A self-drive safari is one of the perfect adventure road trips that many travellers love to enjoy while exploring the Pearl of Africa.
Uganda offers extremely fascinating attractions that range from stunning wildlife, magnificent landscape, huge water bodies, and snow-capped mountains to enormous ethnic groups and many others worthy to experience when you choose to take a drive on your own.
A self-drive safari will give you chance to save some dollars on your trip since you don’t have to incur the costs of a driver but also offers travellers the freedom to visit as many destinations as they can and enjoy a lot of privacy on the trip. Hire a car from 4×4 Car Hire Uganda and adventure on your own.
Self drive safari is a bit stressful and hectic as you are trying to find out the route that takes you to your tour destination and also find a solution for any emergency issue on your way during your tour. However, it is the most charming and gives you chance to touch and feel a true adventure in the Pearl of Africa.
To start with, take a city tour on your own putting in mind that traffic is part of you on most of the streets you will head to but it will give you the chance to admire the surroundings and the city setting. Kampala is a congested city which needs a lot of patience while driving to the tourist places in and out of the city but enjoyable.
Kampala city is equipped with a wide range of outstanding tourist attractions you can explore while on a self-drive city tour including the suburb areas, other attractions with in and outside the city include; cultural sites, the Uganda museum, religious sites, Kasubi tombs, the king’s palace among others.
Take another drive heading north to the magical Murchison falls national park, this is popularly known as the oldest and largest safari park in Uganda famous for hosting the might Murchison waterfalls that are formed as a result of the Nile River squeezing itself through a small gorge about 6-7 meters wide, the gorge has big granite rocks that give the falls an eye-catching beauty.
You will as well enjoy a rewarding game safari in the park that exposes you to stunning wildlife namely the Rothchild giraffes, buffaloes, elephants, lions, warthogs, Uganda Kobs, bush bucks among others. If you do happen to go for a boat cruise, you will have the chance to see a population of Nile crocodiles.
The next drive takes you to have a close encounter with human close relatives, the chimpanzees, kibale forest is a great primate destination famously referred to as the Adventure Capital of East Africa. After the chimpanzee experience, you will as well encounter other exciting primate species like the L’Hoest monkeys, red tailed monkeys, white and black monkeys, grey checked Mangabey plus many beautiful bird species.
Take a drive to Queen Elizabeth National Park where you will encounter a diversity of breathtaking wildlife spotted in big numbers, without forgetting the African big five animals.
Tree climbing lions in ishasha sector is one of the main reasons why travellers flock this safari park. Expect to enjoy self drive tour in the park and a boat cruise on Kazinga channel, experience its beauty, view amazing wildlife at the shores like hippos, crocodile, elephants and buffaloes quenching off their thirst, later return to the lodge for relaxation.
Get back to your steering and head to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park one of the most visited safari destinations where you encounter with the endangered Mountain gorilla species in their natural habitat.
Its home to almost half of the remaining mountain gorilla species in the world and there are about 19 habituated gorilla families open to all tourists for gorilla trekking safaris through out the year with for sectors that is Nkuringo, Ruhija, Rushaga and Buhoma.
The activity takes place very early in the morning with a briefing then continue to the starting point and start the trek. It will take from 30-2hrs looking for them. Once you locate them, feel free to take photos with them as you learn more about their exciting behaviour in the jungle in just one hour. To see the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Forest, you are required to purchase a permit of USD $800 per person per trek.
After the incredible experience in Bwindi Forest, you can choose to take a visit to Lake Bunyonyi for leisure and relaxation, canoe ride to experience the 29 islands.
It is a very perfect place to relax and chill out, canoeing in a dugout canoe, swimming, Island hopping, boating, hiking, birding, village visits, nature walks as well as the interactive cultural visits as you stay along Lake Bunyonyi. This lake has got a scenery that will stay with you on all of its 29 islands, the mountains and Virunga volcanoes, its great spots as well as the lovely climate to relax and chill out.
This lake is a bilharzia free lake and it has neither crocodiles nor hippos inside. This means that it’s safe to swim here and also enjoy. It’s known to be a deep lake and the second deepest lake in Africa and this means that you ought to be a good swimmer, you certainly have to enjoy it as you are staying here.
This is also one of the best places in Uganda to chill out and relax after a long safari. This could be a gorilla safari, hiking, volcano climbing and many other activities that require relaxation after. You can chill out on an island or along the shores of the lake. One of the main foods found around that lake is crayfish that is cooked in all types of ways and then served at all times of the day, freshly caught, and prepared in dishes from Pizza to Pasta. This lake also attracts many Ugandans, tourists and even the residents of other countries like Rwanda to come and chill out as well as relaxing.
You can explore the local villages. Forests, the nature walks that are all possibilities while staying here. You can take a dugout canoe with the guide and then discover the world’s Uganda’s Magical Lake. This also can be a whole day event or just a few hours and you chose to scull or to be sculled across the lake, the overnight options are also available. After all is done then transfer back to Kampala for your flight back home.
