Have you thought about travel to Ssese island? After a long trip around Uganda that truly touched you and you feel your safari dreams were fulfilled, you will need a place to chill and process your memories for at least two days. This is when Ssese Island comes in the first place. A place in a unique art of Uganda where you will be close to nature, with good scenery and open views, the wind touching you from body to soul, in a habitat packed with nature shown to you by very hospitable staff as they serve you the ultimate Uganda’s tasty foods and drinks.
Generally known as Kalangala district, Ssese is an island district located in central Uganda. It is probably the most peaceful place you will find during your stay in Uganda. This makes it the suitable end to every trip around Uganda as one relaxes on the beaches or walks some of the richest forests in the country.
You will share the forest with the primates, parrots and other unique birds, and enjoy the cool breeze from lake Victoria. you can choose to do an adventure such as the quad biking or walking to view the local way of life. in all cases, you will be in a mix of forest canopy or open areas overlooking the lake with views of multitudes of islands at a distance
With a total of made up of 84 islands, Ssese offers one of the most beautiful landscapes showcasing a mix of African heritage in the architecture, culture, and wildlife on the different islands inside lake Victoria, Africa’s Largest freshwater lake shared by three countries of east Africa (Uganda/ Kenya/ Tanzania)
Travel to Ssese island is part of our exciting trek to Rwenzori mountains on a 7 day trek. You can find this trip in our itineraries as; Rwenzori- Queen Elizabeth – Ssese Islands 13 days trip around Uganda.
The travel of our guests to this Island paradise is commonly from Rwenzori Mountains (Ruboni community camp), and or Queen Elizabeth National park (The elephant home).
How to travel to Ssese island
After your Rwenzori trek; as in our itinerary above, you will spend two nights in Queen Elizabeth looking for the animals and enjoying the scenery. specific activities include Kazinga channel boat cruise, wildlife safari on the Kasenyi tracks, exploring the local community encounters at Kikorongo, visiting the equator and others.
The actual travel to Ssese island form Queen Elizabeth National park takes you an estimate of 6.5 hours. the journey takes you through Mbarara, Masaka and Munyendo where you branch off towards lake Victoiria to catch the ferry at Bukakata landing site. These estimates are by private car, some details may vary if you choose to connect using public means.
the road is all tarmac all the way from Queen Elizabeth national park to Bukakata. after crossing the ferry, the road is Marrum but mainly in good condition (2024)
The ferry time table
The ferry at Bukakata crosses every two hours. Each journey takes an estimate of 30-40 minutes to reach the island. The ferry takes between 9 and 19 cars, based on the size of car, and a large group of pedestrians who fill up the spaces in the top shelters and empty areas on the sides of the car park
Procedure at the ferry entrance and exit
On arrival at the landing site, the driver of every car intending to cross is required to register with their car, stating its registration number and the drivers name. After packing the car, all other passengers in the car are supposed to go to the gate that leads towards the ferry, and register their details including name, age, nationality and others. After the registration process, you can wait for the next ferry that will be loading.
Please note, you will let all the cars enter the ferry before the people can board. Since the ferry takes a limited number of cars, passengers will only board the ferry if their car was able to get space on the going route. Drivers are supposed to stay either close to their car during the crossing. This is so that they can quickly drive the car off the ferry on arrival.
Prices for crossing on the ferry
It is free to cross on the ferry. The ferry is a large vessel that belongs to the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA). This is why it is free to cross on it. No payment will be required either for the car or people crossing on Bukakata ferry, unless there has been a special communication by government or change due to certain reasons.
What to expect at the landing site
The landing site at Bukakata is a place that has been prepared to comfortably accommodate passengers as they wait for the ferry to arrive. The landing site has places to seat, a toilet and urinal, both for males and females separately, and kiosks to buy snacks. The common snacks you can find there are biscuits, chapatis and Rolex, local food dishes, smoked fish, drinking water and other soft drinks.
Attractions on Ssese islands
Forests: Ssese island is popular for her forests. The forests on this island are unique to the ones you will find on the mainland around Uganda. the unique wildlife in these forests include; parrots…… the palm farms also standout to most visitors especially Ugandans who have not seen these anywhere else in the country. the way people live alongside the forests or relate with wildlife is also a way to learn life on the island. most hotels will organize forest walks.
Sandy Beaches: remember, you wont find sandy beaches anywhere in Uganda, as it is a landlocked country. This is why Ssese makes the perfect end to every trip around Uganda. The islands have a large selection of beaches that can be explored endlessly. Almost every beach is unique and so enjoying each of them would not be boring. The key beaches on the island include; Kalangala beach, Ssosi Beach, Lutoboka Beach, Victoria Beach, Brovad sands Beach and others that you will discover. This allows guests to relax at the end before they fly, being that the island is also located close to Entebbe where most return flights take off.
Birding: Over 200 bird species await
Caves: Visit some of the ancient caves that are still being celebrated by generations due to the valuable historical majesty. The Kamuhuro cave is one of these caves. It is located close to Mwena village. The spirits in this cave were believed to have given life to the entire Ssese islands.
This cave is considered by traditionalists as a sacred place for praying and you may witness some local people praying during the visit. Say your prayer in silence during the visit, and who knows, you blessings may increase in the rest of your life.
You have to obey some rules such as no pictures, come barefoot, women must be out of their monthly cycle period etc, as you will listen to these ruled during the visit and before you’re permitted to enter the cave.
Besides the historical and stringent rules, the outlook and landscape arounf is full of nature and culture making it very fascinating. You will enjoy gazing and the local men or women smoking water pipes around the cave, and I hope you wont get tempted to try them out of excitement.
Wildlife: Ssese is uniquely endowed by wildlife, specifically animals of varied types dwelling in the forests, wetlands, grasslands and other varied habitats. This makes the island a nature lover’s paradise with specific consideration of the birders too. The island is home to over 200 bird species. During the visit, you will be impressed how these species coexists and how the resident community adopts to living with them to be able to keep such a rich ecosystem over the years.
These are some of the key bird species that you have a chance to spot on the islands among the 200 species;
- Kalaos
- Egrets,
- Cormorants,
- Fish eagles
- The giant shoebill
- Grey parrots
This island is also home to varied reptiles. Hey include the following;
- A variety of Sankes such as, rock pythons, cobras, African rock pythons and vipers,
- African python
- crocodiles (but not around Kalangala)
- Monitor Lizards
Primates are very common in the forests. They will be spotted very close and in dome lodges they will walk just past guests (especially the vervet monkeys) the common primates that you may include;
- Colobus monkey
- Vervet monkeys
- Red tailed monkeys,
Ssese is also a haven of mammals with unbelievably large varieties including those you wouldn’t imagine were here. How much you find of these will depend on the level of exploration and how deep one goes in nature. The key species you can find include; Hippos, Antelopes and other small mammals.
Speke fort Monument: Now in ruins is an exciting place to visit. Since the 1863 when he settled around the Lutoboka forest as you will witness the ruins of his house in the middle of a very rich forest. With a guide, you will listen to the historical stories and traditional belief around this port while enjoying the enormous beauty of the natural forest around it. John speke is one such remembered explorer who discovered the source of the Nile in Jinja.
Activities you can do on Ssese Islands
- Quad Biking
- Beach sports
- Nature Walk
- Water Sports of different types
- Sunset boat Cruise
- The islands tour on Boat visiting overt ten independent islands
- Fishing experience
- Cycling tour around the island
- Palm Oil Plantation Tour
- Bird Watching
- Guided Forest walk
- Kalangala Town
- visiting the Historical caves
Places you can stay at Ssese islands
Ssese Islands have many options of hotels to stay in spread over the different islands. The accommodation options cater for all budget levels and interests, from shoestring to luxury. Mirembe Resort beach Hotel is such a catch that is liked by most people. The list of places to stay include;
- Brovad sands lodge
- Mirembe Resort beach
- Philo leaisure gardens
- Banda Island resort
- Panama cotages
- Victoria forest resort
- The address resort Kalangala
- Pearl gardens beach resort Kalangala
- Saffron Beach Resort And Adventure Park, Kalangala
You can contact us to book or tailor your trip to Uganda, visit to the Ssese Islands or any activity of your choice and all will be easily arranged.
