Facts about Queen Elizabeth National Park
Facts about Queen Elizabeth National Park shall have you getting to know a little more about the park, one of the prime destinations in Uganda. Queen Elizabeth National Park is located in the western region of Uganda, famous for the hosting tree climbing lions in the Ishasha sector, the amazing Kazinga channel which connects Lake George to Lake Edward, as well as the amazing scenery and landscape.
Travellers from year to year visit Queen Elizabeth National Park to take part in a number of activities in Queen Elizabeth National Park including game drives, bird watching activities, lion tracking, nature walks, boat safaris on the Kazinga channel, among others.
There is so much to know about Queen Elizabeth National Park, below are some of the facts about Queen Elizabeth National Park that you may need to know;
- Queen Elizabeth National Park is the oldest Uganda national park, having been gazette in 1952, along with Murchison Falls National Park. The park was formerly a grazing area for the Bakonzo people, who were cattle keepers, until it was gazzetted a national park to protect the wildlife in the park.
- Queen Elizabeth National Park is the second largest Uganda national park, covering about 1978 square kilometers of space. Queen Elizabeth National Park is second to Murchison Falls National Park, which is the largest protected Uganda national park. This vast landscape of Queen Elizabeth National Park protects about 95 mammal species including about 3000 elephants, lions, over 1000 buffaloes, hippos, and crocodiles, among others; as well as various bird species which are recorded to be more than 619 bird species.
- Queen Elizabeth National Park has the largest population of hippos in the entire East African region, about 5000 hippos have been recorded to inhabit the park.
- The park also boasts of hosting one of the largest recorded bird population in one place, in Africa. Queen Elizabeth National Park is the 2nd best area for birding in Africa, as well as stands at the 6th position of the world’s listing for best birding destinations. There are over 619 bird species in Queen Elizabeth National Park, and travelers can encounter them with bird watching activities in park.
- Queen Elizabeth National Park was formerly known as Kazinga National Park. It was until after the visit of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning queen of England, that the park was renamed. The Queen visited the then Kazinga National Park in 1952.
- The first European national to visit Queen Elizabeth National Park was Sir Morton Stanley during his visit in Uganda in the year 1889.
- Queen Elizabeth National Park was formerly a grazing piece of land to the locals that inhabited the area, the Basongora, who were by then predominantly cattle keepers.
When to visit Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth National Park can be visited anytime throughout the year, for the park is often all through. The best time to visit Queen Elizabeth National Park is however during the dry season, when the savannah grass is short and perfect for game viewing, and the wildlife gather in the available water bodies for a drink to quench their thirst. Also, the roads are much easy to access during the dry season, including walking trails.
The wet season however also has its upside, asides having the roads slippery. The wet season is the perfect time for budget travelers, given that most lodges have their rates reduced to attract more visitors. Birding safaris in Queen Elizabeth National Park are also best done in the wet season because there are lots of fruits and food for birds then, and the park receives a number of migratory birds.
How to get to Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth National Park can be reached by both road and air. By road, travelers can take the Kampala-Masaka-Mbarara-Fort Portal road which is about a 6 hour drive to the park, with stopovers at the Equator line. The other route to Queen Elizabeth National Park is that from Kampala via Mubende to Fort Portal and then to the park. You shall enjoy the countryside of Uganda on your drive to the park, and the amazing scenery and landscape is very captivating too.
By air, Queen Elizabeth National Park can be reached using a number of charter flights available, say the scheduled Aerolink Uganda flights from Kajjansi or Entebbe to any of the airstrips in the park. Be sure to part with some chunk of money, and book in time to secure your seat of your preferred travel date.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is an amazing Uganda national park to visit for wildlife safaris in Uganda, birding safaris in Queen Elizabeth National Park, chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura Gorge, nature walks, and cultural encounters, among so many others.
