Explore Uganda Tours

The spectacular Elephants in Queen Elizabeth National Park Uganda. More information can be found Uganda Game Safaris

Road Distances in Uganda

Main roads are generally good but travel is much slower than on European roads. Secondary roads are of variable standard, often slow and bumpy; some require high four-wheel drive vehicles. Light aircraft can also be chartered to the main destinations. Traffic drives on the left side in Uganda; in Rwanda, Congo and Burundi traffic drives on the right. The vehicle and driver are usually used between morning and 6.00pm. Vehicle and driver should not be used beyond 21.00pm of any day in Uganda, Rwanda, Congo and Burundi and upcountry places, vehicle should not work beyond 19h00. In Congo and Burundi, vehicle and driver should not work beyond 18.00pm

Gorilla Tracking in Uganda

Gorilla tracking and permits To track gorillas each person must have the day’s gorilla permit which needs to be arranged and paid for in advance. Each gorilla park (Bwindi and Mgahinga in Uganda and Parc National des Volcans [PNV] in Rwanda) has different numbers of permits per day (18, 6 and 32 for Bwindi, Mgahinga and PNV respectively). No person is allowed to track more than three times in three consecutive days. Permits are non-refundable except for medical reasons and a medical certificate has to be provided. To protect gorillas from disease and to avoid problems of arduous conditions in the forests young trackers below the age of 15 and those with illnesses are not allowed to track. Flash photography is not allowed and visitors are advised to use still cameras, at a distance of at least 5 metres away from the animals. Professional filming requires extra fees to be paid. Tracking through the thick jungle, traversing canopies of thick undergrowth can be tough, arduous and wet – the tracking can last from as little as 45 minutes to as much as 9 hours. Trackers therefore need to be well equipped with food and water, strong water-proof clothing and must be fit and healthy. Strong, light clothes could be carried, as well as rain jackets, a torch, sunglasses, a sun hat, gloves to grip vegetation, socks. Use jungle boots, long-sleeved shirt. A walking stick may be needed. Porters can be hired to carry equipment for all trackers (fees range between $5-20 per porter per day). Part of the fees paid to the park authorities goes directly to help local communities around the Protected Area(s).