A Uganda Tour offers Incredible Nature Experiences

Uganda is landlocked country located in east Africa and popularly known as the pearl of Africa. Uganda is very endowed and very gifted with a number of natural resources and tourist attraction offering unique safari experiences to adventurous tourists.  While in Uganda, it’s always hard to get a starting point for tour and safari expeditions because all of the attractions in the country are very unique.

Firstly, one cannot over look Murchison falls national park that stretches from mid western covering the southern parts of west Nile and northern Uganda. This national park is a home to a number of wildlife species and the only place where the big five can be viewed. The big five includes the lions, cape buffaloes, giraffes, leopards and rhinos at the Zziwa rhino sanctuary.  These are called big five mainly because of the difficulty the rangers would go through while tracking and hunting them. While at Murchison falls national park, one can get a chance of exploring the Nile viewing the great Murchison falls where the Nile water falls over a hard rock in a great sound forming a permanent mist and rain ball. Game drives and boat trips in Murchison falls can never be a regrettable idea as one will not miss viewing a number of savanna wild animals in the park.

The western part of Uganda introduces tourists to the glaciers along the equator in the snow- capped Rwenzori Block Mountains. The Rwenzori area is blessed with many wild life species that include the rare three-horned Johnston’s chameleon, a number of birds endemic to the Albertine region plus various mammals featuring forest elephants. Most of these can be seen along the Rwenzori hike to discover the snow capped peaks.

While in the west, one can explore a number of tourist attractions including the unique wildlife species in queen Elizabeth national park which has four of the big five mammals (elephants, leopards, buffaloes and lions), the highest hippo population in east Africa along the Kazinga channel that can be best viewed by tourists on game drives, crocodiles, birds, major savanna wild herbivores (impalas, Uganda kobs, giraffes most of which can be viewed by tourists on game drives and hot air balloon safaris.

The southwestern parts of Uganda are very unique and take wildlife safaris in Uganda to a whole new level with mountain gorilla trekking. The south western parts of Bwindi impenetrable forest and Mgahinga gorilla national parks are homes to half of the mountain gorillas on the planet with 13 habituated mountain gorilla families. 12 of the mountain gorilla families inhabit the Bwindi impenetrable ecosystem while 1 lives in Mgahinga gorilla national park. Each of the mountain family can be trekked by strictly 8 tourists a day spending with it an hour. Mountain gorilla trekking permits for Uganda are sold at only $600 during the peak season (dry season) and at $350 during the low season.

Mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi and Mgahinga is usually supplemented by great sightings of many other wildlife species in the forest for example monkeys, birds, tree and vegetation species and a visit to the unique Batwa community who usually teach and tell stories to the tourists about their unique cultures.

From the west, a visit to the eastern part of Uganda offers other remarkable experiences. From the far north eastern part is Kidepo valley national park a place with typical African wilderness and a home to one of the groups of people the Karamojongs who still subscribe to their typical cultural traditions. Kidepo valley national park has a number of wildlife species including buffaloes, lions, zebras a number of bird species. Below Kidepo valley national park is mount Elgon national park a home to the volcanic mountain with the largest mountain base in the world. The major attractions here include a number of wildlife species, Sipi falls and the unique Imbalu traditions of the Bagishu people.

Generally speaking, Uganda is very gifted naturally and no one can dispute the fact that it’s the pearl of Africa. All those seeking for remarkable tourism experiences should just visit the country.

What Makes Rwanda a Magical destination?

Although Rwanda is a landlocked small country, today it’s become a popular holiday destination for numerous travelers offering a number of tourism attractions with the Virunga Volcanoes mountain gorillas standing out. Also known as the land of a thousand hills, the country is geographically is made up of a central plateau comprising of steep mountains and deep valleys. Among the attraction the country offers is the Parc National des Volcans in the Virunga volcanoes is home to the mountain gorillas which the primatologist Dian Fossey dedicated her life. Nyungwe Forest, one of the largest montane forests in Central Africa, is renowned for its large troops of chimpanzees,  colobus monkeys and amazing canopy walk. Akagera National Park is a savannah park with the newly introduces lions, others include the elephants, hippo and crocodile. Lake Kivu is a beautiful inland sea enclosed by steep terraced hillsides. There are a large variety of birds. Rwanda has a rich culture with its second city, Butare, having one of the finest cultural museums in Africa. Lets checkout the beautiful activities within the land of a thousand hills

Beautiful Mountainous views
The country comprises of 3 cities including Gisenyi,  Kibuye and Cyangungu, from which one can have stunning views of the breathtaking Lake Kivu. For anyone who has had the chance to visit Rwanda with vote that calling her the "Land of thousand hills" is simply an understatement. A visit to Gisenyi town, takes you to cross the Rwanda Congo border and visit the city of the Nyiaragongo volcano situated within Goma city, an active Virunga volcano on the Congo side, which recently erupted 2002 and offers great views and totally worthy a visit

Primates
Primates can be seen largely in Nyungwe National Park an Albertine rift montane rainforest. The rainforest has a large number of primates species including over 450 troops of chimpanzees, more than 300 colobus monkeys moving around in trees and L’Hoest monkey can be tracked in the jungles of Nyungwe and volcanoes national parks.

The mountain gorillas
Its important to know that gorilla tours in Rwanda can be done  in Parc National des Volcans which is located in the Virunga mountain ranges and is joined with Mgahinga National Park  in Uganda and Virunga National Park in Congo.

The Volcanoes national park is managed and run by a Rwandan government Office for Tourism and National Parks (ORTPN). In the district of Musanze formerly called Ruhengeri is were the park is located  and the base of the park entrance point. The gorilla Virubga rages region is made up of a number of mountain ranges including mt. Karisimbi, mt. Bisoke, mt. Mikeno, mt. Sabyinyo, mt. Mgahinga and mt. Muhabura volcanoes

The park currently comprises of 10 habituated mountain gorilla families hence 80 gorilla permits are sold out on each single day.  Gorilla groups include the Titus groups, Susa group, Karisimbi family, Amahoro group, Umubano group, Sabyinyo group, Kwitonda Group, Hirwa Family, Ugenda group and lastly Bwenge family.

Wildlife in Rwanda
Wildlife which can be spotted in Rwanda’s Akagera national park includes the newly introduces lions, giraffes, leopards, elephants, impalas, buffaloes, zebras, antelopes, hyenas, rhinos and many others. Akagera national park is the country’s major savannah national park where one can do a game drive to view wildlife in the jungle

Birding
The Land of a thousand hills is a haven for birds and is one of the most interesting birding destinations worldwide. This is mostly owed to its equatorial climate. Most birds in Rwanda are in her three major national parks, which are; volcanoes national park, Nyungwe national park and Akagera national park. These parks harbor over 1,500 bird species and 27 Albertine endemic species. The most outstanding bird species you can’t miss to see include the shoebill stork, Miombo wren-warbler and Bennett’s woodpecker. Birding can be done at any time of the year however it’s better around December-February in order to catch the migrating birds.

Coffee  Plantations
Rwanda’s major export is coffee hence while driving in the countryside, expect to tour large coffee plantations which look like they are covering the whole country. These are attractions to students doing research for study purposes. All those interested are taught the whole process the crops go through from planting, harvesting and processing and they are also invited to taste the results especially tea. Most of the plantations are located on the hills and their green color adds to the great scenic beauty the country has.

History & Culture
Rwanda has been marked by the unfortunate history of the genocide which saw thousands killed , this dominated the world's headlines in 1994.The country offers a number of memorial genocide grounds for tourists to learn more about her past.
Those interested can also visit communities around national parks to learn more about the Rwandese ways of life and even take part in the local community activities like cooking, collecting firewood and even milking.