When is the best time to visit Uganda?

When is the best time to visit Uganda? : Uganda is an incredible destination all year round, however depending on what you plan while on your Uganda Safari such as safari drives or gorilla trekking. Some months offer better weather conditions other months.

Uganda lies on the Equator and has a warm subtropical climate with daytime temperatures average between 25 and 29°C (77 and 84°F) and night-time temperatures frequently drop below 20°C (68ºF), this offers a nice reprieve on the hot days.

Humidity is pretty much always high.

Different regions of Uganda

The Eastern Region – the EasterUganda n region of is a little drier than the rest.

Though it has many gems to offers like the impressive game parks, sipi falls, coffee farms and Mount Elgon, this area doesn’t tend to be visited quite as much by tourists. In the northeast of Uganda, there is the popular Kidepo Valley National Park which is a great destination for Uganda safaris.

The Southern Region – this region hosts the capital city of Uganda – Kampala, Entebbe International Airport, Lake Victoria – the source of the Nile in Jinja and the beautiful and comparable Lake Bunyonyi.

This region has many fantastic game parks in the south and west of the country namely Lake Mburo National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Semuliki National Park and the beautiful mountains of the moon – Rwenzori Mountains

The Southwestern Border region –. This region is mountainous and covered in misty jungle with attractions such as Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Virunga Mountains and the Rwenzori Mountains. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is one of the places where you can go gorilla trekking the Virungas consist of a chain of free-standing volcanic mountains and also has mountain gorillas.

The best seasons for visiting Uganda

Generally, the best time to visit Uganda is during one of the two dry seasons, the short dry season runs from December to February or early March. The long dry season is roughly from June to September.

Uganda has subtropical climate and lies on the equator, in summary the dry seasons in Uganda are December to February and June to August. These are good months to avoid the rains, December to February is very hot. However, June to September is the best time for dry weather and cooler days.

Travel Tip- Generally, the best months for visiting Uganda are June to September as there is little rain and the days are a bit cooler.

Best time for gorilla trekking

You can go gorilla trekking in Uganda at any time of the year, however the best time is from mid-December to early February and from June to September which are dry seasons. The season coincides with the peak travel season in Uganda, this means that the gorilla permits sell out quickly that is why travelers are advised to book their permits in advance.

Gorilla trekking in Uganda during the wet seasons is possible and be very muddy and a slippery experience.

It is worth pointing out that the forests where mountain gorillas live are never actually dry, even in the dry seasons it can rain in Bwindi and Mgahinga through the year and they are always wet. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park are dominated by rainforests that is why it can rain any time of the day as well as year.

Best time for chimpanzee trekking

Chimpanzee trekking is a rewarding primate experience you can do in Uganda, on this experience a small group of visitors go on a guided hike in the forest to find and observe chimpanzee troops. Kibale Forest National Park is located in western Uganda protecting a beautiful moist evergreen forest and here you can enjoy sightings of chimpanzees hanging out in the trees.

Kibale Forest National Park is home to 13 different primates, so expect to see more than chimpanzees. Other primates to look out include black and white colobus monkeys, red colobus and olive baboons among others.

The best time to visit Uganda for chimpanzee trekking is from December to February and June to September, during the dry season the trails are less slippery and it is less likely to have a rainy day.

Best time for safari in Uganda

Regardless of the time of the year, there is always lots of fantastic adventure to enjoy in Uganda. However, for travelers wanting to go during the drier seasons when there is less chance of rain. We suggest visiting in the two dry seasons that December to March and June to August.

Uganda is a big country with different regions which naturally have slightly varying seasonal patterns.

Best time to Visit Kidepo Valley National Park

Kidepo Valley National Park located in the Northeastern Uganda is arguably the best national park in the country hosts all that you could think of in the wildlife world and is more similar to Serengeti National Park in Tanzania and Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.

Kidepo is an enormous park with varied scenery and animals, one of the reasons to why the park’s wildlife is flourishing is that the local people defended them in the past from poachers.

The best months for seeing as many animals as possible in Kidepo Valley National Park is July and August.

 These months are dry season and what makes they the best time for game spotting is because at these times the animals congregate around watering holes making them easier to find. During the wet seasons, the animals travel in search for drier ground and this makes them hard to find.

In Kidepo, you will always find a wonderful abundance of wildlife in Kidepo.

Murchison Falls, Queen Elizabeth and Lake Mburo National Parks

The best wildlife safari destinations in Uganda are located in the south and west of the country and the most of them are Murchison Falls National Park in the west, Queen Elizabeth National Park in the west and Lake Mburo National Park in the west not far from Kampala the capital city.

Murchison Falls National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park are notable offering not only traditional safari drivers but also boat safaris.

June and July are arguably the best months for safari as the days are cooler and animals become easier to spot.Uganda

The best time to go on a safari in  generally depends on what to want to see, the dry months are lauded as the best as that is when you are likely to the most animals. But there are other factors worthy of consideration as below

Season	Pros	Cons
Short dry season: December to mid- March	Animals are easy to find as they gather at waterholes and rivers	·       This is a great time for birding ·       Fewer tourists ·       The days are very hot
Long wet season: Mid-March to May	·       The many different types of landscapes, from wetlands to savannah are very pretty and flowers appear ·       The parks are relatively empty of visitors	·       Expect some rainy days ·       Animals are harder to spot ·       Parts of Murchison Falls National Park become inaccessible after heavy rainy
Long dry season: June to September	·       Animals congregate around water bodies making them easy to find and you often see them in large numbers ·       The days are cooler than at other times of the year especially in June and July ·       Very little chance of rain	·       The landscape is not as soft and pretty as it is during the wet seasons ·       Its peak season – so parks are more crowded with visitors
Short wet season: October and November	The landscape softens and is less dusty There are fewer visitors to the parks as this is off-peak season	Animals are little harder to spot

Best time for hiking Rwenzori Mountains

You can visit the Rwenzori Mountains any time of the year and enjoy fantastic hikes, however if you wish to go hiking up in the mountains or embark on a multiday trek like to the top of Mount Stanely. Consider the drier seasons, the trails in Rwenzori Mountains National Park are rugged, sometimes boggy and slippery, at times very steep. So the best time to visit Uganda for hiking in the Rwenzori Mountains is during either seasons of the dry seasons.

Best time for hiking the Virunga Mountains

The Virunga Mountains can be found in the extreme Southwest of Uganda, the Virunga mountains is a chain of volcanoes straddling the border region where the DR. Congo, Uganda and Rwanda meet. The three volcanoes that lie partially in Uganda are Mt Sabyinyo (3,669 m), Mt Muhabura (4,127 m) and Mt Gahinga (3,474 m).

The best time to visit Uganda if you are intending to visit the Virunga Mountains is between June and September, these are driest months and what makes them the best time is the less rain and less slippery trails.