Murchison Falls, wildlife on the shores of the Nile
Murchison Falls National Park is Uganda’s largest park and one of the most exciting. It protects a large area of African Savannah intersected by the River Nile. In this travel blog, Roadtrip Uganda provides you tips about what to do and where to stay in Murchison Falls, how to organise a bush camping experience on the delta, and how to get to to the park on your self-drive safari in Uganda.
Murchison Falls, a highlight of your visit to Uganda
The park is named after the dramatic Murchison Falls, where the Nile river explodes violently through a narrow cleft. The park contains large herds of elephant, buffalo, giraffe and lions. In the southeast, Budongo Forest is home to chimps while the banks of the Nile host one of Africa’s densest hippo and crocodile population. It remains to be seen though, how the game population will behave some time from now, as massive oil explorations have started in the park and animals have already started migrating southwards.
In the park, you can enjoy a boat trip from the Paraa jetty to the bottom of the Falls, and choose between hiking to the top of the falls (only if you go with a driver, there is no service that brings you back to you car otherwise) or stay on the boat going back to the starting point and drive to the top of the falls.
Best places to stay in Murchison Falls
There are many nice places to stay in Murchison Falls and many new lodges and campsites keep popping up. Roadtrip Uganda's favourite spots are bush camping at the Delta, Murchison River Lodge and Fort Murchison Lodge. To get an overview of the best places to stay in Uganda and Murchsion Falls NP, check our favourite campsites & lodges here.
Go bush camping on the delta!
Highly recommended for those road trippers that look for a true wilderness experience - bush camping at Delta. You get yourself a ranger and camping permit at the park entrance ( $40pp) stock up food and drinks supplies and off you go with the camp gear from Roadtrip Uganda. The ranger will find a spot for you to pitch your tent and takes you on a night and early morning game drive. Your ranger is well equipped with a tiny Nokia phone (a ka-torch in Luganda) to spot those lions as the night sets in. He can help you make a camp fire and appreciates if you share some of your dinner with him.
