Uganda travel tips
Uganda travel tips: Uganda is undeniably one of the most fascinating tourist destination on earth, Uganda the pearl of Africa is gifted with many breathtaking attractions such as the endangered mountain gorillas situated in Bwindi impenetrable national park and mgahinga national park, wildlife species like lions, elephants, leopards, Uganda kob, giraffe, chimpanzees and many more protected in areas like kibale national park, Murchison falls national park, kidepo national park and many more.
As a prominent tourist destination Uganda offers a wide entertaining tourist activities which can be enjoyed while in Uganda on a safari, these activities include mountain gorilla trekking, game drives, boat cruise, hiking, chimpanzee tracking, cultural tours and many more.
As a tourist with plans of visiting Uganda the pearl of Africa and experience its wonders there is a couple of travel tips you must know before confirming your safari to Uganda, these tips are intended for your safety and comfort while on your safari. The following are the travels to know when travelling to Uganda.
Do you have a visa to travel to Uganda?
Like in most countries in the world and tourist destination you need to be in possession of a valid visa to allow enter Uganda for a safari, there are many kinds of visa offered in Uganda depending on your intention of travelling to Uganda. In this case you need a tourism visa to travel to Uganda, as a tourism you have to options of applying for a visa that is either through your travel agent or through online. An e-visa is applied for on http://www.visas.immigration.go.ug/ the only authentic Visa Application portal for Uganda visa and for a visa applied for through your travel agent you receive it upon your arrival.
There are two types of tourist visas offered in Uganda that is single entry visa and east African community single tourist visa, a single entry visa allows you entry to Ugandan. For tourists on a safari to Rwanda, Kenya, Burundi and East African community single tourist visa is the best option for you.
A single entry tourist visa costs $50 and East African community single tourist visa costs $100.
Vaccinations
When you are travelling to Uganda for a safari you need to take yellow fever vaccination shots and upon your arrival you have to present an up to date yellow fever vaccination certificate, when applying for a visa it cannot be granted to you if you do not have a yellow fever vaccination certificate. You can also take vaccinations of hepatitis A, malaria, typhoid, hepatitis B and Rabies.
Safety
Safety is always a top worry for most of the tourists intending to travel to Uganda, Uganda is not only considered safe it is very much safe for its citizens and visitors. Uganda is peaceful and very secure thanks to numerous security organizations which work so hard to keep security in the country, while in the park for a safari there is also Uganda wildlife authority officials who escort you while on a safari.
The best time to visit Uganda for a safari
Travelling to Uganda for a safari can be done throughout the year but the best time to travel to Uganda for a safari is during the dry periods where little rainfall is received, these dry periods are experienced in the periods of June to August and December to February. The essence of travelling to Uganda in dry periods is that the roads leading to protected areas and trails in the national park are relatively passable because they are less muddy and dry, also the animals are easy to be spotted as the grass is short. Travelling in wet seasons of March, April and May is possible but very challenging as most of the trails are muddy and possibly impassible, in wet season the animals are hard to be spotted as the vegetation in the parks are very thick. Uganda is always flooded with tourists and the high season is experienced in the months the months of June to September.
Currency
In Uganda the name of currency used is Uganda shillings, most travel agents and national parks accept Euros, pounds and American dollars. When going for a safari please consult with your travel agent about the suitable kind of currency suitable for your safari, on a safe note Uganda wildlife authority accepts dollars for park entry fees, permits like chimpanzee trekking permit and mountain gorilla trekking permit. Also when you arrival in Uganda it is advisable to change your money into Uganda shillings to avoid being cheated and failure to be offers services such as your small expenditures, boda boda rides and many more.
Tips
Tipping working staff for services offered is a very common thing and at times not tipping them seems like you have not appreciated their services fully, after safari activities like a boat cruise, game drive, nature walk, hiking guides expect a little amount of Money as a tip.
Credit and debit cards
Uganda is a technology advanced country which is exposed to all kinds of e-banking and online payments, because of this credit cards and debit are very much accepted in Uganda. Most travels are not fun of moving with large sums of money thus prefer to move with little cash and credit cards
Foreign exchange rate
When travelling for a Uganda Safari it is best to first know the exchange rate so as to move with adequate amount of money for the trip, when in Uganda there is a number of forex exchange bureaus and banks where you can go and exchange your money from your domination in to a Uganda shillings. When exchanging your money it is very advisable to use forex exchange bureaus because their rates are fair when compared to rates at the airport.
The price, when and where to buy chimpanzee and gorilla trekking permit
Knowing the right time to buy permits for Bwindi forest gorilla trekking and chimpanzee tracking in Uganda is very intriguing and very hard to be certain of mostly when you are not working in tourism industry of Uganda. Both mountain gorilla trekking and chimpanzee tracking are purchased at the office of the Uganda wildlife authority, these permits can be bought through your travel and receive it upon your arrival in Uganda. Mountain gorilla trekking permit in Uganda costs US$ 700 and chimpanzee tracking permit costs US$ 150.
Following the above tips will sure give you the best safe and interesting experience in Uganda the pearl of Africa.
