Travel Advice for Uganda trip in March 2024
Jan 10th, 2024, 10:54 PM
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Travel Advice for Uganda trip in March 2024
Hello wanderlust people, I'm Sanjeev Mansotra, and I want travel Advice for my Uganda trip in March 2024. Which type of clothes should I take in March? Which places should I visit there? I want to see famous wildlife there, please suggest some national parks or sanctuaries in Uganda.
Jan 15th, 2024, 01:08 PM
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Hi Sanjeevmansotra,
March in Uganda is technically their wet season, so I would recommend a good rain jacket and waterproof or water-resistant pants. For treks, you’ll want sturdy waterproof hiking boots as well as gaiters and gardening gloves – they help keep your hands safe from stinging nettles and other plants with thorns on treks. Temps are comfortable, being it’s an equatorial climate you can expect 70-80’s but can be cooler near Bwindi and other areas that are higher in elevation. I also think a hat is another must bring item, to keep rain out of your face. There are many places of interest in Uganda, a few that I would recommend you add to your list would be Kibale Forest National Park for trekking chimpanzees. Queen Elizabeth National Park is great for safari, you can see lions, leopards, and other species. Then for gorillas you’ll want to go to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. There are 4 different sectors that you can trek from, I would say the Buhoma sector is the most popular as it offers the most choices in accommodations. There are many other National Parks in Uganda, so a lot depends on what you are interested in seeing. Uganda is known for the primate experience as well as birding, butterflies, and gorgeous landscapes. There are 31 butterfly species that are endemic to the country. It’s a beautiful country!
March in Uganda is technically their wet season, so I would recommend a good rain jacket and waterproof or water-resistant pants. For treks, you’ll want sturdy waterproof hiking boots as well as gaiters and gardening gloves – they help keep your hands safe from stinging nettles and other plants with thorns on treks. Temps are comfortable, being it’s an equatorial climate you can expect 70-80’s but can be cooler near Bwindi and other areas that are higher in elevation. I also think a hat is another must bring item, to keep rain out of your face. There are many places of interest in Uganda, a few that I would recommend you add to your list would be Kibale Forest National Park for trekking chimpanzees. Queen Elizabeth National Park is great for safari, you can see lions, leopards, and other species. Then for gorillas you’ll want to go to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. There are 4 different sectors that you can trek from, I would say the Buhoma sector is the most popular as it offers the most choices in accommodations. There are many other National Parks in Uganda, so a lot depends on what you are interested in seeing. Uganda is known for the primate experience as well as birding, butterflies, and gorgeous landscapes. There are 31 butterfly species that are endemic to the country. It’s a beautiful country!
Last edited by Moderator1; Feb 5th, 2024 at 03:19 PM. Reason: removed commercial info.
Jan 15th, 2024, 08:36 PM
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That's an amazing suggestion. Should I postpone my plan if the weather is not good there? Which month is best to travel to Uganda?
I will definitely visit the national parks you suggested. Thank you
I will definitely visit the national parks you suggested. Thank you
Feb 5th, 2024, 03:16 PM
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Hi Sanjeev,
The ideal time to visit Uganda depends on what you want to do and where you want to go. Typically, the dry seasons from June to August and December to February are recommended for gorilla trekking and wildlife watching in places like Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park.
If you'd love to trek gorillas, you'll need to consider the fact that gorilla trekking permits are limited and often sell out months in advance, especially during peak seasons (June - August). It's therefore advisable to book your permits as early as possible to secure your spot.
The ideal time to visit Uganda depends on what you want to do and where you want to go. Typically, the dry seasons from June to August and December to February are recommended for gorilla trekking and wildlife watching in places like Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park.
If you'd love to trek gorillas, you'll need to consider the fact that gorilla trekking permits are limited and often sell out months in advance, especially during peak seasons (June - August). It's therefore advisable to book your permits as early as possible to secure your spot.
Last edited by Moderator1; Feb 5th, 2024 at 03:18 PM. Reason: removed commercial content
Feb 8th, 2024, 08:47 PM
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Hi Sanjeev,
The ideal time to visit Uganda depends on what you want to do and where you want to go. Typically, the dry seasons from June to August and December to February are recommended for gorilla trekking and wildlife watching in places like Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park.
If you'd love to trek gorillas, you'll need to consider the fact that gorilla trekking permits are limited and often sell out months in advance, especially during peak seasons (June - August). It's therefore advisable to book your permits as early as possible to secure your spot.
The ideal time to visit Uganda depends on what you want to do and where you want to go. Typically, the dry seasons from June to August and December to February are recommended for gorilla trekking and wildlife watching in places like Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park.
If you'd love to trek gorillas, you'll need to consider the fact that gorilla trekking permits are limited and often sell out months in advance, especially during peak seasons (June - August). It's therefore advisable to book your permits as early as possible to secure your spot.
Feb 8th, 2024, 09:29 PM
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Gorilla permits for next month can be still booked successfully as it's a low season. Permits will now cost $800 from $700 last year, starting July, so it's cheaper to book a permit now than later. And, oh yes, Murchison Falls National park should not be missed on your trip. Besides being home to the world's most powerful waterfalls, it's the country's largest game reserve and home to over 76 mammal species, including the largest population of Rothschild's giraffes. It's also known for large herds of the big 5 animals (elephants, buffaloes, leopards, rhinos, lions).
Last edited by timothyian0031; Feb 8th, 2024 at 09:33 PM.
Feb 12th, 2024, 09:25 PM
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Gorilla permits for next month can be still booked successfully as it's a low season. Permits will now cost $800 from $700 last year, starting July, so it's cheaper to book a permit now than later. And, oh yes, Murchison Falls National park should not be missed on your trip. Besides being home to the world's most powerful waterfalls, it's the country's largest game reserve and home to over 76 mammal species, including the largest population of Rothschild's giraffes. It's also known for large herds of the big 5 animals (elephants, buffaloes, leopards, rhinos, lions).
Feb 12th, 2024, 11:19 PM
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Feb 26th, 2024, 08:03 PM
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Guys wish me luck, all set for my trip in the coming month. I'm so excited for this vacation. By the way thanks to all for helping me a lot in my packing and planning my itinerary. Any more suggestions related to food to explore... or something else you can mention here so that I can try?
Mar 6th, 2024, 08:27 AM
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Uganda recommendations
Hi Sanjeevmansotra,
If you haven't already visited Uganda, I hope this will be of help to you. I've visited Uganda twice (in 2020 and in Jan/Feb this year). It is truly a magical place. We worked with Kibo Slopes Safaris in 2024 and with Kabiza Wilderness Safaris in 2020. I would not try to do a self-guided trip in Uganda. We felt very safe with our tour company and driver on both trips. I highly recommend travel in January. The temperatures are lovely 70-80s and mostly dry. I would recommend against travel in the wet season if you want to see chimps (as they tend to stick to the tree tops when it rains and you will be really disappointed in how little you see).
We visit Kibale National Park to do chimp trekking twice (in 2020 and 2024) and I have done gorilla trekking in both Bwindi (in 2024) and in Mgahinga National Park (in 2020). We also visited Queen Elizabeth Park in 2020 for a quick (single day) game drive. I offer some info below on each of these places.
Kibale has the largest concentration of chimpanzees in Uganda, perhaps in East Africa. I believe the permits were $150 per person. You will have a ranger/guide (employed by the park) and will be accompanied by at least one armed rangers (who are there for your protection from both animals and any human threats). You will trek through what is really quite gradual terrain but it can be very muddy, even in the dry season. You will want long, light weight pants (tucked into your hiking socks), hiking shoes, and long sleeves. While it can be warm, the coverag is important given the plant life and insects (especially biting insects). Once your guide locates a chimp or chimp family, you will have an hour with them. We followed chimps, quite literally, through the forest and swamp. We got wonderful photos and a chance to spend time with a 12 year old male and a 24 year old male. I have also done chimp trekking in the Mahale Mountains of Tanzania (which is mountainous and provided an opportunity for trekking over multiple days). Unless you get more than one day's permit, you will have just one day to see chimps in Kibale and it can be hit or miss, The weather is a major factor so stack the deck in your favor by visiting during the dry season. While in the Kibale area, we stayed at the Isunga Lodge. I highly recommend it. It is beautiful. The staff are wonderful and the food is fabulous. You will have your own private cottage.
Mgahinga (which is in the Virunga Mountains bordering Rwanda and DRC) is not as large as Bwindi and the park is not quite a developed, but it was a wonderful experience. While there are fewer habituated gorillas in Mgahinga than in Bwindi, we were able to spend time some close up and quality time with the Nyakagezi gorilla family. We are avid hikers so didn't find the hiking difficult but it was muddy (even in the dry season) and the altitude can be a challenge if you are not used to it. The guides allowed for breaks as needed so I wouldn't worry about the hiking unless you have difficulty walking. You will have a ranger/guide and one or more armed rangers with you (again, to protect you primarily from elephants or buffalo, but also any possible human threat). In 2020, the permits were $600 per person. We were in the park for a few hours total and got an hour with the gorillas. The experience is life changing. So although it doesn't sound like a lot of time for the money, it is the best money I ever spent. While in the area, we stayed at the Lake Muhele Safari Lodge, which was lovely and the food was excellent. All of the cottages look out over a lake, which is beautiful.
Bwindi is another option for gorilla trekking. It is home to more habituated families of gorillas and the park infrastructure (e.g., a very nice visitor center) is more developed than Mgahinga. We paid $750 per person in 2024, I believe...again, the best money ever spent. We hiked some pretty steep terrain but nothing a regular hiker couldn't manage. The guides are very accommodating and take breaks as needed. We got an hour with a family of eight gorillas, including a baby and a couple of very young juveniles. We stayed at the Engagi Lodge, which is very nice and convenient to the park. The cottages are lovely and the food and staff we great.
I would never discourage you from visiting Mgahinga. If that is where you are able to get permits, it will be worth it. However, I will say that Bwindi offers an opportunity to see village life and how conservation has benefited a local community in a way that is different than in Mgahinga. We were able to walk from the park back to uour lodge and visit local vendors, a women's group, a Batwa group, etc. We walked on our own, without our guide, and felt very safe doing so. Tourism has contributed to schools and social organizations in the region (were were in the Buhoma sector). I offer that, because it was an interesting difference between the two parks. Both, however, are amazing. Gorilla trekking is a life changing experience so don't miss it, if you are able to do it.
I believe you must go through a tour operator to get park permits and it is important to get them several months in advance. Very few people are able to enter the parks each day so booking ahead is important. We booked our trips at least six months in advance to ensure we got the dates we wanted.
We also visited Queen Elizabeth National Park in 2020 and drove through the area in 2024 on our way from Kibale to Bwindi. If you have not done safari elsewhere in East Africa (e.g., Tanzania or Kenya), it is a nice option for seeing wild game including elephants, lions, monkeys, baboons, gazelle, impala, zebra, hippos, and dozens and dozens of bird species. Conservation and Tourism as extremeley important in the Ishasha Sector, where the park is located. We visited women's collective affiliated with Save Wildlife Uganda where women make goods for sale (lovely woven and hand sewn items). They earn a bit of money directly and the rest goes to support education and other services in the community. If you get a chance to support local organizations like this while in Uganda, please do so. Save Wildlife Uganda has done tremendous work help local communities live in harmony with wildlife.
On our most recent trip, we visited the Ngamba Island Chimp Sanctuary. The island is in Lake Victoria (off Entebbe) and is devoted to providing a home to 53 chimpanzees. I really wasn't sure how I was going to feel about seeing the chimps in a sanctuary, especially after seeing them in the wild in Kibale. But I have to say that we enjoyed this excursion tremendously. The island is only accessible by boat (about an hour long ride). The vast majority of the island is a jungle home to the chimps who will live our their lives in safety. While you view the chimps from behind a fence, we saw them VERY up close at feeding time and got fabulous photos from a viewing deck that is located above the fence line. What we appreciated so much about Ngamba was that the guides know these chimps so well. And while the stories are very entertaining, we learned so much about how very smart and adaptive (and like humans) chimps are. While you may see a few chimps in the wild in Kibale, Ngamba allows you to see and learn about chimps in a different way. It was a lovely "add on" to our trip and I'm really glad we did it.
There are many, many other parks in Uganda. We would love to have been able to visit Murchinson Falls. My hope is that we'll be able to return to Uganda again some day to visit the park.
I'm happy to answer any questions you may have if I am able. I'll include some photos for you as well.
Ngamba Chimp
Ngamba Chimp
Ngamba Chimp
Kibale chimp
Kibale chimp
Kibale chimp
Bwindi gorilla
Bwindi gorilla
Bwindi gorilla
If you haven't already visited Uganda, I hope this will be of help to you. I've visited Uganda twice (in 2020 and in Jan/Feb this year). It is truly a magical place. We worked with Kibo Slopes Safaris in 2024 and with Kabiza Wilderness Safaris in 2020. I would not try to do a self-guided trip in Uganda. We felt very safe with our tour company and driver on both trips. I highly recommend travel in January. The temperatures are lovely 70-80s and mostly dry. I would recommend against travel in the wet season if you want to see chimps (as they tend to stick to the tree tops when it rains and you will be really disappointed in how little you see).
We visit Kibale National Park to do chimp trekking twice (in 2020 and 2024) and I have done gorilla trekking in both Bwindi (in 2024) and in Mgahinga National Park (in 2020). We also visited Queen Elizabeth Park in 2020 for a quick (single day) game drive. I offer some info below on each of these places.
Kibale has the largest concentration of chimpanzees in Uganda, perhaps in East Africa. I believe the permits were $150 per person. You will have a ranger/guide (employed by the park) and will be accompanied by at least one armed rangers (who are there for your protection from both animals and any human threats). You will trek through what is really quite gradual terrain but it can be very muddy, even in the dry season. You will want long, light weight pants (tucked into your hiking socks), hiking shoes, and long sleeves. While it can be warm, the coverag is important given the plant life and insects (especially biting insects). Once your guide locates a chimp or chimp family, you will have an hour with them. We followed chimps, quite literally, through the forest and swamp. We got wonderful photos and a chance to spend time with a 12 year old male and a 24 year old male. I have also done chimp trekking in the Mahale Mountains of Tanzania (which is mountainous and provided an opportunity for trekking over multiple days). Unless you get more than one day's permit, you will have just one day to see chimps in Kibale and it can be hit or miss, The weather is a major factor so stack the deck in your favor by visiting during the dry season. While in the Kibale area, we stayed at the Isunga Lodge. I highly recommend it. It is beautiful. The staff are wonderful and the food is fabulous. You will have your own private cottage.
Mgahinga (which is in the Virunga Mountains bordering Rwanda and DRC) is not as large as Bwindi and the park is not quite a developed, but it was a wonderful experience. While there are fewer habituated gorillas in Mgahinga than in Bwindi, we were able to spend time some close up and quality time with the Nyakagezi gorilla family. We are avid hikers so didn't find the hiking difficult but it was muddy (even in the dry season) and the altitude can be a challenge if you are not used to it. The guides allowed for breaks as needed so I wouldn't worry about the hiking unless you have difficulty walking. You will have a ranger/guide and one or more armed rangers with you (again, to protect you primarily from elephants or buffalo, but also any possible human threat). In 2020, the permits were $600 per person. We were in the park for a few hours total and got an hour with the gorillas. The experience is life changing. So although it doesn't sound like a lot of time for the money, it is the best money I ever spent. While in the area, we stayed at the Lake Muhele Safari Lodge, which was lovely and the food was excellent. All of the cottages look out over a lake, which is beautiful.
Bwindi is another option for gorilla trekking. It is home to more habituated families of gorillas and the park infrastructure (e.g., a very nice visitor center) is more developed than Mgahinga. We paid $750 per person in 2024, I believe...again, the best money ever spent. We hiked some pretty steep terrain but nothing a regular hiker couldn't manage. The guides are very accommodating and take breaks as needed. We got an hour with a family of eight gorillas, including a baby and a couple of very young juveniles. We stayed at the Engagi Lodge, which is very nice and convenient to the park. The cottages are lovely and the food and staff we great.
I would never discourage you from visiting Mgahinga. If that is where you are able to get permits, it will be worth it. However, I will say that Bwindi offers an opportunity to see village life and how conservation has benefited a local community in a way that is different than in Mgahinga. We were able to walk from the park back to uour lodge and visit local vendors, a women's group, a Batwa group, etc. We walked on our own, without our guide, and felt very safe doing so. Tourism has contributed to schools and social organizations in the region (were were in the Buhoma sector). I offer that, because it was an interesting difference between the two parks. Both, however, are amazing. Gorilla trekking is a life changing experience so don't miss it, if you are able to do it.
I believe you must go through a tour operator to get park permits and it is important to get them several months in advance. Very few people are able to enter the parks each day so booking ahead is important. We booked our trips at least six months in advance to ensure we got the dates we wanted.
We also visited Queen Elizabeth National Park in 2020 and drove through the area in 2024 on our way from Kibale to Bwindi. If you have not done safari elsewhere in East Africa (e.g., Tanzania or Kenya), it is a nice option for seeing wild game including elephants, lions, monkeys, baboons, gazelle, impala, zebra, hippos, and dozens and dozens of bird species. Conservation and Tourism as extremeley important in the Ishasha Sector, where the park is located. We visited women's collective affiliated with Save Wildlife Uganda where women make goods for sale (lovely woven and hand sewn items). They earn a bit of money directly and the rest goes to support education and other services in the community. If you get a chance to support local organizations like this while in Uganda, please do so. Save Wildlife Uganda has done tremendous work help local communities live in harmony with wildlife.
On our most recent trip, we visited the Ngamba Island Chimp Sanctuary. The island is in Lake Victoria (off Entebbe) and is devoted to providing a home to 53 chimpanzees. I really wasn't sure how I was going to feel about seeing the chimps in a sanctuary, especially after seeing them in the wild in Kibale. But I have to say that we enjoyed this excursion tremendously. The island is only accessible by boat (about an hour long ride). The vast majority of the island is a jungle home to the chimps who will live our their lives in safety. While you view the chimps from behind a fence, we saw them VERY up close at feeding time and got fabulous photos from a viewing deck that is located above the fence line. What we appreciated so much about Ngamba was that the guides know these chimps so well. And while the stories are very entertaining, we learned so much about how very smart and adaptive (and like humans) chimps are. While you may see a few chimps in the wild in Kibale, Ngamba allows you to see and learn about chimps in a different way. It was a lovely "add on" to our trip and I'm really glad we did it.
There are many, many other parks in Uganda. We would love to have been able to visit Murchinson Falls. My hope is that we'll be able to return to Uganda again some day to visit the park.
I'm happy to answer any questions you may have if I am able. I'll include some photos for you as well.
Ngamba Chimp
Ngamba Chimp
Ngamba Chimp
Kibale chimp
Kibale chimp
Kibale chimp
Bwindi gorilla
Bwindi gorilla
Bwindi gorilla
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