Things to Do in Uganda: The Best Activities by Place, From Gorillas to the Nile

Written by the Paramount Gorilla Expeditions guiding team · Last updated 14 November 2026

Things to do in Uganda fall into six groups: primates in the south-west and west, big game and boat trips in the western and northern savannas, adventure on the Nile and the eastern mountains, lakes and gentle walks, culture in the villages and Kampala, and birds everywhere. This guide is written on 14 November 2026. It explains what each activity is, where it happens, how long it takes, what it asks of your legs and how to fit it into a route, using seven public travel pages, our own Uganda national parks guide and the parks' own descriptions, and it says plainly where the sources disagree. People search for it as things to do in Uganda, top activities in Uganda, what to do in Uganda, Uganda safari activities, Uganda bucket list and best experiences in Uganda.

Quick answer

If you only have time for a few things, trek the mountain gorillas in Bwindi or Mgahinga, track chimpanzees in Kibale, take the Kazinga Channel boat trip in Queen Elizabeth, and take the Nile launch trip to the foot of Murchison Falls. Add white-water rafting at Jinja if you want adventure, a canoe on Lake Bunyonyi if you want rest, and a walk through the Bigodi wetland if you want birds and village life.

No single page we read gives a minimum age for any of these activities, so we cannot give you one from the sources. Gorilla trekking has an official limit, which our gorilla trekking age limit guide explains. For everything else, ask us before you book. Our Uganda national parks guide lists the parks, and our Uganda complete local guide covers the practical side.

Things to do in Uganda at a glance

Chapter 01: What are the best primate experiences in Uganda?

Primates are the reason most visitors come. Our Uganda national parks guide describes Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in the south-west as the park with the habituated gorilla families, in four sectors: Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga and Nkuringo. The same guide says the Ruhija and Nkuringo sectors are more demanding, and one source says they are steep and muddy in wet months. Our Bwindi sector guide helps you pick one, our first-time gorilla trekking guide walks through the day, and our gorilla trekking day guide explains what happens hour by hour.

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, on the Rwanda and Congo border, has one resident gorilla group that crosses the border and is not always present, plus the only golden monkey tracking in Uganda. Our Mgahinga guide covers the volcano climbs as well. If you want more time with the gorillas than a standard trek, the gorilla habituation experience lets a small group stay far longer, and our gorilla habituation guide explains how it differs from Rwanda's. Sources disagree on the length: one says up to four hours, another a full day.

Kibale Forest is the chimpanzee park, with 13 primate species according to two sources. Chimpanzee tracking is a guided hike to a troop and about an hour with them, according to two sources, while a third calls it a moderate hike of about three hours, so the hike length varies by day. Our Kibale chimpanzee trekking guide covers it, and our gorilla versus chimpanzee trekking guide helps you choose. Kyambura Gorge in Queen Elizabeth also offers chimpanzee tracking, with lower sighting odds than Kibale, according to our national parks guide.

Chapter 02: What are the best safari and boat activities?

Queen Elizabeth National Park combines savanna, lakes and crater views. The Kazinga Channel links Lake Edward and Lake George, and the boat trip is the most popular activity, with hippos, crocodiles, elephants and birds. Sources give about two hours, and one gives three, so allow a half-day. In the south of the park, the Ishasha sector is known for tree-climbing lions, which one source says are found only in Uganda and Tanzania, while another says nowhere else in East Africa, so we avoid the "only" claim. Our Queen Elizabeth guide and tree-climbing lions guide cover them.

Murchison Falls National Park is Uganda's largest park, according to our national parks guide. The launch cruise from Paraa runs upstream to the base of the falls, about two to three hours according to the sources, and a second cruise goes downstream toward Lake Albert for shoebill and waterbirds. Our Murchison Falls guide and river Nile guide give the detail. For the shoebill at Mabamba Swamp near Entebbe, see our shoebill Mabamba guide.

Our boat safaris hub guide compares every water trip in one place. Lake Mburo, the smallest of the savanna parks, offers walking, horseback and boat safaris, as our Lake Mburo guide explains, and it is the only park with impala, according to our national parks guide. Kidepo Valley, in the far north-east, has cheetah, bat-eared fox and striped hyaena that our national parks guide says are recorded nowhere else in Uganda. Our Kidepo guide covers the dry season from September to March.

Chapter 03: What are the best walking and rhino experiences?

At Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in central Uganda, you walk to the rhinos on foot with a ranger. One source gives one to two hours across 7,000 hectares. Our Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary guide explains the arrangement and the plan to return some rhinos to the wild, which sources describe differently. Ziwa fits neatly on the road between Kampala and Murchison.

Semuliki National Park, in the west, has the Sempaya hot springs, where one source reports a 30-minute hike between two springs and another says one spurts about two metres. Our Semuliki guide covers them. The Rwenzori Mountains offer anything from a one-day walk to a multi-day trek, with Margherita Peak at 5,109 metres, and the summit needs roped glacier travel, according to our guide. Our Rwenzori guide explains the circuits.

For gentler walking, see our night drives and walking safaris guide, our cycling safari guide and our lava caves guide.

Chapter 04: What adventure is there at Jinja and in the east?

Jinja, near the source of the Nile, is Uganda's adventure town. The sources list white-water rafting, kayaking, tubing, bungee jumping, quad biking, mountain biking and horse riding, and one calls the rapids grade 5. None of the pages we read gives an age limit or fitness level, so ask us. Our Jinja guide and Nile rafting guide cover the operators and the season.

In the east, Sipi Falls has three falls with a 99 metre drop, according to one source, and visitors walk upstream to a swimming pool or abseil beside the main fall. Mount Elgon is a multi-day, non-technical hike to Wagagai Peak, and its Kitum Cave is where elephants dig for salt, according to our guide. Our Sipi Falls and Mount Elgon guide has the routes.

Chapter 05: What are the gentler lake and island experiences?

Lake Bunyonyi has 29 islands at about 1,950 metres, according to one source, and visitors take dugout canoes or kayaks, and one page says the lake is free of bilharzia. We cannot confirm that claim, so ask a doctor and a local guide before you swim. Our Lake Bunyonyi guide explains the options. Lake Victoria offers canoeing and islands near Entebbe, and our Lake Victoria guide and Entebbe day trips guide cover Ngamba Island's chimpanzee sanctuary, the Botanical Gardens and the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre, where a shoebill lives.

Chapter 06: What cultural experiences can you add?

Uganda's cultural visits include the Batwa Trail at Mgahinga, village walks at Bigodi, craft markets, cooking classes and the Ndere Centre's dance evenings in Kampala. Our cultural experiences in Uganda guide explains how they work and how to choose ones that treat hosts fairly, and our Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary guide covers the community walk. In Kampala, sources list the Kasubi Tombs, the Uganda Museum and Owino market, and our Kampala travel guide adds the practical detail. On 3 June, the Namugongo shrine is very busy, as our Uganda Martyrs Day guide explains.

Chapter 07: What is the best Uganda route for each style of traveller?

Gorillas, chimpanzees and big game suit our 10 day Uganda safari and our Uganda complete Bwindi, Queen Elizabeth and Murchison tour. Birds and wildlife suit our 14 day Uganda wildlife and birding safari. Primates alone suit our Uganda primates, gorillas and chimpanzees tour. Our Uganda safari itinerary guide and best time to visit Uganda guide help with the length and the season, and our Uganda safari cost guide explains the budget.

Chapter 08: Where do the sources disagree?

We read seven pages and our own national parks guide. The gorilla permit price differs between two of them, and we do not print a price here. The length of habituation, the length of a chimpanzee hike and the length of the Kazinga cruise differ. One source says Kibale has 1,450 chimpanzees and others say more than 1,500. Margherita Peak is called third-highest in Africa by three sources, and one page calls a different peak Africa's fourth-highest at the same height. Kasubi Tombs are said to hold four kings in one source and three in another. The Nile is called the longest river in the world in one place and the second-longest in another on the same page. None of the pages gives night walks, a top-of-falls hike or an age limit for any activity. We have attributed each figure and rounded the rest.