kwankew

I'm traveling to Uganda in Nov. from US. Any tips on air travel to kampala or do I really need to take a bus from Nairobi to kampala?
Any recommendation on aguidebook on Uganda. I don't seem to be able to find "lonely planet on Uganda", the copy on East Africa really talks about Tanzania where I was for 2 months as a volunteer.

What should I see and do in Uganda?
Is the hike up Ruwenzori a technical one? I climbed up Kili, it was hard but it wasn't a technical hike.
What is the best safari that I should try to book and where is the best place to see the gorrillas?

What about white water rafting? Is it safe? What about geeting schistosomiasis from the water?

How about safety?

Thanks a bunch.

Kwan Kew

Patty

KLM, BA, SN Brussels and maybe a few other European carriers serve Entebbe, so you don't need to travel via Nairobi if you don't want to. You can fly there directly.

I like the Bradt guide. It's a few years old so pricing isn't up to date but will give you the information you need.

The habituated gorilla groups are in Bwindi NP. Where you based yourself will depend on whether you get permits for the ones in northern Bwindi or the one in southern Bwindi. Mgahinga is another place to view gorillas but they're not resident here year round and can move across the border.

atravelynn

Air Travel--I've flown over to London, then down to Kampala on British Air.

Guide book--Bradt was very useful.

See and do--
Ngamba is a chimp sanctuary on an island off of Entebbe. You can do 1/2-day or whole day visits or spend several days, including volunteering.

Queen Elizabeth is a 5-hour drive from Entebbe. It has the Kazinga Channel with amazing bird, hippo, and other wildlife.
There are 2-hour boat rides throughout the day. There is also a bat cave with pythons that feed on the bats. It is not a deep cave and you can see 100s or 1000s of bats easily and you can often glimpse a snake or two.

Kibale has excellent chimp tracking and swamp walks. It is a full day's drive from Entebbe.

Ruwenzori & rafting & water diseases--I have no info

Best place in Uganda for gorillas-- Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

Safari companies that have been used with success by Fodorites--
Great Lakes
Volcano
Mantana--I used them twice

Safety--with a reputable outfitter, such as those above, you will be fine. I never felt unsafe. If you felt fine in Tanzania for 2 months, you will have no problem in Uganda.

You should have an active, adventurous trip with the things you are planning.

Chinook

Hi

You can try with American airlines, I saw they had good prices from America to Entebbe ( flights are oprated by Sn Brussels via Brussels .
I'm going to travel to Uganda in september and I booked my fliths with Sn Brussels , very good company, especially in business class, totally renovated this year.
About the itinerary , you could consider to travel to Murchisson falls then Kibale forest, Rwenzori climb ( I have got a friend who did it last year and he reallly enjoyed), Queen Elizabeth NP, Bwindi ( or Rwanda or Congo ) to track the gorillas . I also recommend you to spend fews days at lake Bunyonyi to relax ( you can swin there without any problem)and canoing Lake M'Buro NP is also an amazing place on the road to Kampala . If you are lucky, you can spot leopards there and do a night game drive
Lot of things to do ,depending of how much time you want to stay in Uganda !
White water rafting in Jinja is safe.
I agree Bradt guidebook is the best one
Hope it helps
Chinook

Nelson

Re Ruwenzori: to climb the major summits does require roping up, but you could certainly trek into the region. I have not been there, but it is high on my wish list.

This week I met with someone who was there in 1994 and I scanned a bunch of his slides, which you can now see here:

http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/r...t-stanley.html

He told me the hiking there is rugged, more so than the Everest region in Nepal, and therefore more rugged than Kilimanjaro. But, that is largely because of the mud and lack of good, established trails. The situation may have changed somewhat since '94, but probably not much.

In any case, have a great trip!

fuzzylogic

Queen Elizabeth NP for sure. Can't help with Ruwenzoris - the nearest I got was Fort Portal.

But the great joy of Uganda is how easy it is to travel around. And the Sese Islands too.