Uganda is a great destination for couples seeking to have an adventurous trip away from home. Be it honey moon adventures to safaris, the east African country has much at its disposal to ensure a couple’s visit is worthwhile. Below, we have discussed some of the thrilling yet enjoyable avenues couples can explore Uganda.
Ugandan music festivals
The pearl of Africa is home to great and unique melodies. Walk hand-in-hand and plan to vibrate to the rhythm of East Africa’s biggest music festivals. Some of the festivals that will give you a grand experience include; Nyege Nyege International Music Festival in Jinja. It is an outdoor festival that showcases the best of Africa’s underground musical acts, food, drinks, and culture and happens every first weekend of September. If you wish for a happening in the city, bring out your blanket, picnic basket, sun hat, and sunglasses and marvel at Kampala’s social scene at the Blankets and Wine music festival. It’s more fun and cheaper when you carry your own wine, sunscreen, and umbrella, in case it gets blazing hot or rains cats and dogs.
You can also attend the International Film, Music and Arts Festival of Bayimba – the oldest music festival in Uganda where you will explore a feast of music, dance, theatre, film, and visual arts from renowned and upcoming artists every first weekend of August in Jinja. Other music festivals include; B-Global Indigenous Hip Hop Festival, The Nile Festival and International Film Festival of Kampala Amakula.
Camping and camp fires
Bush camping allows couples to spend the night in the midst of the park’s wildlife and experience a unique feel of the night. During your adventure, you can take guided nature walks, thrilling night drives and learn more about the park.
But wait, which adventure would pass on without the intrigue of an evening camp fire out in the wild? Reading books, listening to local tales, getting entertained by local dancers and having a simple drink while your loved one is leaning onto your shoulder, all exciting right? Uganda is the best destination to experience all this.
Gorilla and Chimpanzee tracking
Go out on a gorilla or/and chimpanzee tracking trail. Together with your walking sticks, go on the lookout for the animals’ poop, feet tracks in soft ground, noises, broken branches and other markings. You will be immensely fascinated being in company of these mammals. As a couple, you can also opt to sign up for a gorilla or chimpanzee habituation experience where you will get one on one with the mammals and learn how they are being trained to embrace human interactions.
Visit a Zoo and Beach
One of the best and perhaps the biggest zoo in Uganda is Entebbe zoo, found in Entebbe, an outskirt town near Kampala. At the zoo, couples will be treated to a great experience. Animals such as lions, elephants, monkeys, hyenas, zebras, lions, donkeys, the Uganda Kob, camels, waterbucks, egrets, the famous Shoebill Stork, snakes and surprisingly the tiger can be found at this zoo. This gives you a varied encounter with the animals as you move hand in hand with your significant other.
Entebbe is also a town known for beaches. Schedule an afternoon at the beach and experience a great and unique feel of the lake Victoria shores. Some of the exciting beaches include Lido, Lutembe, Aero, Panamera, among others.
Take on a road trip
Nothing beats a Ugandan road trip enroute a safari sited amidst your better half sipping on a cool smooth Ugandan brewed wine. A couple will definitely have a remarkable experience taking in Uganda’s stunning landscapes, scenery, and wildlife during a long drive. The short stop overs in Ugandan towns give you a grand impression of life and welfare among Ugandans. This will definitely intrigue a wholly different feeling on how you have been viewing human livelihood.
Book a romantic hotel
Why not isolate from the busy out door and have private time as a couple. Check-in at that exquisite hotel and embrace the private sensation. Take a tab bath together, have dinner on a candle lit table, have an intimate jazz while sipping some wine, watch that adventure movie while cuddling tight into each other. Ugandan hospitality will go over and beyond to please a couple, because seeing people in love makes all things better here. You shouldn’t forget to sign up for a couple’s massage for that much needed rejuvenation while enjoying sweet slow Ugandan music.
Take a walk around the city
It won’t be great fun spending all your wonder visit coupled up in your hotel. You can’t imagine what is up to be missed out about the buzz of the city. Freshen up, hand in hand, get up and hit the road for a simple walk around the great city. Together with your guide, set out to encounter a really unique community that you are yet to learn a lot from. From mobile street vendors looking out for possible buyers to screaming taxi conductors calling out for passengers. Marvel at the beautiful chaos in the city characterized by busy walk ways, a cool breeze, historic features, speeding boda-bodas (motor cyclists) and a whole new city setting. With the joy of experiencing all this with a loved one, trust me not, your love will be rekindled with more lovely sightings.
Wine and dine at a fancy restaurant
Restaurants around Kampala are a great place for loved ones. Set the mood for a romantic evening by wining and dining each other at one of the many fancy and romantic restaurants in the city. A restaurant of choice is completely your pick. Dine out at a Chinese, Ethiopian, Asian and local restaurant for all the mixed feeling that will accompany your meal. However, it’s highly advisable not to wholly try out a completely new dish. Order something you are quiet accustomed to and have complements of new stuff to try out. This will help you not frequent a rest room all in the name of new food adventure.
Go bungee jumping
Set your adrenaline ticking as you tightly hold each other onto a bungee jumping escapade. The best bungee jumping spot in Uganda is in Jinja, over the Nile – the world’s longest river. This activity is rare and only done in a few African countries like South Africa (Bloukrans Bridge), Kenya (Rapids Camp) and Zimbabwe (Victoria Falls). However the experience of jumping over the world’s longest river cannot be compared to any other place on earth. Experiencing this thrill with a loved one is a sighting you will live to hang onto your living room walls and have included in your catalogue.
Quad Biking and horse riding
Quad biking is one of the most exciting activities to engage in while touring as a couple in Uganda. Quad biking brings upon the opportunity to experience the African countryside and engage with local people as they go about their daily activities. Horse riding is another to do safari for a couple visiting Uganda. Exploring a national park or local village on a horseback is a unique and marvelous way to experience the wildlife and landscapes of Africa.
These activities are mainly conducted in areas rarely visited by tourist like villages, forests, tea/sugar plantations and the banks of the Nile River. Not in the congested and noisy towns or trading centers by the main roads. Going out with a loved onto these activities will draw the widest smiles on your faces.
Spot the Big 5 on a game drive
Uganda is home to the big five. The lion, Rhino, Leopard, Elephant and buffalo. Not all the five can be found everywhere. Uganda is blessed to have all these at the disposal of any willing viewer. Spotting these, pointing out to them and coming in close proximity while with a loved one on a simple afternoon or evening game drive is an experience worth taking on.
Mountain Hiking and natural walks
The vast landscapes and varied scenery of Uganda can be explored on foot. Nature walks are one of the more active ways to explore varied features. The treks will provide couples with sightings of natural vegetation, unique features and interact with villagers.
Mountain hiking is another natural walk experience couples ought to look up to. Lucky hikers on different Ugandan mountains will enjoy being amongst the parks’ primates, birds and rare tree species. Mountaineering trails lead past caves, viewpoints and waterfalls, with the option of camping overnight on the mountain slopes.
Boat cruise
Set out on to a boat cruise on Uganda’s vast and scenic water bodies for a great different adventure. While on the cruise, you will watch hippos grazing on river banks, crocodiles sun bathing, unique topographies, birds swaying in the air, monitor Lizards, vultures on patrol and rare vegetation among others. Float on the water body while listening to simple music with binoculars to view far apart features. As a couple, boat cruising will offer a tranquil experience to shed off the day’s exhaust.
Water rafting
Are you a couple that likes challenging yet thrilling adventures? Then, experiencing white water rafting on the Nile is a once in a life time experience a couple should tryout. Get your helmets on and aboard on to a simple boat for a whole interesting sensational six hour raft on the Nile. Seeing your hubby finish up the course is a great feeling.
Bird Watching
If you are an avid bird watcher, taking on a bird watching escapade as a couple is worth it. Visit Mabamba papyrus swamp a habitant to several pairs of the rare Shoebill Stork. Or visit mabira forest for a unique encounter with hundreds of bird species. There is an abundance of other water birds, wildlife such as otters and much more to view amongst the tranquil Ugandan bird settings.
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