Best 5 Camping Destinations In Uganda

Uganda, the pearl of Africa, offers a wide range of safaris, from walking safaris to fantastic game drives in the savannah park. The highlight of Uganda safaris is often gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park.

Uganda safaris are further divided into self-drive safaris and guided safaris. In the self-drive safaris, you hire a car from a car rental agency and visit all the places your budget and time allow. In the guided safaris, you have to discuss their options with the tour operator.

One of the most experiential safaris in Uganda is the camping safari. It is available as both a self-guided and a guided safari. In this article, we will focus more on the self-drive camping safaris in Uganda by presenting some of the places that offer the best camping experience.

Jinja

Jinja is a leading camping destination in Uganda, and it offers views of the mighty Nile River. Several campsite options are available, including Mkwanzi Waterfalls, Haven Lodge, Itanda Falls, and Busowoko Waterfalls, among several other options.

There are places in Jinja that are strictly campsites, but if you wish to have your meals covered by the organizer, you might have to consider places like Haven Lodge since they serve all categories of clients.

Queen Elizabeth National Park

The Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park offers some of the best wilderness camping experiences. If you wish to camp in a deserted place ishasha offers that one of the kind experience. However, it is not possible to do wilderness camping without the company of armed game rangers.

You must hire game rangers at the park offices to execute your Ishasha camping experience. There are mainly two popular Uganda Wildlife Authority Ishasha sector campsites just alongside the Ishasha River. Rooftop tent camping is possible in this place, and it is the most recommended because you might be disturbed by hippos at night if you use ground camping.

Murchison Falls National Park

Murchison Falls National Park is known for the thunderous Murchison Falls. Though it is not possible to camp at the falls, Redchill offers a budget camping experience, which is often very congested. Sambiya Lodge offers the non-congested option. But if you intend to go for a similar experience like that offered in Queen Elizabeth National Park, you need to pay for armed game rangers to do wilderness camping.

On top of your camping experience, you can do game drives as well as chimpanzee tracking in Budongo forest. Wild Frontiers also offers an amazing boat experience to the bottom of the Murchison Falls.

Sipi Falls

Sipi Falls is one of the leading hiking destinations in Uganda. The three cascading waterfalls in the Sebeyi land remain one of the must-visit destinations on a Uganda safari. There are quite a number of places in Sipi that allow both ground and rooftop tent camping. Since there are no animals to expect at night, any camping option is fine in this place.

On top of the hiking and camping experience in Sipi, you can also do abseiling at one of the highest waterfalls in Sipi.

Kidepo Valley National Park

Kidepo is among Uganda’s most remote national parks and also among the least visited savannah national parks. Though CNN rated it as the best savannah national park in Uganda, it is still not a very popular destination.

There are several designated campsites in Kidepo. The park also offers a wilderness camping experience similar to Queen Elizabeth National Park and Murchison Falls National Park. The wilderness of Kidepo Valley National Park is one of the most unique, making it a remarkable camping destination in Uganda.

In conclusion, rooftop tent camping in national parks is recommended, while places outside national parks are favorable for both rooftop tent camping and ground camping.