How to access Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
How to access Bwindi Impenetrable National Park: Uganda has always received several visitors all year round to trek and habituate the mighty Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park which harbors almost a half of mountain Gorillas out of 1063 that are recorded in the wild as of 2019. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park can be accessed either by road or by air depending on the location and the sector intended to tour.
There are several routes used to access the park depending on the visitor’s interest since most people combine gorilla trekking in Bwindi with an entire Uganda tour exploring other parks such as Queen Elizabeth National Park for the boat cruise, game drive and tree climbing lions, Lake Mburo National Park for the game drive, boat cruise, and even visiting the equator for an awesome experience, and sometimes visitors connect to Bwindi from Kigali implying that there are different starting points that lead to one final destination as discussed below;
How to access Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from Entebbe international airport
For visitors heading to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from Entebbe International airport have two options of either by road or by air
By Road from Kampala or Entebbe international airport
It takes about nine to ten hours’ drive via Kampala – Mbarara – Kabale – Kisoro road using a four-wheel-drive car. However, this journey is really long but rewarding as visitors enjoy clear views of different places along the way sighting farms in the western Uganda, plantations, local communities and hills of kabala as they head to Kisoro.
Visitors can also connect from Kampala to Buhoma by using the kampala- Ntungamo – Kabale – Kanungu – Buhoma road or connect to Buhoma sector by using the road from Kampala – Mbarara- Ntungamo- Rukungiri- Kihihi and then to Buhoma sector or via Kampala – Mbarara- Kabale – Ruhija road and finally through kampala – Ntungamo – Kabale – Nkuringo road which all offers different distances and different sightings along the way.
By Air
However, visitors who do not enjoy long drives can opt for flying options direct from Entebbe International airport. There are both charter flights and domestic flights from Entebbe International Airport or Kajjansi Airfield to Kisoro Airstrip and then drive to the park headquarters
How to access Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from other national parks
It is also possible for visitors who wish to combine gorilla trekking in Bwindi with a tour to other national parks due to the fact that Bwindi Impenetrable national park is also close to other national parks thus giving the best option of combining different parks in one tour. The major national parks that are easy to connect to Bwindi impenetrable national park include Queen Elizabeth national park and Lake Mburo national park all situated in the western part of Uganda
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has four sectors which all can be visited at any given period of time offering a variety of habituated mountain gorilla families for trekking and also giving a chance to habituators. Some of these sectors are situated in the north such as Buhoma, Ruhija in the east whereas Nkuringo and Rushaga sectors are situated in the Southern part of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The major trailhead is in the Buhoma sector which can be easily accessed from Queen Elizabeth national park by road within 2-6 hours’ drive depending on which part of the queen you are situated.
For example, it takes roughly two to three hours’ drive from Ishasha sector situated in the southern part, Queen Elizabeth Park, to connect to Buhoma sector in northern part of Bwindi impenetrable park and takes around five to six hours for visitors who are connecting to Bwindi from the other sectors that are in the northern part of Queen such as mweya peninsular which is about five to six hours drive to Buhoma sector in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park passing through Ishasha sector a home of tree climbing lions and then through Kihihi to the Northern part of Bwindi particularly Buhoma sector.
There are also some flights from Mweya Airstrip in Queen Elizabeth national park to Kisoro airstrip which is easy to access the sectors in the southern parts of Bwindi or charter flights to Kayonza airstrip which is situated in the Northern Part of the park and easy to access the sectors in the North.
On another hand, it takes about 5- 7 hours’ drive to connect from Lake Mburo national park to Bwindi impenetrable national park depending on the sector to be visited in Bwindi.
How to access Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from Kigali –Rwanda
Most of the visitors on mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi usually land in Kigali airport and then cross borders into Uganda to trek the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable national park. This is actually the most preferred journey as it takes less time as compared to a drive from Entebbe airport and also it enables visitors to explore two different beautiful countries. The easiest access from Rwanda to Bwindi is usually via the Cyanika border and then proceed to Kisoro and finally to Rushaga sector which is situated in the southern part of Bwindi and the only place in Uganda that offers gorilla habituation experience and the most visited sector by visitors from Rwanda.
Connecting from one sector to another
The most preferred sector in Bwindi is the Buhoma sector due to the fact that its history is so interesting as the first sector which introduced gorilla trekking in Uganda. And it can be accessed via different routes from kampala or other park and these include the Kampala- Mbarara – ntungamo- Kabale – Kanungu – Buhoma , other vehicles pass through kampala- Mbarara- ntungamo- Rukungiri –kihihi and finally to Buhoma sector and finally via kampala – Mbarara- Kabale – Ruhija –Buhoma
Once in Bwindi impenetrable national park, it is very easy to connect from one sector to another especially those in the same region. Such as connecting from the Buhoma sector in the northern part of Bwindi to Ruhija sector in the Eastern part of Bwindi and Also it is easy to connect from Nkuringo to the Rushaga sector both in the southern part of Bwindi. Implying that a visitor can sleep in Ruhija and trek in Buhoma and vice vasa.
Accommodation facilities in Bwindi impenetrable national park
During a Uganda tour to Bwindi, expect to have ample over night at the best lodges situated with in Bwindi. Different sectors have different accommodations ranging from budget, midrange and luxury. So there are several choices of accommodations depending on the visitors pocket and the sector visited. Some of these lodges include Mahogany springs, Buhoma lodge, Bwindi forest lodge, in Buhoma sector northern Bwindi , gorilla safari lodge, Ichumbi lodge, Chameleon hill lodge, Bwindi jungle lodge , gorilla safari camp and many more in Rushaga sector southern Bwindi , clouds mountain gorilla lodge and Nkuringo gorilla camp in Nkuringo sector southern part of Bwindi , gorilla mist lodge, Bakiga Lodge, Ruhija gorilla resort, and Ruhija gorilla safari lodge in Ruhija sector in the Eastern part of Bwindi
Conclusion
The strategic location of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park in far south western corner of Uganda in Kanungu district which borders with DRC makes it the best destination to visit once in a lifetime to spend time in the jungle with the mountain gorillas and their friend the Batwa people as you learn more about the history of Batwa and mountain gorillas alongside other attractions like mammals, birds and probably different plant species in the forest.
