Uganda is a country where you don’t need to drive long boring distances during a safari. It is such a beautiful country that offers something to every travel interest. We know many people don’t like long drives while on Safari. We believe long none-stop drives can lower the safari experience. If you don’t want long drives on your Uganda safari, this article will help show you the different stopovers in the different communities and reserves on your safari routes. You have along list of stopover experiences to select from including nature, scenery, wildlife, culture and adventure. Find a list of interesting attractions and activities that will give you the much deserved break as well as an opportunity to participate in various activities that add great value to your safari around Uganda. They are classified per routes and connections between destinations. Read through to find the route(s) that you have chosen for your trip.

Stopovers on the route from Kampala to Murchison falls national park, via Bombo – Nakasongola – Masindi town.

• Ziwa rhino sanctuary: At this stopover, for two hours, you can take a rhino tracking tour. Other tours in this sanctuary include bird watching, nature walk and a game walk looking for other mammals. you chan choose to have lunch in the sanctuary restaurant.
• Boomu womend campsite: Here you can do community experiences including the cooking tour, village walk or the basket weaving workshop. campsite owned and run by local women. they also offer meals, accommodation and handicrafts sales.
• Kiniyo pabidi chimp experience: Here you can do a forest nature walk, bird watching tours or chimp tracking in Budongo forest. Budongo forest is one of the few places in Uganda where you have an opportunity to see chimps in their natural habitat.

Stopovers on the route from Kampala to Mgahinga gorilla and Bwindi impenetrable national parks, via Masaka-mbarara-Ntungamo- Kabale road.

• The equator at Kayabwe: Here you will stop for a cup of coffee, purchase local handicrafts or taking the equator demonstration as shown to you by the local community guide, the demonstration shows the  different movements of wind waves direction in the south, north and at the equator.
• Igongo museum and cultural center: This is a great restaurant suitable for lunch stopover. You can also take an interpretive tour around the museum to learn the local culture and history of Uganda.
• Great lakes museum: A museum with great views and another Uganda coffee drink experience, handicrafts purchase or taking a tour around the museum to learn the culture of the south-western part of Uganda.

Stopovers on the route to Lake Mburo national park from Kampala, via Masaka-Mbarara road

• The equator at Kayabwe: Here you will stop for a cup of coffee, purchase local handicrafts or taking the equator demonstration as shown to you by the local community guide, the demonstration shows the  different movements of wind waves direction in the south, north and at the equator.
• Igongo museum and cultural center: This is a great restaurant suitable for lunch stopover. You can also take an interpretive tour around the museum to learn the local culture and history of Uganda.

Stopovers on the route to Mount Elgon national park from Kampala, via Jinja – Tirinyi road.

• Mabira forest: You will take an opportunity of walking under the canopy of one of the richest forests in Uganda. You will be looking for primates, birds and other wildlife. Other optional activities in this forest include zip lining experience, bicycle riding or just relaxing as you listen to the sounds of nature over lunch.
• Jinja adventure center: The adventure center of Uganda generously offers every choice from simple to most complex adventure experiences. You can take a canoe at the source of the Nile, quad biking safari, water rafting on the Nile, bungee jumping, bike riding or horseback riding and many more. For those with little time, just sit for lunch as you gaze the mass of water flowing in the Nile while you enjoy the setting of this  colonial industrial town of Uganda.

Stopovers on the route to Rwenzori Mountains national park from Kampala, via Mubende fort portal – Kasese road

• Entanda cultural center: Here you will participate in a selection of local community-life, cultural activities including food preparation, traditional dances, fruits harvesting, hunting demos, traditional games and education or many others. Participation in community fruit harvesting ends in testing a long list of local fresh fruits is a key highlight.
• Tea plantation tours: A stopover by Mpanga tea estate allows you to relax as you enjoy the great scenery over the tea plantation on the rolling hills of Tooro kingdom over looking Rwenzori mountains. You can choose to participate in tea harvesting with the local community members and staff, visit the tea factory or the canteen to buy some of the best tea in the region fresh from the factory. With more time, you can engage in a bicycle ride experience over the hills in the tea plantation.
• Tooro botanical gardens: This is suitable for tree and plant lovers. It is an opportunity to share the rich experience of the local experts taking care of the botanical gardens. You will be guided by a local herbalist to show you hundreds of different trees, shrubs and plants and their local medicinal values. It is located just outside fort portal town making it easy for you to participate in it before or after lunch in town on your safari
• Tooro cultural tour: The tour show cases the culture and heritage of the Batooro people living below the Rwenzori mountains. The activity involves visiting the king’s palace “Kabarole” a local dialect meaning let them see, situated on the most scenic hill, that allows you to see the surrounding kingdom landscape. Other interesting activities include, tooro food and cuisine, amabere cave tour, visiting the crater lakes and many more.
• Rubona basked weavers: The woman will take you through the process of preparing natural dyes from local herbs and in the end allow you to do it yourself. You can also learn how to weave the traditional millet baskets or buy some of the beautiful baskets made by the local community and on the display.
• Bunyangabu beekeepers: Here you learn how to keep honey bees, harvest honey and or make candles from the bees wax. it is very rich and inspiring hands-on experience when you choose a candle shape that you make into a perfect gift candle for your loved ones back home. it is an opportunity to surprise your family with the gift of your own hands, after the trip.
• Rwenzori coffee village experience: Tucked in the foothills of Rwenzori, this village experience show cases a cross section of the coffee cycle from planting to the time of making a cup of hot drinking coffee, s you look or even participate in every stage of the coffee life. You will be taken to the coffee nursery bed, the garden, the harvesting shades, then through coffee roasting and grinding experiences. It is also an opportunity to explore the landscape, the local farming skills and or the hospitality of the local community farmers that probably supply some of the coffee you by from your supermarket back home. In the end, you will relax and sip a cup of fresh coffee fresh the farm as you gaze the portal peaks of Rwenzori mountains.

Stopovers on the route to Kibale national park from Kampala, via Mubende fort portal road

• Entanda cultural center: Here you will participate in a selection of local community-life, cultural activities including food preparation, traditional dances, fruits harvesting, hunting demos, traditional games and education or many others. Participation in community fruit harvesting ends in testing a long list of local fresh fruits is a key highlight.
• Tea plantation tours: A stopover by Mpanga tea estate allows you to relax as you enjoy the great scenery over the tea plantation on the rolling hills of Tooro kingdom over looking Rwenzori mountains. You can choose to participate in tea harvesting with the local community members and staff, visit the tea factory or the canteen to buy some of the best tea in the region fresh from the factory. With more time, you can engage in a bicycle ride experience over the hills in the tea plantation.
• Tooro botanical gardens: This is suitable for tree and plant lovers. It is an opportunity to share the rich experience of the local experts taking care of the botanical gardens. You will be guided by a local herbalist to show you hundreds of different trees, shrubs and plants and their local medicinal values. It is located just outside fort portal town making it easy for you to participate in it before or after lunch in town on your safari
• Tooro cultural tour: The tour show cases the culture and heritage of the Batooro people living below the Rwenzori mountains. The activity involves visiting the king’s palace “Kabarole” a local dialect meaning let them see, situated on the most scenic hill, that allows you to see the surrounding kingdom landscape. Other interesting activities include, tooro food and cuisine, amabere cave tour, visiting the crater lakes and many more.

Stopovers on the route to Semuliki national park from Kampala, via Mubende fort portal road

• Entanda cultural center: Here you will participate in a selection of local community-life, cultural activities including food preparation, traditional dances, fruits harvesting, hunting demos, traditional games and education or many others. Participation in community fruit harvesting ends in testing a long list of local fresh fruits is a key highlight.
• Tea plantation tours: A stopover by Mpanga tea estate allows you to relax as you enjoy the great scenery over the tea plantation on the rolling hills of Tooro kingdom over looking Rwenzori mountains. You can choose to participate in tea harvesting with the local community members and staff, visit the tea factory or the canteen to buy some of the best tea in the region fresh from the factory. With more time, you can engage in a bicycle ride experience over the hills in the tea plantation.
• Tooro botanical gardens: This is suitable for tree and plant lovers. It is an opportunity to share the rich experience of the local experts taking care of the botanical gardens. You will be guided by a local herbalist to show you hundreds of different trees, shrubs and plants and their local medicinal values. It is located just outside fort portal town making it easy for you to participate in it before or after lunch in town on your safari
• Tooro cultural tour: The tour show cases the culture and heritage of the Batooro people living below the Rwenzori mountains. The activity involves visiting the king’s palace “Kabarole” a local dialect meaning let them see, situated on the most scenic hill, that allows you to see the surrounding kingdom landscape. Other interesting activities include, tooro food and cuisine, amabere cave tour, visiting the crater lakes and many more.

Stopovers on the route to Queen Elizabeth national park from Kampala, via Mubende- fort portal- Kasese road

• Entanda cultural center: Here you will participate in a selection of local community-life, cultural activities including food preparation, traditional dances, fruits harvesting, hunting demos, traditional games and education or many others. Participation in community fruit harvesting ends in testing a long list of local fresh fruits is a key highlight.
• Tea plantation tours: A stopover by Mpanga tea estate allows you to relax as you enjoy the great scenery over the tea plantation on the rolling hills of Tooro kingdom over looking Rwenzori mountains. You can choose to participate in tea harvesting with the local community members and staff, visit the tea factory or the canteen to buy some of the best tea in the region fresh from the factory. With more time, you can engage in a bicycle ride experience over the hills in the tea plantation.
• Tooro botanical gardens: This is suitable for tree and plant lovers. It is an opportunity to share the rich experience of the local experts taking care of the botanical gardens. You will be guided by a local herbalist to show you hundreds of different trees, shrubs and plants and their local medicinal values. It is located just outside fort portal town making it easy for you to participate in it before or after lunch in town on your safari
• Tooro cultural tour: The tour show cases the culture and heritage of the Batooro people living below the Rwenzori mountains. The activity involves visiting the king’s palace “Kabarole” a local dialect meaning let them see, situated on the most scenic hill, that allows you to see the surrounding kingdom landscape. Other interesting activities include, tooro food and cuisine, amabere cave tour, visiting the crater lakes and many more.
• Rubona basked weavers: The woman will take you through the process of preparing natural dyes from local herbs and in the end allow you to do it yourself. You can also learn how to weave the traditional millet baskets or buy some of the beautiful baskets made by the local community and on the display.
• Bunyangabu beekeepers: Here you learn how to keep honey bees, harvest honey and or make candles from the bees wax. it is very rich and inspiring hands-on experience when you choose a candle shape that you make into a perfect gift candle for your loved ones back home. it is an opportunity to surprise your family, with the gift of your own hands after the trip.
• Kikorongo community experiences: Here you can stop to immerse yourself in the pool of community experiences that will brighten your day. The community activities include; Boda-boda safaris, basket weaving workshop, traditional dances, cotton growing tours. The experiences showcase both the wildlife scenery and the local life of people living in this village neighboring queen Elizabeth national park. Every activity tries to give a background of how people live with wildlife. the community experience therefore, give you a good orientation for the wildlife safari inside the park.

These stop-over options are also suitable for travelers from other locations taking short or longer safaris hat are not starting from Kampala or living within the areas as volunteers or long term visitors. If you don’t choose any of these listed experiences, you still have an option to stop and relax in one of the scenic points to breath the fresh air offered by the is green heritage of Uganda. On all routes, you will easily find different local markets on different days. These include; roadside fresh food, snacks and crafts markets. These markets provide a unique opportunity to see the local trades, cuisine and way of life. At these markets just look and buy what you desire but don’t eat anything as your digestive system may not be used to some of these foods. yet Ask your guide to advise you what can be good or bad. Do not take pictures of local people and their goods without permission unless your guide has arranged this opportunity. don’t give free money to strangers. buy some of their goods and then ask for taking a picture. Both of you will like the discussions, bargains and smiles during the processes.

You can contact us, with your route of choice and we shall share with you more options.