Travel

Kabarole is a beautiful place that you can’t miss visiting while on your Uganda tour exploring the beautiful sights in Western Uganda. One gets a bird’s eye view of the area when standing at the bar of the Bela Vista Lodge.

The breath-taking Crater Lakes below reflects the green hills that frame the horizon perfectly. Butterflies fleeting about compliment the nimble birds that hop here and soar there.

It is possible to see the ranges of Uganda’s tallest mountain, the snow-capped Rwenzori especially at sunrise. Below the cliff, residents are seen chasing winged termites which are a seasonal delicacy which are rich in iron, calcium and amino acids which do the body so much good.

The place is endowed with a cool climate and attractions ranging from primate tracking and sightseeing of hot springs, nature walks and bird watching. Many travelers have found the people of Toro Kingdom and the place irresistible. The people are famously hospitable and charming, not to mention good looking.

The landscape is an endless vista of lovely hills, some of them with cool crater lakes nestled in their valleys. Weekends are busy with tourists destined for Queen Elizabeth National Park, travelers going to Kasese or back to Kampala.

The area makes a perfect location for honeymoons and retreats. It is no wonder that many establishments have been set up around here. The four-hour trip from Kampala to Nyamitaza crater is testimony to how nature’s architecture can be complicated and superb.

Road tripping with 4×4 Car Hire Uganda through Kenya and Uganda with Land Cruiser rooftop tent car. Kenya and Uganda are a perfect safari combination as you witness the annual migration of zebra, wildebeest and gazelle in Kenya before hopping over to Uganda to trek through the beautiful thick jungle to see the world’s largest primate in action.

From Nairobi to the Masai Mara and on to Lake Bunyonyi and Bwindi National Park, tick off those bucket list wishes with a combined safari of Kenya and Uganda – our exciting range of tours are listed below.

Kenya was the first country to embrace the Western tourist trade, and it shows the safari industry here is well-established and well organized, and the competition is hot enough to guarantee good value for money all round. The country has an amazing diversity of habitats from the semi-desert of the north to the volcanic highlands in the centre and the wide-open plans of the south.

There are some world-class national parks within easy reach of Nairobi, the capital, and Mombasa, the centre of beach holidays, so if you don’t have much longer than a week to spare Kenya’s good infrastructure and roads make the country a top option with a 4×4 car.

This is one of the ideal safaris for nature and wildlife lovers in search of the big cats and silverback. In Uganda, the road tripping takes you in search of our cousins the mountain gorillas and relaxes at Lake Bunyonyi.

To complete this itinerary in three weeks, you will need your own wheels preferably a 4WD with a local driver. Fly into Nairobi, getting an introduction to the East African safari by searching for rhinos in Nairobi National Park, then hit the road out west to the peerless Masai Mara National Reserve for at least three days, or even more if you base yourself in one of the nearby conservancies.

The highlight of the Mara is no doubt the annual wildebeest migration, when millions of these beasts plus zebra and Thomson’s gazelle stray north from the Serengeti in neighboring Tanzania in search of lush grass on the savannah plains. Giraffe, Lion, Cheetah, Elephant Elephant, and a multitude of hooved herbivores also inhabit the reserve. A game drive through the Mara on day 3 gives us the opportunity to spot the Big Five. During our stay we can also opt to visit a local Masai tribe.

Gaze in awe at the eye-catching scenery of the Great Rift Valley, home to incredible landscapes, shimmering lakes and wonderful wildlife. Explore the bio- diverse Lake Nakuru National Park, which is home to large population of both black and white rhinos. The Equator Crossing – stop for a “one foot in each hemisphere” photo opportunity

After crossing into Uganda, set aside a few days to make the most of Jinja, East Africa’s adrenaline-sports capital and home to the source of the Nile. Traversing to Jinja for a selection of adventure activities including white water rafting at the source of the White Nile, quad biking is one of the thrilling experiences one can ever do when in Uganda. Spend the afternoon relaxing on the banks of the river, or ticking off the wide variety of water birds in this area.

Tracking west, explore the rain-forests of Kibale Forest National Park, with 13 primate species and some of East Africa’s best chimpanzee tracking; two days is a minimum here. The highlight of a trip to Kibale Forest is of course to spend some time observing the wonderfully entertaining chimpanzees.

From here it’s a short hop to the mist-shrouded Rwenzori Mountains National Park, a soaring range rich in unusual wildlife and equally wonderful for its hiking trails that take you up into the clouds. The Rwenzori is not volcanic like East Africa’s other major mountains but is a block of rock up faulted through the floor of the Western Rift Valley.

Away to the south, Queen Elizabeth National Park has extraordinarily rich bird-life and tree-climbing lions; take a boat trip on the Kazinga Channel. This Kenya Uganda Tour trip passes through possibly the highest concentration of hippos and offers an excellent opportunity for photography, bird watching and game viewing. The prolific bird life is colorful, with well over 600 resident species.

At journey’s end, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a wonderful place to involve your-self one last time in the African wilderness. It’s also one of the best places in the world to see mountain gorillas, as well as 350 bird species, African golden cats and 10 other species of primates. Ready with our picnic lunch, we are transferred to a ranger’s station where the trek starts. Your rangers will lead you through the cultivated lands and then into the dense rain forest and on to a gorilla family. Trekking can take anywhere from 2 to 8 hours and it can be quite strenuous walking up and down muddy terrain.

To ensure the gorillas do not get too used to the presence of humans and because they share many of DNA, and therefore able to catch our diseases5nn, the maximum time permitted to spend with them is 1 hour. You will have plenty of time to watch their activity and to take photographs. The rangers will be able to provide you with a background to the family you are visiting. Once your hour is up, you trek back out of the rain forest to your meeting point where you will be transferred back to the Lake Bunyonyi campsite.

Lake Bunyonyi – relax on the shore of the deepest crater lake in Africa and home to a large and varied number of beautiful birds, which is the base from which the optional Gorilla trek takes place.

The car was also great for game driving because it was quiet for getting close to wildlife, and it had a sunroof so you can pop up and get a better view! I recommend 4×4 Car Hire Uganda because they check the car with you before you take it and keep in touch all throughout your movements. I do recommend these guys for car renting/services for all while in Uganda and Kenya.

Fort Portal (Kabarole) is known as the Tourism City of Uganda. Located in the Western Region, the town is the perfect base to have the best of both worlds. Or actually, the best of three worlds. In close proximity you can discover the rain forest with the Kibale Forest National Park being right at our door step; you can hike in dizzying heights in the Rwenzori mountains, and if you don’t mind driving a short distance you can experience the once in a lifetime Uganda safari you have been dreaming of.

Take a tour around town and look for birds. Even in the buzzing town centre you will already see some species that you won’t know from home. You can decide whether you are a proper birder who would like to participate in a tour with a trained guide, or whether you just came to Uganda to see all the animals depicted in The Lion King. In the latter case it will be enough to keep your eyes open while driving on a Boda through town and you will already be able to tick some birds of your list.

Visit all the crater Lakes

Well, that might take you a bit longer than a week, as Fort Portal is surrounded by over 50 crater lakes, some of which are hard to reach. However, if you feel active you can walk a trail of 18 km on which you can see at least 5 crater lakes, volcanoes and waterfalls or you can take a Boda or a driver and visit the Kasenda Crater Lakes. There you can swim in Lake Nkuruba and hike up a small hill to the Top of the World viewpoint from where you have the perfect view over crater lakes and the Rwenzori mountains.

Hike in the Rwenzori

After spending some days looking at the mountain range in the background of Fort Portal you might feel the urge to actually hike them. This will be the perfect opportunity to meet local communities and learn how they make their living. Being greeted by smiling children who are happy to see visitors in their villages will make the climb much easier. You can either hike up the hill for one day or, if you feel like an adventure, stay for up to a week in the so-called Mountains of the Moon.

Look for our closest relatives

Just outside of town, the famous Kibale Forest National Park has its roots. Go on a short walk through the deep green forest and then see for yourself, the primates are having a blast in the bushes. See how Chimpanzees live their family lives and that the babies are driving their mothers crazy just as well as ours. Spend up to a whole day with the chimps and see what you can learn from them.

Look for forest elephants on a nature walk

Granted the chances to actually see a forest elephant in Kihingami swamp are very slim, and that should be absolutely fine. Forest elephants are not used to humans and go into full attack mode if you cross their path, and yet one cannot stop wishing to find them anyway.

However, on your nature walk through the wetlands you will be able to see several monkey species. For birders, the swamp can offer you over 300 different species of birds. On top of that the income generated by visitors will be used to support communities and local schools.

Finally see wildlife in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Prepare yourself for an early start when you drive accompanied by the Ugandan sunrise towards Queen Elizabeth National Park. Have your breakfast on the way so that a hungry lion won’t steal it from you, and off you go on your first game drive. Since awing at African wildlife surely will make you hungry again, you will spend your lunch on the shores of the Kazinga Channel.

You can decide whether you would like to go on a boat ride or immediately do another game drive. If you think that one day with elephants can’t ever be enough, you can even stay for one or two more days in the park, trailing deeper and looking for rare tree climbing lions.