Uganda boat cruise safari in Queen Park.
Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth National Park: Queen Elizabeth National Park is the second largest and one of the most explored national parks in Uganda, situated in the southwestern region in Kasese, Kamwenge, Rubirizi and Rukungiri districts.
Queen Elizabeth National Park on a Uganda safari is a home for multiple wildlife, including 95 animals such as elephants, leopards, buffaloes, hippos, waterbucks, bushbucks, Uganda kobs, warthogs, giant forest hogs, crocodiles, tree-climbing lions in the Ishasha sector, primates like chimpanzees, baboons, red-tailed monkeys, and black and white colobus monkeys, and over 600 bird species, such as the pied kingfisher, African fish eagle, squacco heron, open-billed stork, wattled plover, red-eyed dove, and ring-necked dove, among others that can be sighted on a Uganda safari.
Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Kazinga Channel is a 40-kilometre-long waterway that joins Lake Edward and Lake George and is used for boat cruise safaris in Queen Elizabeth National Park. The Uganda Wildlife Authority and Mweya Safari Lodge run boat cruises in Queen Elizabeth National Park. There are two sessions, one in the morning that starts at 9:00 am and the other in the afternoon that starts at 2:00 pm at the landing spot near Mweya Safari Lodge.
During a boat cruise safari on the Kazinga Channel, you can get within a few metres of animals like elephants, buffaloes, warthogs, antelopes, and big herds of hippos and crocodiles in the water, among other animals. The Kazinga Channel is also known as one of the best birdwatching safari destinations, as it’s a habitat of various bird species such as the long-tailed cormorant, yellow-bellied stork, open-billed stork, black crake, pied kingfisher, pink-backed pelican, yellow-billed stork, African jacana, African skimmer, swamp flycatcher, red-capped lark, grey-capped lark, slender-tailed nightjar, and African mourning dove, among others. You will also be able to observe local fishing villages around Kazinga Channel, where the fishermen will be setting their fishing gear for the night in order to catch fish when the hippos are grazing on land.
Cost of a boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth National Park.
There are two planned times for boat cruises in the park: in the morning and in the afternoon. However, most visitors choose the afternoon session because it’s more fun. In the morning, they usually go on a game drive through Kasenyi plains. The boat cruise through the Kazinga Channel costs $30 for foreign non-residents and UGX 30,000 for East African citizens. The safari activity lasts for 2 hours.
When to go for a boat cruise safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Boat cruises in the park can be done at any time of the year, but the best times are from June to September and from December to February, when it’s not raining. During this time, it doesn’t rain as much, so the animals come to the Kazinga Channel to cool off and drink water. This gives you a chance to see elephants, waterbucks, lions, buffaloes, warthogs, and other animals up close and take lots of pictures of them.
In addition to the boat cruise, Queen Elizabeth National Park has additional enjoyable excursions for safari-goers to do, such as
Game drive.
Game drives are one of the most prevalent safari activities to do at the park. The game drive can be done in Kasenyi Plains, the Ishasha sector, or the Mweya Peninsula in the morning, afternoon, or at night. During the game drive, you can look out for animals like waterbucks, tree-climbing lions, leopards, giant forest hogs, buffaloes, elephants, Uganda kobs, bushbucks, warthogs, and birds like the African white-backed vulture, martial eagle, black-bellied bustard, palm-nut vulture, crowned plover, black-headed gonolek, and grey-capped warbler, among others.
Lion research tracking experience.
Lion research tracking experience is one of the highlights in the park, where visitors get an opportunity to track lions with radio collars. During lion study tracking, you will get close to the lions and spend more time with them, which will give you a chance to learn about their habits, behaviours, and other things.
Birdwatching.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is home to over 600 bird species, which makes it a birding heaven in Uganda. In different parts of the park, like the Kasenyi plains, Ishasha sector, Mweya peninsula, Kazinga Channel, Maramagambo forest, and Katwe area, you can go on a birdwatching safari and see birds like the wattled plover, open-billed stork, pied kingfisher, long-tailed cormorant, spur-winged plover, pink-backed pelican, African fish eagle, yellow-backed weaver, hadada ibis, wattled lapwing, pied crow, and others.
Chimpanzee trekking.
After gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a chimpanzee trekking safari is the second-best activity to do in Uganda. In the park, chimpanzee trekking is done in Kyambura Gorge, which is also called the valley of apes. Kyambura Gorge is in the eastern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park.
It is home to primates like chimpanzees, monkeys, and baboons, and birds, among other animals. Chimpanzee trekking is done twice a day, in the morning and in the afternoon. It can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours to trek through the jungle, or even longer if the chimpanzees are deep in the forest looking for food. Once the family of chimpanzees has been found, people will spend an hour with them getting pictures and learning more about their habits, behaviours, and other things.
Nature walk.
A nature walk is a thrilling endeavour where visitors explore the park on foot while experiencing a pleasant breeze with great scenic views of birds, animals, and others. In Queen Elizabeth National Park, you can go on a nature walk in the Maramagambo forest to see species like chimpanzees, black-and-white monkeys, L’hoest monkeys, and red-tailed monkeys.
You can also go on a nature walk on the Mweya peninsula to see the Kazinga channel and along the Ishasha River.
What to carry for a boat cruise safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Boat cruise trips at the Kazinga Channel begin at the landing site near the luxurious Mweya Safari Lodge. Visitors who want to go on the boat trip need to bring things like
- Bring a camera and extra batteries so you can record everything and take pictures of the animals you see along the water’s edge.
- A pair of binoculars, because the Kazinga Channel is one of the best places in the park to see birds from a distance.
- Hat: This will be used to protect your body from direct sunlight during cruising.
How to get to Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is in the southwestern part of Uganda. It can be reached by road or by air.
Road transport:
There are two ways to get to the park by vehicle. You can drive from Kampala through Masaka, Mbarara, and Bushenyi and then to the park, or you can drive from Kampala through Mubende, Fort Portal, and Kasese and then to the park headquarters, which takes about 6 to 7 hours.
You can also get to the park from Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in southwestern Uganda. Drive through the Ishasha sector in the southern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park to see the famous tree-climbing lions.
You can also get to the park using public transportation by taking a bus from Kampala to Kasese and then hiring a private vehicle to get to the park.
Air transport:
There are domestic airlines like Aero Link Uganda Limited and Eagle Air, which operate scheduled and charter flights from Entebbe Airport or Kajjansi Airfield to Mweya Airstrip or Kasese Airstrip, and the flight takes about one hour.
A boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth National Park is a must-do because it gives you amazing views of fauna, flora, and birds. It can also be combined with other activities, such as a game drive in Kasenyi Plains, a nature walk, mongoose tracking, lion research tracking, birding, chimpanzee trekking, and more, to make your safari fun and memorable.
