Queen Elizabeth National Park
Uganda's most-visited savannah park, and the reason the road to Bwindi can be better than the flight if you have the days.
Where it sits, and why that matters
Queen Elizabeth National Park spreads across western Uganda between Lake Edward and Lake George, beneath the Rwenzori Mountains. Its southern boundary is the Ishasha sector, which is directly on the road south to Bwindi.
That geography is the point. The Entebbe to Bwindi road transfer is six to eight hours and, done in one push, is a lost day. Broken with two nights here, it stops being a transfer and becomes a second wildlife destination.
The Kazinga Channel
A natural channel linking the two lakes, and the park's signature experience. The afternoon boat runs along a shoreline where elephant, buffalo and enormous numbers of hippo come down to drink, with some of the densest waterbird concentrations in Africa alongside them.
It is also, practically, a rest — two hours sitting down between long driving days.
Ishasha's tree-climbing lions
In the southern sector, lions habitually rest in fig trees. Nobody has settled why — the usual explanations are heat, insects, or a better view of the Uganda kob they hunt. It is unusual behaviour seen in only a handful of places in Africa.
Sightings are not guaranteed. The lions are wild and the sector is large. Any operator promising them is overselling.
What else is here
- Kyambura Gorge — a steep forested gorge cut into the savannah, holding a small chimpanzee community. Tracking here is harder and less certain than Kibale, but the setting is remarkable.
- Crater lakes — the Katwe explosion craters north of the channel, a genuinely strange volcanic landscape.
- Big game — elephant, buffalo, Uganda kob, leopard and hyena across the main savannah sectors.
Road or charter to Bwindi
If you have ten days or more, the road through Queen Elizabeth is the better trip — you cross the Ugandan savannah rather than flying over it, and Ishasha sits on the route. If you have seven or eight days, take the 45-minute charter and keep the days for the Mara and Bwindi.
Park fees
Entry is charged by the Uganda Wildlife Authority, and the Kazinga Channel boat is a separate charge. We quote the current rates for your dates rather than publishing figures here that have not been checked against the live UWA tariff.
When to go
The drier months — June to September and December to February — concentrate game and keep the tracks passable, which matters more here than in parks you fly into. The Ishasha sector in particular becomes difficult in heavy rain.
This page needs expansion before launch
UWA park entry and Kazinga Channel boat rates to be confirmed and added. Owned photography needed: the channel, Ishasha lions, the crater lakes.
Plan your Kenya and gorilla safari
Tell us roughly when you want to travel and how long you have. We will send a written itinerary and a quotation.