The Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) is turning its attention on promoting domestic and marine tourism. The move aims at protecting the industry against international tourism fluctuations caused by economic and other shocks.

The chairman of the National Anthrax Task Force Dr Nicholas Kauta told journalists on Thursday that so far, 82 hippos and nine buffaloes have been confirmed dead following the outbreak in June. He said the most affected areas are those surrounding Kazinga Channel and lakes Edward and George.

As a national response, he said, the task force is implementing a multi-pronged response which includes undertaking a base line study to determine the extent of the outbreak and affected species through carrying out carcass management, marine and terrestrial patrols and sample analysis.

He warned people around the area not to graze animals in the park, report all sicknesses and deaths in wild and domestic animals to authorities and not to consume meat from sick and dead animals.

He said there will be a ring vaccination of livestock in the national park and all health centres have been put on high alert.

Anthrax is caused by bacteria (bacillus anthracis) in the atmosphere. Animals mainly herbivores get it through contaminated grass, soil and water.

Humans can  acquire it through eating contaminated meat and animal products from infected animals.

The park has often experienced attacks in  1954 and in 1994 and 2004. In 2004, about 300 hippos died.

The Wild Life Authority says there is no cause of alarm that all animals in the park might die because the beasts  have natural immunity to the disease.

Police and Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) have shot dead one of the hippopotamuses that killed two people and cows in Munyonyo on Lake Victoria shores.
Wildlife authority officials shot the hippopotamus dead on Sunday after a two-day hunt. It allegedly killed Peter Lugo, 25, a fisherman, and his brother, Lazarus Muko, 20.

Air Uganda is the designated national airline for Uganda which was formed in 2007 and began commercial flight operations on November 15, 2007 with its Headquartered in Kampala. The Airline operations base is at Entebbe International Airport, and it operates scheduled flights from Entebbe to various countries in Eastern Africa and Central Africa apart from some few countries. The company is 100 percent owned by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) through its company Celestair. Other airlines operating in Rwanda include Rwanda’s national carrier Rwanda Air, Kenya Airways, SN Brussels and Ethiopian airlines. Air Uganda begun operations in November, 2007.

Before, Air Uganda’s CRJ200 used not to operate through Rwanda but by the moment after landing at Kigali International Airport. The airline made its maiden flight on 22^nd/Feb/2010 morning. More so, Air Uganda has continued its forays into the region following 22^nd/Feb/2010’s maiden flight to Kigali and the airline made its long-awaited commercial flight Monday morning. The airlines’ CRJ200 aircraft touched down at Kigali International Airport at 8:00 am.

According to the company’s Head of Sales and Marketing, Jenifer B. Musiime, said that “passengers can now fly to Entebbe (Uganda) daily and Flights between the two destinations are daily with morning flights from Monday to Thursday and evening flights for the rest of the week (Friday to Sunday),” .According to the flight schedule from Monday to Thursday, Air Uganda flies to Kigali, departing Entebbe at 7: 45 am and arriving in Kigali at 8:00 am and from Friday to Sunday. The airline departs Entebbe at 4:15 pm and arrives in Kigali at 4pm.

The airline’s operations in Kigali have made the city their sixth destination on the continent. Air Uganda also has two daily flights to Nairobi (Kenya), daily flights to Dar el Salaam and Juba, and tri-weekly flights to Zanzibar and Mombasa.The airline also flies its passengers to European destinations thanks to its partnership with Belgian Airline SN Brussels. However, after bringing the carrier to the Rwandan skies, the airline now believes it has a more complete coverage of the East African skies.

“It’s an honor for us and we now want to give people options when it comes to flying because on top of daily direct flights to Entebbe, we also have connections to cities like Juba and Zanzibar,” Musiime added.

For the next three weeks, passengers can fly to Entebbe for a promotional fare of $99, which is from 23^rd/Feb/2010. The airline will upgrade to $150 before settling at the normal air-ticket fare of $199.Air-Uganda, which owns a CRJ100, CRJ200 and McDonald-Douglas MD-87 aircraft, also plans to launch its cargo service which will be available on all routes that the airline operates

This operation of Air Uganda has reduced on the transport cost, time and distance that most tourists have been incurring during there travel to Rwanda hence enabling many tourists (visitors) to access Rwanda in time. More so, there is now quick and cheap transport from other destinations to Rwanda. Therefore, don’t miss to be part of the game.

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If your interested in mountaineering, then the (5,119m) high, snow covered Rwenzori Mountain, which is protected as Rwenzori Mountain national park and a World Heritage Centre-will offer you the unique experience you will savour for a lifetime.

The mist-surrounded peaks provide stunning backdrops to this magnificent mountain. Ever since the Rwenzori became known to the world, its features have been going through tremendous changes. Today, the most visible and probably the most enduring as well as the fragile vegetation along the trails.

It is not just the Rwenzoris alone that you can hike in Uganda as there is also the famous Mount Elgon National park, which straddles the Uganda-Kenya Frontier in Eastern Uganda. The park boundaries contain 1147 sq. km of mountain. Most of this area is covered with typical afro-montane vegetation, complete with giant groundsels and bamboo forest. It is prudent to note that many hikers find Mt. Elgon an exciting alternative to some of the fascinating climbs in East Africa.

It has many of the same attractions, with milder climate and lower elevation. Climbing the peaks no special equipment or technical climbing experience. It is possible to reach the summit of the mountain in as little as three days, but a slightly longer visit will permit a more thorough exploration of all that Mt. Elgon has to offer.

Attractions in Queen Elizabeth Wildlife Safari Park

Maramagambo Forest walks
There are three guided walks. The trail is a round the Forested shore of Lake Kyasanduka, then the second trail leads to a huge bat cave and python and the third one is around the back of Lake Nyamusingiri, which will give you an opportunity to se snowy-headed robin-chat, Scaly-breasted illadopsis and Chestnut wattle-eye. You will have an opportunity to see monkeys like red-tailed and vervet, black and white Colobus, L’Hoest’s monkey, leopard if lucky, Forest birds and the amazing chimps.

Launch Cruise on Kazinga Channel

In Queen Elizabeth, the launch trip takes place on the Kazinga Channel. The boat usually leaves daily at 09:00hr and 14:00 and takes 2-5 hours tour on the waters. While on the Launch Cruise, the professional guides will be able to give you useful information and answer your queries. With his help, you will have a great opportunity to view the wonderful scenery and variety of animals and birds. One should come with cameras and binoculars.

Game Driving

The game viewing circuit lies on the north side of the Kazinga Channel. With the help of the professional guide, you will have a wonderful opportunity to see Lions, Crocodiles, Hyena, Buffalos, Antelopes, Hippopotamuses, Leopard, Giant Forest hog, Elephant, Cape buffalo, Defassa, Waterbuck, Uganda Kob, Bushbuck and Topi – in their natural habitat during any wildlife safaris in the region.

Chimpanzee Tracking in Kyambura Gorge

With the help of the professional guide, you will be taken for Chimpanzee Trekking in Kyambura Gorge. The Gorge creates the boarder between the Kyambura Wildlife Reserve and Queen Elizabeth National Park. This Gorge is where you can get a large community of chimps. They can be tracked within the confines of a forested river gorge carved into the surrounding flat savannah. The scientific name of the chimpanzee is
Pan troglodytes. The wild chimpanzee rarely lives past the age of 40, while those in captivity live up to the age of 60 years.

Bird watching

If you are a bird watcher, Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of the most interesting destinations. You can see more than 610 bird species while on the Kazinga Channel Launch and on the Game drives. The park is teeming with a variety of birds like yellow-billed stork, plovers, pink-backed pelicans, white-bellied pelicans, white-bellied Cormorants, black-headed Gonolek Inter-alia. For more on Uganda bird watching

There are various accommodation options in Queen Elizabeth national park. The lodging facilities range from luxurious lodges, medium range to budget accommodation all providing bed and breakfast and dinner if you are spending a night.

Most of the safari lodges are cheap and offer discounts for large groups of travellers. Campsite are there in the park and also hotels for accommodation but far away from the park. The safari lodges and hostels in the park include:

Luxury accommodation
Jacana Safari lodge
Mweya Safari lodge

Medium Accommodation
Kingfisher Safari Resort
Hippo Hill Camp

Budget accommodation and campsites
Mweya Hostel
Institute of Ecology Mweya

Other Packages To Queen Elizabeth National Park

1. Queen Elizabeth national park
2. 3 day Queen Elizabeth national park safari
3. Queen Elizabeth national park safari

This park is located in the northwestern part of Uganda, sprawling inland from the shore of Lake Albert around the Victoria Nile. It derives its name from the Murchison Falls water fall, where the mighty River Nile explodes through a narrow gorge and flows down to become a placid river whose banks are patronized by hippos, crocodiles, waterbucks, and buffaloes. The vegetation is mainly savannah, riverine forest and woodland. Wildlife includes; Lions, Leopards, elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, hartebeests, oribis, Uganda kobs, chimpanzees and many bird species including the rare shoebill.

It is comprised of Murchison Falls National Park, Bugungu Refuge and Karuma Wildlife Refuge. This park is believed to be the oldest protected area in Uganda. It covers a total area of 3,893km2, with Bugungu Wildlife Refuge, Karuma Wildlife Refuge and Budongo Forest Reserve covering 510Km2, 678Km2, and 591Km2 respectively. While the National Park and the two wildlife reserves are under the auspices of the Uganda Wildlife Authority and Murchison Falls Conservation Area, Budongo Forest Reserve is managed by the National Forest Association.

Sleeping sickness decimated the inhabitants of an area of approximately 13,000Km2 during the period of 1907 and 1912.
This paved way for the establishment of the Bunyoro Game Reserve in 1910, which is now part of the National Park in Masindi District. With time, the boundaries were extended into Gulu district, north of the river, and the resulting protected area became known as the Bunyoro-Gulu Game Reserve in 1928.

Established in 1932, Budongo Forest Reserve became the first commercial logging concession in Uganda and is one of the most intensively studied “working” Forest in the world to date.

The frontiers of this forest continued to expand over the next thirty years until their reached the current size of 825Km2. As the locals continued to lose hand, a lot of animosity was created as people never quite knew where the boundaries ended due to the frequent changes. Because of the reduction of hunting in the Bunyoro-Gulu Game Reserve, the animal population increased, which justified upgrading the reserve to Murchison Falls national Park. In 1952, the British administration established the National Parks Act of Uganda. By the mid 1960’s, Murchison Falls had become the prime safari destination in all of East Africa, with well over 60,000 visitors annually.

When the sleeping sickness outbreak was put into check, people began to populate the areas around the new park. It was deemed prudent to establish a buffer zone of controlled-use lands around the park, to mitigate encroachment and poaching pressures. In 1963, the Karuma and Bugungu Controlled Hunting Areas, which were later upgraded to game Reserves, were established. Karuma was upgraded in 1964 while Bugungu in 1968. The establishment if the National parks Act led to the forced eviction of come of the villages and new moratoriums on hunting.

From the late 1970s to the mid 1980s, the increasing number of mammals came to an abrupt end as Amin and later Milton Obote’s armies started shooting animals either for target practice or for food. A combination of political mayhem and decreasing numbers of animals in the 1970’s and 80s, led to a sharp decline in the number of visitors. But the numbers are now steadily increasing due to political stability.

Murchison falls is a park, which is surrounded by lands that are not suitable for farming, which has availed less chances of converting the protected area to farmland except in the Karuma Wild Reserve. This gives it a unique position. Since the population around here is still low, a pro-active and inclusive approach can be devised to involve the locals in wildlife management.

The park is a viable breeding population of many rare mammals and bird species which will continue to draw tourists and yet the populations are still well below the carrying capacity of the land. There has been a period of over 20 years of very low impact by animals on the ecosystem due to political mayhem. This means that the park will grow and at the same time create an excellent laboratory to study the resilience of faunal species after a rapid decline, as well as vegetation succession patterns.
This is necessary because almost no ecological research is being done in the conservation area currently.

Murchison falls safari information and packages

1. Murchison falls tour
2. Murchison falls national park
3. Uganda wildlife safaris
4. Murchison falls safari

The popular waterfall trail
This provides on attractive features of the forest, with a profusion of tree ferns, orchids, epiphytic ferns and Bwindi’s colourful array of butterflies. The trail leads to 3 delightful crystal clear waterfalls, which typifies your impression of a tropical rain forest.

Nature walks
There are 4 fantastic hiking trails where you will have an opportunity to see primates, species of birds, butterflies, trees and other organisms. And this usually starts at 9:00am in the morning after breakfast and 2:15pm in the afternoon after lunch.

Buhoma village walk
The village walk is managed by the local community and takes up to three hours. This walk introduces you to different interesting sites such a typical rural homestead, then a visit to the local traditional healer, banana beer brewing demonstrations site and much more. There will be a traditional performance in the evening, which is presented by women ad orphan groups. Proceeds from these go directly to improve the welfare of the families around the park.

Bird watching
It holds over 346 species of birds and contains 90% of all Albertine rift endemics, difficult or impossible to see in any part of East Africa. For the adept bird watcher, close to 100 bird species can be identified in a day. You can visit Buhoma and Ruhija for this dream. The example of birds include; the African green broad bill-psedocalptomena graveri; dwarf honey guide indicator pumilio, kivu ground thrush zoothera a Tanganjicak, Lagden’s bush shrike Mahaconotus legdeni, Chaplin’s flycatcher
(musticapa lend) Oberhander’s ground thrush, yellow eyed flycatchers, Montane double collared sunbird Nectarinia ludoviencis and dusky twinspot inter-alia.

The Munyaga River
The trail provides short walks for the tourists with very little time to spare. It gives you an
opportunity to see birds and primates of the forest edge.

The River Ivi
This trail is the longest in the park and will occupy you for a full day. It is highly recommended for those with a soft spot for bird watching.

The 5.2Km Muzabajiro Loop Trail
It offers breath-taking views of Bwindi Forest, Western Rift valley and the Virungas. On the way, you witness hundreds of pre-historic tree ferns. The top of this trail is a great place for a picnic lunch.

The Rushora trail
The trail commands expansive views across the western park Nationale des Virungas, provides a spectacular backup and on clear days, Lake Edward and the Rwenzori Mountains are visible.

For your Bwindi gorilla tour

Uganda hosted the commonwealth meeting in November 2007, which was attended by delegates from all over the world, including the Queen of England, Elizabeth II. It was a great opportunity for the country to market its adverse tourism potentials such as teeming wildlife in Uganda’s national parks, the rare and endangered mountain gorillas, culture etc. In addition this world meeting enhanced the development of world class infrastructure such as Hotels, restaurants, conference centers and Roads, recognition of and services to guests, as well as generating of revenues therefore creating economic impacts

However, many Uganda tourism hotels were renovated and many were built in a very high standard in order to meet the increasing demand of tourists which is due to increase in the countries tourist arrivals. Such hotels include: Golf Course Hotel, cassia Lodge, Grand Imperial Hotel, Sheraton Hotel, Sunbird holiday home, J&M Airport hotel and many others. Visit Hotels in Uganda for Accommodation options.

The up lift of hotel quality in Uganda was supported by the government. This is evidenced by the incidence where the government gave Behakanira $1.3m (about sh2.7b) to complete 200 rooms, hoping that CHOGM guests would stay at the hotel.
The transaction was made on November 15, 2007, just three days to the summit.
Additionally, even” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs kept telling the hotel owners that the guests will come and occupy the hotel rooms.
According to one of the hotel owners, the Government hired each room at $200 per night for nine days in preparation for the Commonwealths meeting.

According to the Auditor General’s report about the GHOGM hotels, J&M was not on the list of approved CHOGM venues and no activity was hosted there. Meaning it’s to be used other tourists who come to the country. Therefore, there is variety of quality accommodation facilities  in central Uganda which is able to meet all the tourist accommodation demands so never worry of where to stay when you travel in Africa especially Uganda.