Night Game Drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Night Game Drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Night Game Drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park is the second largest national park in Uganda located in the western region in Kasese, Kamwenge, Rubirizi, and Rukungiri districts. Queen Elizabeth National Park is another national park in Uganda that offers an exciting night game drive where tourists will be able to explore the savannah plains at night.

The night at Queen Elizabeth National Park can be better than the day in different ways. No doubt, daytime has a lot folded in it, like the game drives, launch at Kazinga Channel. The night activities/ game drive might not be so common, but in return, it might be your best choice to see the wild cats closer and feel the thrill of getting close to the king of the African jungle.

What is a night game drive?

For starters, the night game drive is an activity done when the sun sets and the night falls in the wilderness of Queen Elizabeth National Park, it involves the use of a strong spotlight torch to see the animals more clearly in the dark. This activity helps you get closer to the animals since they shed off their human fear at night; they can easily get closer to your vehicle; the lions can be terrific and the experience is thrilling.

A night game drive is, no doubt, the most exciting activity in Uganda so far as recorded by those who have tried it. It is good to know the best place where you can book your nocturnal game viewing, and we highly recommend queen Elizabeth national park for this activity. Night game drives happen in other national; parks like Murchison Falls National Park, and Lake Mburo, and these are the only places/ national parks where you can book for your night game drive in Uganda.

In Queen Elizabeth National Park the night game drive is carried out at Mweya; it is a piece of land protruding between Kazinga Channel and Lake Edward. The night game drive is not allowed in Kasenyi Plains. During the day the Kasenyi plains are flocked with frequent visits that any for the lion tracking permits. Therefore, prohibiting the night game drives helps to minimize stress on the animals in this area.

What to expect

During the night game drive at Queen Elizabeth National Park you stand a chance to see many hippos moving while grazing on the short grass. You can also see several elephants moving around, antelopes in the fields, and gigantic buffaloes lying down in the grass. And lucky enough you might get into a pride of lions as they walk around your vehicle. Through the trails and trucks between Mweya Peninsula and Katunguru main gate, you can see several water backs, Kobs, elephants, and occasionally with a chance you can spot a leopard in a thicket with its night bright eyes.

The night game drives at Queen Elizabeth National Park, you can use any vehicle for self-drive or tour company vehicles, but, you can also use the Uganda Wildlife Authority tour vehicles for these activities.

Other Parks to do night game drives in Uganda:

Murchison Falls National Park:

Murchison Falls National Park is the largest national park located in north western part of Uganda. the national park harbors abundant wildlife species including the big four mammals which are the lions, leopards, elephants, and buffaloes, other animals like giraffes, waterbucks, Jackson’s hartebeest, oribi, warthogs, primates like chimpanzees, olive baboons, red-tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys and over 450 recorded bird species including the illusive shoebill stork.

The night game drive in Murchison Falls National Park is mainly in the northern part of the park and starts at around 6:30 pm. During the night game drive, you will carry spotlight torches and also be accompanied by an armed UWA ranger guide who will help you to spot nocturnal animals like lions, leopards, hyenas, civets, genets, night jars, bush babies, view hippos feeding among others. Murchison Falls National Park also offers other interesting activities that tourists can combine with night game drives such as sport fishing, day game drives, Nile delta boat cruises and boat cruises to the bottom of the falls, chimpanzee trekking in Budongo forest, bird watching, guided nature walks among others.

Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo National Park is the smallest savannah national park in Uganda located in the western region in the Kiruhura district.The Park is a home of different animals including buffaloes, waterbucks, impalas, zebras, oribi, Topi, elands, giraffes, bushbucks, warthogs, and over 350 bird species including the prehistoric shoebill stork.

Night game drives in Lake Mburo National Park start in the evening at around 7:00 pm with spotlight torches and an armed UWA ranger guide who will help you to spot nocturnal animals like leopards, hyenas, bush pigs, white-tailed mongoose, side-stripped jackal, aardvark, black galago, honey badger, porcupines, genet cats, view hippos among others. Lake Mburo National Park offers other adventurous activities that travelers can engage in during the safari including horseback riding, sport fishing, bird watching, boat cruising, guided nature walks, and day game drives among others.

Cost of Night Game Drives in Uganda

Night game drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, and Lake Mburo National Park cost 30 USD per person for foreign non-residents, 20 USD per person for foreign residents, and 50,000 UGX per person for East African citizens when using a private vehicle and only pre-registered vehicles will undertake night game drives and use of Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) is mandatory for night game drives.

When using a Uganda Wildlife Authority vehicle, a night game drive in Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and Lake Mburo National Park costs 40 USD per person for foreign non-residents, 35 USD per person for foreign residents, and 40,000 UGX per person for East African citizens.

Best time to do a night game drive in Uganda

Night game drives in Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and Lake Mburo National Park is doable all year round though the best time is during the dry season in June, July, August, September, December, January, and February because during this period there is less rainfall in the park therefore vegetation will be short which allows you to view the nocturnal animals. During the dry season game drive tracks will be dry and passable which makes night game dries easy.

What to carry for a night game drive in Uganda?

There are a number of items that you should carry when going for your night game drive in Uganda including spotlight torches, insect repellent, a long-sleeved shirt and trousers, a warm sweater, a camera, and extra batteries among others.

Booking for the night game drive

You can book the night game drive  at the Mweya tourist information center. The permit for the night game drive in Queen Elizabeth National Park goes for as low as USD 30; this money is exclusive of the entrance fee to the national park. You can hire a spotlight torch from UWA offices; it will help you see everything in the night more clearly. You can also pay for your night game drives from the UWA offices located at all the entrances to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Always note that the permits are only for adults and are not for children below 15 years of age.

Safari Vacations and Travel Services is a Local tour operator based in Uganda with its head offices in Entebbe. Moreover, Safari Vacations and Travel Services is a business for a Ugandan native, we specialize in life-changing experiences and sustainable tours and holidays to all East African countries. We are members of the Association of Uganda Tour Operators and with registration from the Uganda Tourism Board. We have a good and long working relationship with Uganda Wildlife Authority making it easy to book your gorilla permits and gorilla trekking safari. Safari Vacations and Travel Services is also high in Trip Advisor reviews.