This is a new form of tourism in the world and practiced in Uganda since it dates back in the 1990s. It includes many activities like nature guided walks, community/ village walks, bird watching , sport fishing, forest walk, mountain climbing, gorilla trekking, butterfly watching, game viewing, chimpanzee trekking, boat cruises, caving, canoeing, primate watching, viewing photography, and other aspects that relates to Natural, cultural as well as Rural tourism.
The major tourism destinations in Uganda include all the ten protected national parks and wildlife as well as game reserves, forest reserves, community wetlands, events or cultural centres, theme parks, resorts as well as the vital birding areas. Many safaris to Uganda combine nature as well as wildlife and it follows that sustainability would be vital or the visitors exploring the unique Eco tourism destinations within Uganda. The Uganda conservation efforts and tourism have increased in the past years and presently tours are tailored or organized around the different communities and natural environment.
Ecotourism doesn’t mean paying high attention for the line green products and it includes having very affordable Uganda Eco tourism tours while still being mindful of the conservation efforts. It includes visitors travelling with maximum respects of the local cultures and keeping an open mind when planning a safari to Uganda.
Presently Uganda is known as a safe ecotourism destination in the world and there is need to plan correctly all the eco- tourism activities and destination. This can lead to a more modified adventure for the tourists and one that is reliable to the respective communities’ they are to visit. The most thing the visitor’s planning for safaris to Uganda should do is to go local especially when they are under taking tours to Uganda. These should make sure that they use the locally owned hotels and services and also pay close attention to the relevant travel destination news so that to prepare for new regulations or chances that may negatively affect the Eco- tourism experience that they would get on any safari to Uganda. Eventually, the travellers need to do what is best and safest for them, but they must also acknowledge how their actions are affecting their destination areas.
The main eco-tourism sites in Uganda are as below;
There are several ecotourism sites in Uganda. If you would like to enjoy a nature tour, you should consider visiting any of the following attractions in the country.
Kashoya Kitomi Forest Reserve
This forest reserve is currently located in Buhwezu district in western Uganda. The forest has a land area coverage of 433 kilometers squares and has a number of wildlife attractions that include chimpanzees, bird species, monkeys (vervet monkeys, blue monkeys, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys can be sighted in the forest reserve).
There are also baboons in the forest and during the dry season, animals move from Queen Elizabeth national park to the major water points in the forest reserves to quench their thirst. Of the animals that can be seen include antelopes, bush pigs, Uganda Kobs and duikers. These are mainly seen around lake Kamunzuku.
Tourists to the Kashoya Kitomi forest reserve can engage in various tourist activities that include birding, boat rides on the lake, primate tracking, sight seeing and community walks.
Budongo Forest Reserve
This is the largest natural forest in Uganda with a total land area of 825 kilometers square. Budongo forest is the largest mahogany forest in east Africa with a number of various tree species and other vegetation types.
Budongo is one of the most popular destinations for primate watching safaris in Uganda. This natural enormous has 120 chimpanzees, 30 of which were habituated and can therefore be visited by tourists.
Other primates in the forest include the black and white colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, red tailed monkeys, baboons and a number of bird species that can be seen in the Kaniyo Pabidi sector located in the northeastern part of the forest.
The Kaniyo Pabidi sector also has a number of wildlife species that include warthogs, bush pigs, waterbucks, and buffaloes.
There are well developed forest trails in Budongo and can enable tourists to involve themselves in various tourist activities like birding, forest walks, primate tracking and many others.