Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park
Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park: is one of the most visited areas in the country and among the reasons why tourists visit the park is the Kazinga channel boat cruise. It’s an activity where tourists get to explore the park on the water and get to different mammals, birds, lakes, and surrounding mountains.
The Kazinga channel boat cruise is one of those great wildlife experiences tourists can do while on a safari in Queen Elizabeth national park. The Kazinga channel is a 32km long freshwater channel linking lake Edward to lake gorge in the western part of Uganda. This water channel happens to pass through Queen Elizabeth national park bisecting it into two parts.
Taking part in the boat cruise activity on Kazinga channel is the best way to explore the water body and get to know different wildlife life that lives within and around the channel. Inside the waters are aquatic animals such as hippos (over 2000), crocodiles, and fish while around the channel in Queen Elizabeth park are animals trying to graze or drink water.
The boat cruise is the main activity done around the Kazinga channel and maybe the nature walks when tourists want to explore the area on foot. There are boat operators from Uganda Wildlife Authority and Mweya safari lodge who will take you for a very wonderful boat cruise during your time in the park
Boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park
Boat cruise on Kazinga channel
Kazinga channel is the only area in Queen Elizabeth national park where boat cruises can be carried out. The boat cruises are carried out twice a day which is at 11:00 am and then afternoon 2:00 pm. All sessions give tourists the same experience as they get see different wildlife and surrounding places. The activities start with safari drivers moving tourists to the starting areas.
At the starting point of the boat cruise, tourists will show their tickets and get on to the boat cruise. Here they will be taught about the rules and regulations of the activity and the boat ride shall begin. At the boat, there is a well-trained UWA ranger guide who teaches different information about the Kazinga channel, the wildlife, and the park
During the boat cruise activity, tourists shall be able to see lake Edward and lake George, Kazinga channel, hippos, crocodiles, fish, birds, and animals in Queen Elizabeth park. Tourists will be able to see birds such as long-tailed cormorant, African fish eagle, black bee-eater, pied kingfisher, yellow-billed stork, African shoebill, payrus gonoleck, and marital eagle among others.
A boat cruise on Kazinga channel especially in the dry season gives tourists an opportunity to see a lot of animals in Queen Elizabeth park along the channel grazing on the fresh vegetation or drinking water. The water sources are dry so these animals move to Kazinga channel looking for water. These animals include buffaloes, elephants, Uganda kobs, duikers, water bucks bushbucks, and different monkey species among others.
The boat cruise on Kazinga channel does take 2-3 hours and tourists are able to explore different islands on the channel, get to lake gorge and lake Edward and also enjoy a fresh cool breeze of the fresh waters. Kazinga channel is home to the highest number of hippos in the whole world and these are seen everywhere during the boat cruise.
How much is the boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park
To be part of the launch cruise activity in Queen Elizabeth national park, one needs a permit and this is got from Uganda Wildlife Authority offices or the park headquarters. Each ticket to allow one to be part of the Kazinga channel boat cruise is $30 for foreign non-residents, $25 for foreign residents, and UGX 20,000 East African citizens.
Best time to visit Queen Elizabeth national park for boat cruise activities
Tourists can visit Queen Elizabeth national park for boat cruise activities on Kazinga channel at any time of the year however there are periods said to be better than the rest. The dry months are the best to have boat cruises on Kazinga channel and these happen from June to September and December to February. During these months, there is little or no rainfall which keeps the water levels very low hence favoring good movements of the boat.
Tourists can still visit Queen Elizabeth national park in the rainy season from March to May and October to November because the park will be open. These months are good for budget travelers because accommodation facilities are very cheap during the low seasons. A few tourists visit the park because of too much rainfall which makes the water levels on Kazinga channel to rise and the winds are always too much.
Where to sleep on a boat cruise safari in Queen Elizabeth national park?
While on a boat cruise safari in Queen Elizabeth national park, you don’t have to worry about where to stay because there are several accommodation facilities in and outside the park. The accommodation facilities offer different services and they range from budget to mid-range to luxury options with where to stay depending on someone’s travel budget.
The accommodation facilities in Queen Elizabeth national park include Elephant Hub Lodge, Mweya Safari Lodge, Jacana Safari Lodge, Hippos Safari Lodge, Kyambura Gorge Lodge, Ishasha Wilderness Camp, Bush Lodge, Volcanoes Kyambura Gorge Lodge, Marafiki Safari Lodge, Enganzi Game Lodge, Mweya Hostel, Simba Safari Camp, and Kazinga Channel View Resort among others.
Accessing Queen Elizabeth national park for boat cruises
Tourists can access Queen Elizabeth national park for boat cruises activities using road transport or air transport. By air transport, different airline companies do have flights to the park, and tourists need to book their seats in advance. Aerolink Uganda and Bar Aviation Uganda have flights from Kajjansi airstrip and Entebbe international airport to Mweya airstrip or Kasese airstrip in 1 hour and 15 minutes.
By road transport, from Kampala tourists can drive through Masaka, Mbarara, Bushenyi, and then Kasese where the park is located. They can also drive from Kampala, through Mubende, Kyenjojo, Fort Portal, and Kasese to the park. Tourists coming from Bwindi can drive from Buhoma through Kihihi, Kanungu to the park.
