DESTINATION GUIDE // UGANDA
Queen Elizabeth National Park
Tree climbing lions, a channel thick with hippo and crater lakes beneath the Rwenzori range.
1,978 km2
PARK AREA
95
MAMMAL SPECIES
600+
BIRD SPECIES
Ishasha
TREE LIONS
400 km
FROM KAMPALA
GENERAL OVERVIEW
About Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth is Uganda’s most visited savannah park, covering 1,978 square kilometres between Lake Edward and Lake George in the west, with the Rwenzori foothills on one side and the Congo border on the other. It was gazetted in 1952 and renamed two years later after a royal visit.
The park sits inside a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and holds the highest bird count of any protected area in Uganda, over 600 species. It also contains ninety five mammal species across an unusual mix of habitats: open savannah, crater fields, papyrus swamp, riverine forest and the Kyambura Gorge, a sunken forest cut fifteen kilometres into the plain.
Two features define a visit here. The Kazinga Channel, a 32 kilometre natural waterway linking the two lakes, carries one of the densest hippo populations in the world. And the Ishasha sector in the south holds lions that habitually rest in fig trees, a behaviour seen in only a handful of places on the continent.
WILDLIFE
What You Will Actually See
Predators. Lion throughout, with the tree climbing prides concentrated in Ishasha. Leopard are present and seen more often than in most Ugandan parks. Spotted hyena are common. Cheetah do not occur here.
Elephant and buffalo. Both abundant. The elephants here show characteristics of both savannah and forest populations, and the buffalo often carry the reddish coat typical of the forest subspecies.
Plains game. Uganda kob in very large numbers, with a permanent lek near Kasenyi where males display, plus topi in Ishasha, waterbuck, bushbuck and warthog. There are no giraffe, zebra or impala in this park.
Primates. Chimpanzees in the Kyambura Gorge and the Kalinzu Forest, plus black and white colobus, red tailed monkey, olive baboon and vervet.
Water. Enormous hippo pods and Nile crocodile along the Kazinga Channel, with African skimmers, pelicans and kingfishers on the banks.
THINGS TO DO
Activities In The Park
Kazinga Channel boat cruise. The signature activity. Two hours along a waterway lined with hippo, buffalo, elephant coming down to drink and extraordinary birdlife. Afternoon departures give the best light.
Kasenyi plains game drive. The main lion area in the north, worked at dawn around the kob lek.
Ishasha tree climbing lions. A dedicated drive in the southern sector, ideally with a night at an Ishasha camp rather than a day trip. Sightings are frequent but not guaranteed.
Kyambura Gorge chimpanzee tracking. A small, isolated community in a forested gorge. Sighting rates are far lower than Kibale, around 40 per cent, but the gorge itself is worth the walk.
Mweya peninsula and the crater drive. The Katwe explosion craters north of Mweya give the best landscape views in the park.
Experiential tourism. Lion tracking with researchers, mongoose tracking and hippo census work can all be joined for a fee.
Katwe salt works. Traditional salt extraction on the crater lake, worked by hand for six centuries.
WHY VISIT
What Queen Elizabeth Is Known For
The Kazinga Channel is the reason most people come. Two hours on a boat surrounded by hippo, elephant and pelicans is a different kind of game viewing to a vehicle, and it is reliable in a way that predator sightings never are.
The Ishasha lions are the second draw. Lions climbing trees is genuinely uncommon, restricted mostly to here and Lake Manyara in Tanzania, and the fig trees along the Ishasha river give you a fair chance of it.
Then there is the variety. Savannah, gorge forest, crater lakes and papyrus swamp inside one park means the drive between two activities is itself worth doing, and it explains the 600 bird species.
Practically, it also sits exactly between Kibale and Bwindi, which is why nearly every western Uganda itinerary passes through it.
ENTRY FEES
Park Fees And Practicalities
Park entry for foreign non-residents is 40 US dollars per person per day, set by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. Children aged five to fifteen pay a reduced rate and under fives enter free. Tickets are valid for 24 hours from entry, so an overnight stay crossing that mark triggers a second day.
The Kazinga Channel boat cruise is charged separately at around 30 dollars per person on a scheduled launch, with private charters available. Kyambura Gorge chimpanzee tracking is about 50 dollars. Experiential activities such as lion tracking are priced individually.
Vehicle entry fees apply on top for foreign registered vehicles. Everything is itemised in the quote we send you and paid in advance, so nothing is collected at the gate.
BEST TIME TO VISIT
When To Go
June to September and December to February, the dry seasons. Grass is short, animals concentrate at water and tracks in Ishasha stay passable. This is the best game viewing and the busiest period.
March to May, the long rains. The park turns green, migrant birds arrive and rates drop. Ishasha becomes difficult and sometimes impassable, so a tree climbing lion trip in April is a gamble.
October and November, the short rains. Afternoon storms with good mornings, excellent birding and better availability.
The Kazinga Channel cruise runs year round and is unaffected by season, which makes Queen Elizabeth a more weather resistant stop than most.
GETTING THERE
How To Reach The Park
By road from Entebbe or Kampala. Around 400 km to Mweya, six to seven hours on tarmac via Mbarara, or seven to eight via Fort Portal.
From Kibale. Two to three hours south through the crater lake country.
From Bwindi. Three to four hours north via the Ishasha sector, which lets you take in the tree climbing lions on the way through.
By air. Scheduled flights run from Entebbe to Mweya and Kasese airstrips in about an hour.
Ishasha is a two to three hour drive south of Mweya inside the park, so treating the two sectors as one base rarely works. Most itineraries sleep in each.
WHERE TO STAY
Lodges And Camps
Mweya Safari Lodge. On the peninsula above the Kazinga Channel with the best position in the park. The largest property and the most convenient for boat cruises.
Kyambura Gorge Lodge. A converted coffee store on the gorge escarpment, run by Volcanoes Safaris, with a strong community and reforestation programme.
Ishasha Wilderness Camp. Ten tents on the Ntungwe river in the southern sector, the right base for the tree climbing lions.
Elephant Plains and Katara Lodge. Mid range with escarpment views over the Rift Valley.
Bush Lodge and Simba Safari Camp. Well run budget options near the Kazinga Channel.
If the Ishasha lions matter to you, book a night down there. Day trips from Mweya spend five to six hours in the vehicle.
SAFETY AND TRAVEL TIPS
What To Know Before You Go
Hippos. The Kazinga Channel and Mweya peninsula have very high hippo density and animals graze around lodges at night. Do not walk between buildings after dark without an escort.
Tsetse flies. Present in the Maramagambo and Ishasha woodland. Avoid dark blue and black clothing.
Malaria. The park is at low altitude and prophylaxis is necessary. A yellow fever certificate is required for entry to Uganda.
Roads. The Ishasha tracks are black cotton soil and become impassable after heavy rain. A 4×4 is essential in the wet season.
Kyambura expectations. Chimpanzee sightings in the gorge run at roughly 40 per cent. If chimps are important to your trip, do them properly in Kibale.
Fuel and cash. Fill up in Kasese or Mbarara. Card facilities inside the park are limited to the larger lodges.
TOURS WITH US
Safaris With Sola Safari Travels
Queen Elizabeth is the middle of our six day western Uganda loop: chimpanzees in Kibale, two nights here for the Kazinga cruise and the Kasenyi plains, then south through Ishasha to the gorillas in Bwindi. That routing turns the Ishasha sector from a detour into part of the drive.
Boat cruises are booked ahead so you are on an afternoon departure rather than whatever is left, and the whole trip runs in a private 4×4 with one driver guide throughout.
SAFARI PACKAGES
Safaris That Include Queen Elizabeth
Queen Elizabeth sits at the centre of the western circuit, between the chimpanzees and the gorillas. All departures are private.
6 DAYS / 5 NIGHTS
6 Days Gorillas and Chimpanzees Uganda
Gorillas in Bwindi and chimpanzees in Kibale, with Queen Elizabeth in between.
From $2,200 per person
4 DAYS / 3 NIGHTS
4 Days Uganda Gorilla Trek
Mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi, with a night at Lake Mburo on the drive in from Entebbe.
From $1,560 per person
10 DAYS / 9 NIGHTS
10 Days Ultimate East Africa
Amboseli, the Masai Mara, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater at an unhurried pace.
From $2,360 per person
KEY QUESTIONS
Queen Elizabeth Safari, Key Questions
Two hours on a 32 kilometre natural waterway linking Lake Edward and Lake George, past one of the densest hippo populations anywhere, with elephant and buffalo coming down to drink and exceptional birdlife on the banks. Around 30 dollars per person on a scheduled launch. Afternoon departures have the better light.
Often, but not always. The Ishasha prides rest in fig trees through the heat of the day and sightings are frequent in the dry season. They are wild lions with no obligation to be in a tree, so allow a full day or, better, a night at an Ishasha camp.
40 US dollars per person per day for foreign non-residents, with reduced rates for children five to fifteen and free entry under five. Tickets last 24 hours from entry. The boat cruise, chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura and experiential activities are all charged separately.
Only if you are not visiting Kibale. The Kyambura community is small and isolated and sighting rates are around 40 per cent against 90 per cent in Kibale. The gorge itself is a beautiful walk, so many travellers do it for the setting rather than the chimps.
No. Queen Elizabeth has no giraffe, zebra, impala or cheetah. For zebra and impala the nearest park is Lake Mburo, and for giraffe it is Murchison Falls.
Two nights is the working minimum, which gives you a boat cruise and a morning game drive at Kasenyi. Three lets you add a night in Ishasha for the tree climbing lions without spending the day in transit.
EXPLORE MORE
Pair Queen Elizabeth With Other Destinations
The park connects the forest parks in the north with the gorilla sectors in the south. These follow on naturally.
Your Queen Elizabeth Safari Starts Here
Tell us your dates and group size. We will reply within 24 hours with a tailor made proposal and a clear price.
TAILOR MADE SAFARI
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Phone: +254 736 992 608
Email: info@solasafaritravels.com
