Getting Here

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park lies in south-western Uganda, about 530km from Kampala. The park can be reached by road from several directions. Bwindi Forest is found in the south-western part of Uganda near the democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The forest has an annex into the DR Congo. It is situated on the border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge of the Albertine Rift.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park can be accessed by road and it is 520 Kilometres from Kampala, Uganda’s capital city. Normally for one to enjoy the journey, 4 Wheel drives are recommended taking the below routes:

• Move from Kampala to Kabale about 414 Kilometres, about 5-8 hours drive, then Kabale-Kanungu- Kanyantorogo – Buhoma Park Headquarters, about 120 kms, a 3.5 hour-drive.
• Alternatively you can move from Kampala-Kabale about 414 Kms, and then proceed to Ruhija and finally to Buhoma which is 95 kilometres, a three-hour drive. From Queen Elizabeth National Park to the northern sector like 2 to 3 hours drives, from Kampala through Mbarara about 6 to 8 hours drive or from Kabale town to the southern just 1 to 2 hours. All those roads converge at Butogota, just 17 kilometres from the Buhoma entrance-gate.
• A daily bus leaves Kampala for Butogota via Rukungiri and Kihiihi.You can get a taxi from here for about 20 km to Buhoma. Nkuringo has no public means unless when you hire a private vehicle from Kisoro.
• For those on self drive, please consider a whole day since it may take you approximately 9-10 hours to drive on a winding road.
• By Air, you can choose to fly from Entebbe or from Kampala at Kajansi airfield to the up to date tarmac airstrip found at Kisoro. Additionally Planes may as well be chartered to the Savannah or the grass Kayonza airstrips. Bwindi is actually well served by 3 airfields at Kihihi plus Kayonza for the northern area in addition to Nyakabande found in Kisoro for people going to track mountain gorillas within the southern area including Mishaya, Nshongi and Nkuringo.

Queen Elizabeth National Park (Mweya) – Kihihi – Buhoma
This route passes the park’s southerly Ishasha sector, providing the chance of a stopover to search for the famous tree-climbing lions. Bwindi is 160km from Mweya and 64km from Ishasha.

Kampala – Kabale – Kanungu – Buhoma

This route follows a tarmac highway to Kabale (414km) and takes 5-6 hours. The next section, which follows winding murram roads for 120km, passes through Kanungu and Kanyantorogo and takes 4-5 hrs. A 4WD vehicle is required.

Kampala – Ntungamo – Rukungiri – Kihihi – Buhoma

This, the quickest and most direct route from Kampala, follows tarmac roads to Rukungiri (390km) followed by 82km on murram roads to Buhoma.

Kampala – Kabale – Ruhija – Buhoma

The Kabale-Ruhija-Buhoma segment on this route is 95 kilometres on a murram road and takes 3-4 hours. The Ruhija section is in poor condition and should only be attempted with a 4WD vehicle. The public does not frequently use this road.

Kampala – Kabale – Nkuringo

Nkuringo is 105km from Kabale. The drive takes 4 hours on a mountainous murram road. Most visitors overnight in Kisoro (80km from Kabale) before proceeding to Nkuringo. The road from Kisoro is a winding 35km that takes 1-1.5 hours. A 4WD vehicle is recommended for both approaches to Nkuringo.

Public transport
A bus runs daily from Kampala to Butogota from which a taxi can be hired for the last 17km to Buhoma. There is no public transport to Nkuringo but vehicles can be hired in Kisoro.

Air

Travellers can fly from Entebbe or Kampala (Kajjansi airfield) to the modern tarmac airstrip at Kisoro. Visitors to Buhoma can charter planes to the grass Kayonza airstrip.

For those coming from Kigali to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, the Virunga express bus service has different bus terminals in Rwanda so board any Virunga bus from any part of Rwanda up to Kigali Virunga Express office in Nyabugogo Taxi Park. They also have Virunga Express costa buses on routes from Gisenyi, Musanze and Butare daily from Kigali to Kabale at 3:00 pm (Rwanda time)

If you are in Musanze (Ruhengeri) board the Matatu to Chanika-Rwanda-Uganda boarder and then contact a car rental agency to pick you and proceed to the next destination.

The Southern Region of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a reasonable distance from Kigali Airport

Uganda has many trusted tour operators who can organise you a stress free trip to Bwindi Impenetratable National park.

Bwindi National Park is one of the most visited parks in Uganda visited by different kind of visitors. The main activity in this park is Gorilla Tracking. The park has 4 sections where the activity can be done, Ruhija, Rushaga, Buhoma and Nkuringo. Besides all-inclusive safari, the park is also visited by car rental clients. They hire different types of cars either with drive or by self-driving and they access the park

Bwindi National Park is not wildlife park where game drives are conducted. All activities in this park are done on foot and its mountainous. Visitors on Uganda self drive basis, will drive to the park headquarters with all the necessary permits, cars are left parked at the park headquarters and then after briefing, clients enter the forest for a life time experience.

Since Bwindi is found in Western Uganda, accessing the park need a good car in proper mechanical conditions. Mostly 4×4 car is recommended for a smooth running of the vacation in Uganda. There are many 4×4 cars available like 4x4Land cruiser V4, 4×4 land cruiser Prados, 4×4 land cruiser safari extended and many more.

What to do in Bwindi National Park by car hire visitors

There are many activities in Bwindi which can be done by self-drive clients in Bwindi. Some of them are here below.

Gorilla Tracking: This is done either of the 4 sections in the park. Car hire companies do purchase gorilla permits for visitors from Uganda wildlife Authority. A client is supposed to choose the date, month, year of tracking and the section depending on his or her itinerary and then the gorilla permits will be allocated on that specific day. A visitor will be given the gorilla permit while collecting the car, moreover, since gorilla permits are subject to availability, the permit fee need to be sent in advance to reserve the permit, car rental company can share a soft copy of the permit before the client arrives in Uganda.

Nature walks safaris: The park is big and there are many Nature walks which can be taken by a car rental client. Adventurers opt to walk in Bwindi and discover more besides the gorillas. The park has other attractions like Different types of monkeys, butterflies, unique plants and trees and some are medicinal. There many different kinds of nature walks some are shorter and others longer.

Birding: Driving to Bwindi is so rewarding, it depends on the visitor’s preference when it comes to exploring the impenetrable forest. The park is a birders paradise, many forest birds can be spotted here. Just get ready, rent a required car, have your cameras and enough batteries, then discover wonders in Bwindi. There are birders guides who can give reliable information about birds in Bwindi and also help to spot some birds of interests.

Community Encounter: Bwindi National Park is surrounded by different tribes; some were the natives residents in this park before it was gazetted. Mostly the Batwa people live around the park and the Bakiga. Spending some time with such community groups is very important, learn more about their cultures, demonstrations, language, dance, songs and many more.

Best time to visit Bwindi National Park

The best time to Visit Bwindi National Park is in dry season; this is the season with low rain fall and the road leading to park and also the trail inside the park may not be so muddy. Although sometimes rain is unpredictable, during rainy season the situation may be different.

This is the reason why months like June, July, August, and others are called high season and most of visitors book their safaris along that period. Gorilla permits are sold all year around and visitors book for permits any time of the year.

How to access Bwindi National Park by car rental visitors.

The park can be accessed both by road or air transport,

By Road. Take Mbarara masaka Highway or some visitors opt to take Kasese road depending on their Itineraries, the drive takes almost the whole day as visitors reach there approx. at 4pm and above. Most of the visitors do not include any other activity on the transfer day as it is quite tiresome.

By air: There are scheduled domestic flights to different air strips around Bwindi, For instance, Kisoro, Kihihi and others. Charter flights can also be organized to this park.

Some of the accommodation facilities around Bwindi

Car hire clients, can sleep in any type of the accommodation depending on the choice, some are Budget, Midrange and others Luxury. Here below are some of the lodges around Bwindi, 4 Gorillas, Gorilla mist camp, Chameleon hill lodge, Lake Mutanda Resort, Rushaga Gorilla Lodge, Rushaga gorilla haven, silverback lodge, mahogany springs, clouds gorilla lodge, Bwindi lodge, Gorilla Forest Camp, Buhoma lodge and many more. Car rental companies can book car hire clients accommodation.