wildlife in Uganda on a boat cruise

wildlife in Uganda on a boat cruise

wildlife in Uganda on a boat cruise  where you can enjoy a unique experience of watching savannah wild animals from the comfort of a houseboat. The country’s water bodies attract a large number of wildlife that come to sip on the life-giving waters, and a boat safari is one of the best ways to get up close to these animals.

Unlike the traditional African safaris in Uganda conducted in a 4×4 land cruiser or on foot, Uganda boat safaris offer a more stunning experience of reaching the animals on the banks of water bodies in the parks. With a boat’s vantage point, tourists can view live wildlife drama without the struggle of beating the bush.

A boat trip in Uganda is also one of the best vantage points for spotting wildlife, and it’s a more peaceful experience compared to the bumpy ride in a safari truck. You can enjoy a cool breeze coming off the water instead of kicked-up dust in your eyes, and you can rely on the onboard bathroom instead of scrambling to find a discrete spot in the bush.

For wildlife enthusiasts, Uganda offers incredible opportunities to enjoy watching wildlife from a boat. During a 2-3-hour boat cruise safari with Nkuringo Safaris, you can sip on your favorite drink as the covered pontoon silently glides across the shimmering waters, with just a handful of other boats visible in the distance. Being free from any big crowds makes for some extraordinary animal sightings.

The boat safari gets so close to a motionless crocodile that you can discern the individual scales on its shiny, mottled skin; meanwhile, an unperturbed hippo stands just a few feet away, munching busily on tall blades of yellowed grass. It’s a breathtaking scene.

If you are planning a gorilla trekking adventure in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and would like to watch the wildlife game on safari, but you don’t want the hassle of crossing borders to the prominent destinations, then booking a front row boat safari in Uganda would be the perfect choice to enjoy wildlife viewing.

Kazinga Channel Boat Safari |

The 20 mi (32 km) Kazinga Channel is the most popular waterfront for boat cruise safaris in Uganda. The channel cuts through Queen Elizabeth National Park, connecting lakes Edward (west) and Gorge (east) and providing the best opportunity to see Uganda’s big game animals up-close by boat safari.

Boat trips leave Mweya jetty twice daily and cruise the channel length for approximately three hours. The first launch leaves at 11:00 hours, and the second leaves at 14:00 hours. But you can take a private boat or canoe via Mweya.

Wildlife to see on Kazinga Channel boat safari-Viewing wildlife in Uganda from water on a boat cruise safari

On the Kazinga Channel boat cruise, you can catch sight of elephants, buffalo, waterbuck, Uganda kob, and large hippo pods daily. Occasionally, you can see the giant forest hog, leopard, and lion. Keep an eye open for the enormous water monitor lizard, which is common in the riverine scrub, as well as crocodiles. The odds of seeing predators and other nocturnal creatures coming to drink are highest in the late afternoon.

Waterbirds are plentiful on Kazinga Channel boat safaris, particularly water birds like the yellow-billed stroke and various plovers. Pink-backed pelicans and white bullied cormorants often flock on a sandbank near the channel mouth. One smaller bird to look out for is the black-headed gonolek, a member of the shrike family with a dazzling red chest – and look closely, as the localized papyrus gonolek, similar in appearance with a yellow crown, has also been recorded.

The 14:00 launch trip is most likely to yield good elephant sightings, particularly on a hot day, when these thirsty creatures generally gravitate towards the water from midday onwards, sometimes bathing in the channel.

An early boat safari on a private houseboat or canoe (08:00 and 17:00) is a more rewarding photography safari in Uganda as the light will be softer. However, this may be challenging because of the increased camera shaking on the rocking boat in low light.

Lake Mburo Boat Cruise

A boat cruise safari on Lake Mburo leaves from the jetty at the main campsite, 1 km from Rwonyo Camp. In addition to the attractive scenery and simple pleasure of being out on the water, the boat safari reliably produces good sightings of hippos, crocodiles, buffalo, waterbuck, and bushbuck. It’s also worth looking out for the three species of resident otter.

Among the more conspicuous waterbirds you’ll spot on a boat cruise in Lake Mburo National Park are the African fish eagle, marabou stork, pied kingfisher, and various egrets and herons. The Ross’s turaco and Narina trogon are frequently seen in lakeside thickets. Lake Mburo is possibly the most accessible place in Uganda to see the elusive African finfoot, which is generally associated with still water below overhanging branches.

Murchison, Victoria Nile Boat Safari – Viewing wildlife in Uganda from water on a boat cruise safari

The superb boat trip safari from Paraa to the base of the Murchison Falls is the park’s most popular and longest-running attraction — the Queen Mother made an inaugural voyage in a spanking-new launch back in 1959.

In addition to the stalwart UWA launch trips, two private companies, G&C Tours and Marasa (owners of Paraa Lodge), also run various crafts on the river. Consequently, it is now easy to arrange boat safari voyages to meet your schedule and requirements.

Keen photographers, for example, would certainly wish to leave slightly earlier in the morning and later in the afternoon than the UWA boats to capture the best light.

On the way to the falls, the boat safaris follow a stretch of the Nile with a compelling African atmosphere, fringed by Borassus palms, acacia woodland, and mahogany stands.

Game viewing is excellent on a boat safari in Murchison Falls National Park along the paraa stretch— hippos in their hundreds, some of the largest crocodiles left in Africa, small herds of buffalo, waterbuck, kob, giraffe, bushbuck, and black-and-white colobus. Elephants are frequently observed playing in the water, often within a few meters of the boat, and fortunate visitors might even see a lion or leopard.

The birdlife on the papyrus-lined banks is stunning, with the top prize being the shoebill, seen here less often than on the trip to the Delta but a distinct possibility in the dry season. Savvy birders are most likely to see the African fish eagle, Goliath heron, saddle-billed stork, African jacana, pied and malachite kingfishers, African skimmer, piacpiac, rock pratincole, black-headed gonolek, black-winged red bishop, yellow-mantled widowbird, and the yellow-backed weaver. And at the right time of year, you can see a variety of migrant waders.

The dazzlingly colorful red-throated bee-eater which nests in sandbanks between Paraa and the falls is more likely to be seen here than anywhere in East Africa.

The UWA’s double-decker boats have chugged up and down the river for decades, and the long-serving guides and pilots are incredibly knowledgeable. The boats can carry 40 passengers, leave at 08.00 and 14.00, and take around three hours.

Our Uganda safari experts can happily help you book a private boat safari that leaves any time or a more general experience on a scheduled boat launch trip with a UWA boat.