An African Safari, most everyone wants to experience one, but the cost often stops him or her.  Here is some practical advice on how to reduce cost when traveling to and in Africa.

We help people plan their trips to Africa-Uganda and often get asked for advice regarding the cost of a safari or journey in Uganda and there are some practical ways that you can reduce the cost of a safari, of a tour around Uganda.

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Below are some practical ways that you can save money on your Safari to Uganda

Book your trip well in advance: Book with a Safari tour operator especially if you want to include Mountain Gorilla Tracking, or visit a park during peak seasons.  June, July and August are the months most Westerners take a vacation break and there is a definite increase in visitors to places such Uganda from the west and some lodging facilities can be fully booked since many accommodations National Parks can be small with less than 10 rooms.

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Come as a group of four to six people:  The price per person goes down.  The price for food, accommodations do not change, the entrance fees do not change, but the transport and vehicle cost is shared and that is one of the big cost factor in the cost of a safari.

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Vehicles:  The vehicles for a safari are often the same for luxury and budget safari tours of Uganda.  A successful safari depends on what kind of driver you have, one that interacts and tells you about the local sights and knows the ins and outs of the road system here.

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Budget or Moderate Facilities:  You reduce your cost by staying in budget or moderately priced hotels and lodging accommodations.  Prices for lodging in or near game parks can run as high as 450 dollars per day full board.  Lovely, fantastic, but many travelers simply do not have the means to come here and spend 450 dollars per person per day for luxury accommodations on top of the 500 Mountain Gorilla Tracking permit.

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Hotels in Kampala or Entebbe:  You can pay 400 per night for a room or more, or you can stay in a lovely Ugandan hotel around 10 to 26 dollars including breakfast for two in many cases.  You can stay at Entebbe paying 100 to 250 per night, or you can find a lovely hotel on the beach for 50 dollars with a restaurant on  a sandy beach to boot with palm trees. 

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Ugandan Visas:  You can buy them in many of the countries where you reside, but you spend quite a bit extra for mailing.  In the USA it costs you close to 30 dollars for the mailings, overnight being required.  Come to Uganda, at Entebbe you only pay the $50 dollar fee for the visa minus the mailing costs.

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Restaurants:   You can stay in a luxury hotel where the food will cost you a lot more or you can eat out at very reasonable prices.  A steak with chips and some vegetables will cost around 5 dollars in Kampala...a spinach stuffed chicken with rice in Jinja the same price.

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Nightlife:  Going on a pub-crawl in Kampala.  The best way is to rent a vehicle and sober driver and have them take you to the best places.  Let the tour operator tell you recommended places.  We can furnish you a list of mild to wild...from 0 shock value for a westerner to 10.

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Coming from the USA:  The good news is that the dollar has risen against the Uganda shilling.  Presently you receive 2750 plus or more for one dollar.  Use 100 Dollar bills, 2002 or newer and no tears or disfiguration. If you however change your money in places such as restaurant or hotel you will most likely receive less.  Go to a Forex bureau.

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Hopefully the above will help you in putting together a trip of a lifetime on a budget.  Uganda is one of the bio-diverse countries in the world and has half of the mountain gorillas in residence, you can see the endangered chimpanzee, gold monkeys, find 1040 species of birds, go mountain climbing on glaciers at the equator and meet some of the friendliest people in Africa.