbler
• Papyrus gonolek
• Papyrus canary, and
• Papyrus yellow warbler
• Migrant waders and waterfowls, etc

Bird Watching in Katunguru Bridge Area

This is found where Kazinga Channel crosses from Kasese District to Rubirizi district

• Papyrus gonolek
• White-winged Tern
• Pied Kingfisher
• Malachite Kingfisher
• White-winged warbler
• Greater swamp warbler
• Lesser swamp warbler, etc

Guided Bird Watching Fees In Queen Elizabeth National Park Include;

• U$30—foreign non-resident and foreign resident visitors
• UGX10,000—East African Citizens

The Best Time For Birding in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Uganda birding safari and tours to Queen Elizabeth National Park can be undertaken at any time of the year, however, the best time is between late May and September, when the rain is less and food is abundant.

June to July has the least rain, while April to May and September to November has the most rain. The heavy rains may result in delays due to impassable roads and slippery hiking trails. These may limit your bird-watching time. From November to April, migratory birds can be found in the park.

4. Kyambura Gorge Chimpanzee Tracking

In the northeastern region of Queen Elizabeth National Park, you can go chimpanzee tracking in the Kyambura Gorge which runs for 16 kilometers on the park’s eastern boundary with Kyambura Wildlife Reserve.

Tracking our closest relatives that share 99% of genetic materials is one of the most exciting activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park to do while on your wildlife tours in Uganda.

The confined nature of the gorge makes it easy to locate chimpanzees by sound, once you have encountered them, they can be approached quite closely.

During your chimpanzee tracking tour in Kyambura Gorge, you will also see a variety of monkeys including Black-and-white colobus monkeys, Red-tailed monkeys, Olive baboons.

Less visible inhabitants of the gorge include Giant forest hogs and bushbucks. Lions, elephants, and buffaloes pass through the gorge sometimes and can occasionally be spotted by trackers.

The Kyambura rive in the gorge hosts pods of hippos that sometimes respond to chimpanzee pant-hoot calls with some loud harrumphing of their own.

Trackers will also see a variety of birds including the striking Great blue turacos, the noisy Black-and-white casqued hornbills, Black bee-eater, and blue kingfishers.

Chimpanzee tracking trips in Queen Elizabeth National Park depart two times a day from Fig Tree Camp on the Gorge’s western rim.

Kyambura Gorge Chimpanzee Tracking Permits Fees (Per Person)

• U$50 – foreign non-resident and foreign resident visitors
• UGX 30,000 – East African Citizens

The permit fees include the guide but exclude park entry fees. They can be booked and paid for in advance at Uganda Wildlife Headquarters in Kampala or Katunguru National Park Headquarters 8 km to the north.

You can also buy your chimpanzee tracking permit for Queen Elizabeth National Park a reputable Uganda tour operator. Permits are issued on a given day.

Kyambura Gorge Chimpanzee Tracking Time

Trackers leave in 2 groups of up to 4 visitors each at 8:00 or 13:00.

The excursion typically takes about 3 hours, but this greatly depends on where you locate the chimps and how quickly.

What Are The Chances Of Seeing Chimpanzees In The Kyambura Gorge?

Some years back, Kyambura Gorge was one of the most reliable chimpanzee tracking sites with a success rate of about 85%. This is still the case when chimpanzees have easy access to fruiting trees, but the chances are around 50% at other times of the year.

Chimpanzee Tracking Rules In Kyambura Gorge

For the safety of the visitors and the protection of chimpanzees, trackers should follow a few rules along the forest trails.

• Don’t enter the forest if you feel sick because Chimpanzees can catch your diseases
• Children below 12 years should not track chimpanzees
• Don’t leave any rubbish in the forest,
• If you need to urinate or defecate, do so off the trail. Bury your waste in a hole (30 cm deep) along with any toilet paper.
• Keep as quiet as possible in the forest, you will see more.
• Keep at least 10 meters from the chimpanzees at all times.
• Do not mimic Chimpanzees’ vocalization (you do not know what you might be saying!)
• Do not eat, drink, or smoke near the Chimpanzees.
• Do not chase the Chimpanzees
• Flash photography is prohibited when you are with chimpanzees

Please Note:  If the main focus of your travel to Uganda is chimpanzee tracking you are advised to visit Uganda’s Kibale National Park with harbors almost 1500 chimpanzees and 13 other primates.

Kibale is also referred to as the primate capital of East Africa and is arguably the best place in the world to see wild chimpanzees.

We also recommend Kalinzu Forest which harbors over 300 chimpanzees and has become the second-best place for Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda.

5. Lion Tracking In Queen Elizabeth National Park

For visitors who yearn to see the African lion; the fiercest and most magnanimous of the four-footed beasts, undertake a Lion Tracking Research Experience in Queen and it is one of the best activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park.

The lion is the biggest and most imposing African carnivore and the most sought-after member of the Africa Big Five animals.

It is also the most sociable of all large cats, living in loosely structured prides of typically five to 20 animals. Meeting this undisputed king of the savanna jungle is one of the best experiences of your African tours & safari.

Lion tracking experience in Queen Elizabeth National Park is a terrific way to observe lions in their habitat and learn from an experienced researcher. This activity gives you an up-close and personal insight into the unique behaviors of these amazing cats.

The Queen Elizabeth Predator Project now monitors the activities of several lion prides. At least one member of each research pride has been fitted with a radio collar, which means it is easy to locate them at any time of the day.

A limited number of visitors is permitted to join the research team as part of the Lion Tracking Research Experience.

This activity is offered two times a day by the Mweya Visitor Information Centre. The excursions leave at 06:30 or 6:00 and take up to 3 hours. You will be with researchers and learn the habits of the Lions in Queen Elizabeth Park.

Lion Tracking Fees

• US$100—foreign non-resident and foreign resident visitors.
• East African citizens pay Uganda shillings (UGX) 100,000.

You must book ahead of time in order to take part in this unique lion tracking.

6. Mongoose Tracking

One of the little-known Uganda safari activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park is Mongoose Tracking.

The subject of the ongoing behavior research project, the banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) of Mweya –around 400 individuals split between a dozen groups and possibly the most habituated anywhere in the world.

Tracking these intelligent, social, and playful small carnivores with a knowledgeable guide and field assistant from the mongoose project is a thoroughly delightful and engaging experience.

During this fascinating activity, you will also see other wild animals such as warthogs, buffaloes, elephants, antelopes, and a variety of birds.

The excursion must be booked in advance through the Mweya Visitor Information Centre. It leaves at 07:00 and takes up to 3 hours.

Mongoose Tracking Fees in Queen Elizabeth National Park

• US$30—foreign non-resident and foreign resident visitors.
• East African citizens pay Uganda shillings 30,000.

7. Nature Walk

Uganda hiking safaris are also very exciting activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park. A hike in Queen Elizabeth is a unique way to explore the scenic wilderness. It allows you the time to study the smaller ecosystems of the park.

Your guide will explain the ecological significance of plants, insects, small mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and much more.

Guided Nature Walks in Maramagambo Forest

Maramagambo Forest is found in the southern sector of Queen National Park. This rainforest runs west from Katunguru−Ishara road, nearly as far as Lake Edward.

The largest part of the forest is inaccessible to visitors, the only exception being the northern tip around the crater lakes−Lake Kyasanduka and Lake Nyamasingiri.

During your guided nature walks in Maramagambo, you will see a variety of primates, birds, and other forest creatures. The most commonly seen monkeys are black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, and vervet monkeys.

But the forest also harbors L’Hoest’s monkeys and around 300 unhabituated chimpanzees. Different guided walks can be undertaken from the visitor’s center.

The most straightforward trail circuit is around the forested shores of Lake Kyasanduka, and should not take much longer than an hour, depending on how interested you are in the prolific birdlife.

For dedicated bird watchers, the most rewarding walk is likely to be the half-day around the back of Lake Nyamasingiri, which comprises five interlocking craters and extends over 4 square kilometers.

The forest around Lake Nyamasingiri is home to unique bird species including Scaly-breasted illadopsis, Snowy-headed robin-chart, and Chest-nut wattle eye, while the lake itself is a good site for African finfoot.

More popular than either of the above is a 2-3 km Nyamasingiri Trail, which leads from the eponymous lake to a bat cave and the so-called Blue Lake or Lake Kamilanjovu. The cave is a rubble-strewn lava funnel whose interior hosts a massive colony of bats, as well as a few rock pythons that feed on them.

The cave is viewed from a platform 15 meters away.  About 300 meters past it, the Blue Lake sits at the bottom of a small volcanic crater and owes its coloration to high levels of copper in the water.

Nature walks in the Mweya Peninsula offer savannah and woodland with beautiful views and bold warthogs.

At the southern end of the park, visitors can enjoy an easy stroll along the Ishasha River, where they can spot a variety of forest and savanna bird and mammal species as well as have a unique opportunity on this walk to get extremely close to hippos on foot while remaining perfectly safe on the raised bank above the river.

Nature Walk Fees in Queen Elizabeth National Park

• US$15—foreign non-resident and foreign resident visitors.
• East African citizens pay Uganda shillings 10,000

8. Cultural Visits

Leopard Village/Muhokya Village Visit

This community-run, socio-economic development initiative promotes cultural and wildlife conservation through ecotourism.  It is located near the village of Muhokya and sits on 3 acres bordering the northern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park.

The village is known as ‘leopard Village’ because of its exceptional tolerance of neighboring wildlife, in particular the leopards, which often prey on the village’s livestock.

Leopard Village is a terrific example of a local community co-existing with wildlife. By visiting this village and supporting its cultural activities, you will be assisting in the conservation of the area’s wildlife.

There are tourist activities offered at Leopard village. Local people at the village always share information about their rich natural resources and their cultural traditions to tourists, which can include sharing folk tales and knowledge about their pastoral and agricultural livelihoods and information about the Albertine Rift.

Visitors To Leopard Village Are Offered Offers Short Cultural Visits And Longer Visits.

A Short Cultural Visit Can Include;

• Brief mental and physical break before continuing the drive to or from Queen Elizabeth.

• Visiting replicas of the traditional huts of the Banyabindi, Bakonzo, and Basongora ethnic groups.
• Opportunity to look at and purchase authentic, locally-made traditional crafts that support sustainable livelihoods in a friendly, ‘no-pressure-to-buy’ environment.
• A short performance by village members and school children from Muhokya, Kahendero, and Hamukungu. Specific groups include Banyabindi Cultural Drama Women’s Cultural Group, Basongora Women Cultural Group, Muhokya Primary School choir, and Young Men’s Acrobatic Crew.

A Longer Cultural Tour Of Leopard Village Includes:

• Conversations with Muhokya, Kahendero, and Hamukungu community members about the challenges and opportunities they face living next to the park or about their traditional pastoral and agricultural livelihoods.
• Visits to the local schools.
• Discussions, debates, and mutual learning about how the global community can work with the local communities on environmental and human-wildlife conflict issues.

Kikorongo Women Community Cultural Experience

Kikorongo translates ‘Too Much Sunshine’ in the Lukonzo local language. However, the heat of the African plains has not diminished the energy of the Kikorongo Equator Cultural Performers.

The Kikorongo Equator Cultural Performers offer vibrant performances at lodges around Queen Elizabeth National Park. Watching these performances is a wonderful glimpse of life in Kikorongo, with dance, drama, music, and fire-making.

While a local interpreter explains the significance of the performances, you can sit back and watch village life unfold in front of you.

Guest can be taught how to weave baskets and bowls using natural fibers by Kikorongo African Art Craft Workshops. There are demonstrations of how to recycle magazines into colorful paper beads, which can be made into unique necklaces.

There are also a variety of beautiful items made by the women´s group, such as baskets, bowls, purses, and woven belts for purchase.

Nyanzibiri Cave Community Visit

Nyanz’ibiri Cave Community is a perfect place for travelers on cultural safaris in Uganda to stretch their legs after long game drives. Here you can do scenic walks around a spectacular site known as The Cave.

You will be wowed by the panoramic views of volcanic crater lakes to a soundtrack of elegant crowned cranes and a variety of eagles.

You can paddle a canoe, undertake a hike to the Transparent Lake, look for the resident eight species of primates, or just stop and enjoy the smell of colorful local flowers.

Things to see here also include a historic cave and Cultural Museum – a perfectly preserved Bunyaruguru hut, filled with valued local artifacts that were once the tools of everyday life.

This community-run establishment also offers three, fully furnished private bandas and a campsite. All guests are invited to use the restaurant and bar and enjoy our evening traditional dance performances.

A generous portion of your activity and accommodation fees go directly to community development, conservation, and educational projects.

9. Agro Walking Tour

The stunning Kichwamba Escarpment forms the eastern wall of the Western Rift Valley.

This 2-3 hour trail begins in rural Katara Village with a hike through the farms of the escarpment in the cool morning or early evening.

Your expert local guide will point out beautiful bird species, exotic and medicinal plants, and sites of cultural importance, as well as explain local farming methods.

Visitors will also learn about the enduring challenge of human-animal conflicts in the area and will tour the beehives that are used to divert destructive elephants away from community crops on the park border. Interested clients will even have the chance to try their hand at honey harvesting.

After enjoying the peace of the endless savannah and the shade of the trees, visitors hike back up the escarpment and can return to their lodges.

10. Katwe Tourism Information Centre Visit

This unusual lake is far too salty to support much wildlife – though since the 16th Century it has ensured the survival of the Katwe villagers, who spend their days under the equatorial sun, walking the network of paths that cross-cross the lake and harvesting salt from its milky waters.

Katwe Salt Lake Tour gives a unique insight into the fascinating yet tough process of salt mining, as well as provides an alternative income for Katwe. See villagers at work on the lake, cross the mud walkways and enter a traditional grass hut.

You will also pass the nearby bird sanctuary lake, home to thousands of birds, including flamingoes from October to May. A bird-watching boardwalk will be ready in 2012.

During Katwe Village Walk, visitors are welcomed to a traditional homestead. Cooking demonstrations introduce the region’s cuisine, and there is also a trip to the local school.

All these Queen Elizabeth National Park activities are done after paying a park entrance fee.

Queen Elizabeth National Park Fees

Below is a table showing Queen Elizabeth National Park entrance fees;

• A day’s entrance ticket is valid for twenty-four hours from the time of entrance.
• Extra time spent in the park after 24 hours will be charged as an extra day.
• Children are persons aged between 5-15 years.
• Persons below 5 years are exempt.
• Entrance fees are independent of package activities such as birding, chimpanzee tracking, game drives, nature walks, etc