How to get to Uganda: airports, flights and border crossings

Entebbe is the default. Use the table to sanity-check timing and budget before you book anything non-refundable.

First, decide the shape of the trip. If gorillas are the point, book the permit and the lodge before you book the flight — permits are date-specific and the good lodges near Bwindi sell out in the dry seasons. Then book the flight into Entebbe, allowing a night on arrival before any long drive.

Second, sort the paperwork: an e-visa applied for online, a yellow fever certificate, and travel insurance that covers trekking and medical evacuation. Carry a printed copy of the visa approval and the certificate.

Third, plan the first 24 hours. Entebbe town is quiet and close to the airport; Kampala is busier and further. Most travellers sleep in Entebbe on arrival and move on the next morning. If you land late, do not attempt a drive to Bwindi or Murchison the same day.

Fourth, choose how you move onward. Domestic flights to Kasese, Kihihi or Pakuba cut a full day of driving; road transfers are cheaper but slow. See the getting-around page for the trade-off.

Entebbe International Airport (EBB) handles almost all international traffic. It sits on Lake Victoria, about 40 km south of Kampala and a few minutes from Entebbe town. Terminals are small; immigration can be slow when several wide-bodies land together.

There is no non-stop service from North America, Australia or New Zealand. Common routings go through Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Doha, Dubai, Istanbul, Amsterdam or Brussels. From the UK, one stop is normal; from the US east coast, expect two connections; from Australia and New Zealand, two or three with a long total travel day.

Kasese Airport, near Queen Elizabeth National Park, has limited scheduled service and is useful mainly for safari hops rather than international arrival. Check schedules before relying on it.

Uganda is landlocked, so there is no sea arrival. Overland entry is common for travellers already in East Africa, and the main crossings are busy, well-used routes.

From Kenya: buses run Nairobi to Kampala via Busia or Malaba, a long day. From Rwanda: the Katuna/Gatuna crossing near Kabale is the usual route to Bwindi and Lake Bunyonyi; Kyanika is another option. From Tanzania: the Mutukula crossing connects the Bukoba and Lake Victoria area to western Uganda.

Border crossings can take 30 minutes or several hours depending on queues, and e-visa approval should be in hand before you arrive. Some borders close overnight; check times locally. Buses and shared vans meet most crossings, but the last stretch to a lodge is usually a private transfer.

Yellow fever vaccination is required for entry and the certificate is checked. Carry it with your passport, not in checked luggage.

Arriving at night is common on long-haul routings. Pre-book an airport transfer or a hotel that includes one; do not haggle for a taxi after a 20-hour journey.

Cash matters. ATMs at Entebbe and in Kampala work, but carry some US dollars in clean, post-2009 notes for permits and tips, and change to shillings for daily spending.

If your trip is short, a domestic flight is often worth the cost because a road day in Uganda can eat 8–10 hours. If you have three weeks, the drives are part of the trip.