Are game drives safe in Murchison falls national park?
Are game drives safe in Murchison falls national park? For tourists intending to visit Murchison falls national park for game drive activities, we would like to let you know that the area is very safe for the activity at any time of the year. The park is found in Uganda which is one of the safest countries in Africa. Travelers to this park should know that they will be safe and also their properties.
Are game drives safe in Murchison falls national park?
The national park was gazetted by the government of Uganda in 1952 and its managed and controlled by Uganda Wildlife Authority. The government has made sure that Murchison falls national park as well as other protected areas are very safe for tourism activities and this has been possible by training a good number of armed ranger guides.
The armed ranger guides have been trained on how to handle different animals, remove snares and chase away poachers. The armed ranger guides have been put in different areas of the park to ensure safety and they have also been given patrol cars to keep monitoring what is going on inside the park. The armed ranger guides make sure that the security is tight at the entrance in that no one is allowed to enter the park with any weapon such as guns or knives.
The game drive activities are not guided unless one needs an armed range because the patrols are everywhere in the park to make sure you are safe and you don’t get lost. But the night game drives are guides because its dangerous animals which move in the night only and among these include lions and leopards.
In addition more to the safety of game drives in this mighty national park, there are guidelines put in place for drives and visitors to follow, and among these include keeping speeding, driving on the right game trucks, keeping a certain distance away from animals, keeping the voice low, and the time you must leave the end the game drives especially in the evening hours unless guided by UWA ranger guides.
The game drive experience in Murchison falls national park
Taking a game drive whether day or night is the best way to explore Murchison falls national park. The game drives give tourists an opportunity to see different attractions within the park even though the main focus is always on animals. Day game drives in Murchison falls national park come at zero cost and the night game drives come at a fee since there is an UWA ranger guide involved.
The game drive activity in Murchison falls national park starts in the morning or evening and at times in the night. The driver guide picks the tourists from their lodge when the time for the activity has come and they are driven to different areas around the national park with an aim of seeing different park mammals and other attractions within the park.
The activity takes 2-3 hours and within this time tourists would have seen as many wildlife species as they can. Game drives are mostly conducted in the northern sector and on this side tourists will be able to see leopards, lions, hyenas, oribis, duikers, giant forest hogs, hartebeests, elephants, hippos, buffaloes, bushbucks, waterbucks, warthogs, giraffes, olive baboons, monkeys, birds, and Murchison falls among others.
There are night game drives also conducted within this park and the activity starts evening at about 7 pm. The activity is done with an UWA ranger guide who takes you to the best areas where nocturnal animals can be seen. Night game drives happen for 2-3 hours and tourists will be able to see nocturnal animals such as hippos, lions, leopards, hyenas, mongooses, and much more.
How much does it cost to have game drives in Murchison falls national park?
To have game drives in Murchison falls national park, you need to first pay a park entrance fee to access the protected area and this is $45 for foreign non-residents, $35 for foreign residents, and UGX25000 for East African residents. The day game drives are free while the night game drives cost $40 for foreign non-residents, $40 for foreign residents, and UGX40,000 East African residents.
Best time to have game drives in Murchison falls national park.
Game drives in Murchison falls can be done at any time of the year however there are months that are better than the rest. The game drives are best enjoyed in the dry season of June to September and December to February and this is because the park receives little or no rainfall which makes the game trucks dry and passable, the roads leading to the park are passable and the vegetation is short with good views of each and every park animals.
Travelers can still have game drives in this park in the rainy season of March to May and October to November but the period favors budget travelers because the lodges are at a discount. Travelers should note that the rainy season has a lot of rainfall which makes the marram lodges to the park impassable, the game trucks are muddy and slippery and the vegetation inside the park is tall with unclear views of the animals.
Accessing Murchison falls national park for game drives
Accessing Murchison falls national park for game drives can be by air or road transport within a single day. The national park can be accessed by air transport using any of the airline companies within the country- Bar Aviation Uganda and Aerolink Uganda. Flights to Murchison falls national park take 1 hour and 15 minutes from Kajjansi airstrip or Entebbe international airport to Pakuba/Chobe/Bugugu airstrip.
Accessing Murchison falls national park By road transport, there are two routes which can get one to the park in 4-6 hours depending on the nature of the roads as well as the number of stopovers. Travelers from Kampala can go through Luwero, Nakasongola to Masindi and use any of the gates in the south of the park or Kampala, Luwero, Nakasongola, Kiryandongo to Pakwach and use any of the gates in the north of the park.
