Top Safari Activities in Queen Elizabeth national park
Top safari activities in Queen Elizabeth national park ; Queen Elizabeth national park is the second largest protected area in Uganda after Murchison falls national park located in western region in four districts namely Kasese, Rubirizi, Kamwenge and Rukungiri. Queen Elizabeth national park covers a total area of 1,978 square kilometers and it’s a home of about 95 mammal species including the famous tree climbing lions in Ishasha sector, elephants, buffaloes, leopards, waterbucks, Uganda kobs, warthogs, hippos, hyenas, primates like chimpanzees, black and white colobus monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, baboons and more than 600 bird species. Queen Elizabeth national park offers a number of interesting safari activities which include,
Top safari activities in Queen Elizabeth national park
Game drive in Queen Elizabeth national park
Game drive is the major activity in Queen Elizabeth national park and it involves exploring the park in a comfortable 4 WD safari vehicle with a professional driver guide. Game drives in Queen Elizabeth park can either be done very early in the morning or in the afternoon following different game tracks. During the game drive in queen Elizabeth national park which is commonly done in Kasenyi plains, tourists will be able to view animals like elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks, warthogs, Uganda kobs, bushbucks, predators like lions, leopards, hyenas among others.
Queen Elizabeth national park also offers night game drives where you will be able to explore the park at night with spotlight torches so as to view nocturnal animals. During the night game drive which is only done in Mweya peninsula, you will be accompanied by an armed park ranger to protect you from any danger and also help you to spot nocturnal animals like lions, leopards, hyenas, civet, genal, serval cats, bush babies, view hippos grazing, some elephants, antelopes among others.
Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park
Boat cruise is the second best done activity in Queen Elizabeth national park and it’s carried out on Kazinga channel a 40 km water body that connects Lake Edward and Lake George. During the boat cruise which takes about 2 to 3 hours, you will be able to view animals like elephants, antelopes, buffaloes among others which will be drinking water along the shores, view large concentrations of hippos in water, Nile crocodiles basking along the banks, view water bird species like cormorants, hornbills, bee-eaters, kingfishers among others.
Chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park
Chimpanzee trekking is an adventurous activity in where you will move on foot into the forest in search of the chimpanzees and once found spend one hour with them in their natural habitat. Chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park is done in Kyambura Gorge also known as the valley of apes in the eastern part of Queen Elizabeth national park. Chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura gorge starts early in the morning with a briefing at the park headquarters about the rules and regulations to follow during trekking. After the briefing you will start trekking in the forest with an experienced park guide. During trekking you will be able to view other primates, birds, mammals and once the chimpanzees are located you will be able to spend one hour with them in their habitat which gives you a chance to learn more about their behaviors, watch them feed, hunt, fight, play, take photos and record videos to show people back home.
Bird watching in Queen Elizabeth national park
Queen Elizabeth national park is one of the top birding destinations in Uganda in that it harbors more than 600 bird species including migratory birds and water birds. There are different birding areas in Queen Elizabeth national park such as Kasenyi area, Kazinga channel, Maramagambo forest, Mweya peninsula, Ishasha sector, Lake Kikorongo, Katwe area, Katunguru bridge area among others. During bird watching you will be accompanied by a bird guide who will help you to spot different bird species like swamp flycatcher, palm nut vulture, Pel’s fishing owl, collared pratincole, African skimmer, Caspian plover, African finfoot, palm nut vulture, broad billed roller, great blue turaco, papyrus gonolek, yellow throated cuckoo, white winged tern, rufous bellied heron, yellow bellied wattle eye, red chested sunbird, pink backed pelican, western banded snake eagle, white backed night heron, Heuglins gull, common sand martin, grey winged robin chat, black bee-eater, Ayres’s hawk eagle among others.
Nature walks/hiking in Queen Elizabeth national park
Nature walk in Queen Elizabeth national park is an exciting activity where you will be able to explore the park on foot accompanied by an armed park ranger to protect you from any danger and an experienced park guide who is well conversant with different trails to follow. Nature walks in Queen Elizabeth national park are done in Maramagambo forest, Mweya peninsular, Lake Nyamasingiri, around Ishasha River, Kyambura Gorge among others. During the guided nature walk you will be able to get up-close and personal with different wildlife species including primates like chimpanzees, black and white colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, view variety of bird species, colorful butterflies, enjoy the cool breeze, listen to sweet sounds of bird species among others.
Best time to visit Queen Elizabeth national park
Queen Elizabeth national park can be visited anytime throughout the year though the best time is during the dry season which is also known as the peak season in the months of June to September and December to February. During the dry season there is little or less rainfall in the national park therefore access roads and hiking trails will be dry and passable and vegetation will be thin which helps you to enjoy clear views different wildlife species.
Queen Elizabeth national park can also be visited in the wet season also known as the low season in the months of March to May and November because that’s the best time for bird watching where bird lovers will get an opportunity to view colorful and migratory bird species.
How to get to Queen Elizabeth national park
Queen Elizabeth national park is located in western part of Uganda and can be accessed by both road and air transport means.
Road transport, when using road transport means to access the park you will drive from Entebbe/ Kampala via Masaka, Mbarara or Mubende, Fort Portal to the park headquarters which takes about 6 to 7 hours’ drive in a 4 WD safari vehicle.
Queen Elizabeth national park can also be accessed from Bwindi impenetrable national park through Ishasha sector which takes about 4 to 5 hours’ drive.
Air transport, when using air transport means you will book charter or scheduled domestic flights from Entebbe international airport or Kajjansi airfield to Mweya or Kasese airstrips and then connect to the park headquarters by road. Air transport is fast and domestic flights can be booked by your tour operator.
Where to stay in Queen Elizabeth national park
There are a wide range of accommodation facilities in Queen Elizabeth national park where you can stay during your safari. The accommodations are categorized into three types that is budget, midrange and luxury including Ishasha Jungle lodge, Kasenyi Safari Camp, Aramaga Rift Valley lodge, Mweya Safari lodge, Elephant Plains lodge, Pumba Safari Cottages, Ishasha Wilderness Camp, Enganzi lodge, Parkview Safari lodge, Simba Safari Camp, Elephant hab lodge, Queen Elizabeth Bush lodge, Queen Elizabeth Safari Camp, Kyambura Tented Camp, Kyambura Gorge lodge, Lake Chibwera Camp, King Fisher Kichwamba, Katara Lodge, Ishasha Tented Camp, Ihamba Safari lodge, Ishasha Jungle lodge, Ishasha Ntungwe River Camp, Kitandara Hippo Hill Lodge among others.
For more information about top safari activities in Queen Elizabeth national park do not hesitate to contact us at Achieve Global Safaris or visit our website for affordable safari packages in Queen Elizabeth national park.
