Where to do night game drives in Uganda; Night game drive is an interesting activity where tourists will be able to explore the savannah plains at night with spotlight torches for clear viewing of nocturnal animals which become active at night. Uganda is a home of 10 national parks namely Queen Elizabeth national park, Murchison falls national park, kidepo valley national park, Semuliki national park, Lake Mburo national park, Bwindi impenetrable national park, kibale forest national park, Mgahinga gorilla national park, Rwenzori national park and Mount Elgon national park. out of the 10 national parks in Uganda, night game drive is only carried out in 3 national parks that is Murchison falls national park, Queen Elizabeth national park and Lake Mburo national park.

Where to do night game drives in Uganda

Murchison falls national park

Murchison falls national park is the largest national park located in north western part of Uganda. the national park harbours abundant wildlife species including the big four mammals which are the lions, leopards, elephants, buffaloes, other animals like giraffes, waterbucks, Jackson’s hartebeest, oribi, warthogs, primates like chimpanzees, olive baboons, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys and over 450 recorded bird species including the illusive shoebill stork.

Night game drive in Murchison falls national park is mainly done in the northern part of park and starts at around 6:30 pm. During the night game drive, you will carry spotlight torches and also be accompanied by an armed UWA ranger guide who will help you to spot nocturnal animals like lions, leopards, hyenas, civet, genets, night jar, bush babies, view hippos feeding among others. Murchison Falls National Park also offers other interesting activities that tourists can combine with night game drives such as sport fishing, day game drives, Nile delta boat cruise and boat cruise to the bottom of the falls, chimpanzee trekking in Budongo forest, bird watching, guided nature walks among others.

Queen Elizabeth national park

Queen Elizabeth national park is the second largest national park in Uganda located in western region in Kasese, Kamwege, Rubirizi and Rukungiri districts. Queen Elizabeth national park is another national park in Uganda that offers the exciting night game drive where tourists will be able to explore the savannah plains at night.

Night game drives in Queen Elizabeth national park is only done in mweya peninsula as Kasenyi plains gets many tourists during the day and it start at around 6:30 pm with an armed ranger guide and spotlight torches for clear viewing of nocturnal animals like lions, leopards, serval cats, bush babies, Genal, civet, hyenas, banded mongoose among others. During the game drive in Queen Elizabeth national park, you will also be able to spot hippos feeding, other animals like buffaloes, elephants, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, warthogs among others. Apart from night game drives, Queen Elizabeth national park offers activities like boat cruise on Kazinga channel, lion tracking experience, bird watching, guided nature walks, chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura gorge among others.

Lake Mburo national park

Lake Mburo national park is the smallest savannah national park in Uganda located in western region in Kiruhura district. Lake Mburo national park is a home of different animals including buffaloes, waterbucks, impalas, zebras, oribi, topi, elands, giraffes, bush bucks, warthogs and over 350 bird species including the prehistoric shoebill stork.

Night game drives in Lake Mburo national park starts in the evening at around 7:00pm with spotlight torches and an armed UWA ranger guide who will help you to spot nocturnal animals like leopards, hyenas, bush pigs, white-tailed mongoose, side-stripped jackal, aardvark, black galago, honey badger, porcupines, genet cats, view hippos among others. Lake Mburo national park offers other adventurous activities that travellers can engage in during the safari including horseback riding, sport fishing, bird watching, boat cruise, guided nature walks, day game drives among others.

Cost of night game drives in Uganda

Night game drives in Queen Elizabeth national park, Murchison falls national park and Lake Mburo national park cost 30 USD per person for foreign non residents, 20 USD per person for foreign residents and 50,000 UGX per person for East African citizens when using a private vehicle and only pre-registered vehicles will undertake night game drives and use of Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) is mandatory for night game drives.

When using Uganda Wildlife Authority vehicle, night game drive in Murchison falls national park, Queen Elizabeth national park and Lake Mburo national park costs 40 USD per person for foreign non residents, 35 USD per person for foreign residents and 40,000 UGX per person for East African citizens.

Best time to do night game drive in Uganda

Night game drives in Murchison falls national park, Queen Elizabeth national park and Lake Mburo national park can be done all year round though the best time is during the dry season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February because during this period there is less rainfall in the park therefore vegetation will be short which gives you an opportunity to view the nocturnal animals clearly. During the dry season game drive tracks will be dry and passable which makes night game dries easy.

What to carry for a night game drive in Uganda?

There are a number of items that you should carry when going for your night game drive in Uganda including spotlight torches, insect repellent, long sleeved shirt and trouser, warm sweater, camera and extra batteries among others.

Night game drive is an exciting activity in Uganda that shouldn’t be missed during your safari in Uganda. For more information about where to do night game drives, do not hesitate to contact us at Achieve Global Safaris or visit our website for affordable Uganda safari packages.