Entebbe
A REFUGE OF WILD AFRICA AND NATURAL SPLENDOR
Entebbe Overview
Unlike Kampala, Entebbe is an amazingly calm city to stay in. Though not big, Entebbe still retains a sense of wild Africa. It is where you can find the Ziki Forest and Lake Victoria with several comfortable resorts available for visitor night stay. Besides, there are plenty of interesting places worth visiting in and around Entebbe including the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre, Mabamba Wetland, Botanical Gardens and others.
Location
Entebbe History
Before European influence in Uganda, Entebbe served as the centre of the Buganda Mugala clan but remained less significant. In 1879, there was a bit of change when the 1st Europeans arrived in Entebbe. The settlement area further grew following the arrival of the East African railway in Kisumu in 1901. The railway eased movement from the East African coast.
Entebbe became the seat of the British Protectorate government making it the most significant town. When the railway reached Kampala in the 1930s, there was a great change which made it the industrial production centre. When Uganda attained its independence, Kampala was made an official capital city. However, some ministries and the State House were not transferred to Kampala.
Places to visit/things to do in and around Entebbe
Located 12km from Entebbe, Mabamba Bay Wetland is an exceptional Ramsar Site and Important Bird Area (IBA). On a birding tour, Mabamba Bay Wetland is a must-visit site to consider exploring. The birds to search for on Mabamba swamp bird-watching safaris include shoebill storks, yellow-throated greenbul, Weyns’s weaver birds, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Brown-throated wattle eye, splendid starling, Swamp flycatcher, Lesser striped swallow, Village weaver, Grey-capped warblers, papyrus gonoleks, lesser jacanas, black egret, purple swamp hens, Carruthers cisticolas, pygmy geese, gull-billed terms, white-winged warblers, hammerkops, spur-winged geese, palm nut-vultures and others.
Uganda Wildlife Education Centre was opened in 1952 and offers refuge to several animals that can’t survive in the wild. It is an ideal location to explore animals and different ecosystems. It is accessible 15 minutes’ drive off from Entebbe Airport (EBB). While at UWEC, don’t miss the 2 hours behind the scene tour.
Created in 1898, the Entebbe Botanical Garden is without doubt one of the amazing places to explore, especially by nature lovers. Within this botanical garden, there exist birds such as eastern grey plantain eaters, yellow-billed duck, pink-backed pelicans, common sandpipers, slender-billed weavers, tambourine dove, spur-winged lapwing, long-tailed sterling, crowned hornbills and more. Primates to see include the black and white colobus monkeys.
Accommodation
- Protea Hotel Entebbe
- The Boma Hotel
- Lake Victoria Serena Hotel
- 2 Friends Beach Hotel
- K Hotels
- Gorilla Africa Guesthouse
- 5 Boutique Hotel
- Executive Airport
- Pelican Lodge and Marina
- Entebbe Palm Hotel
- Skyway Hotel and more.
Getting there
Take a flight from your home country to Entebbe Airport using Uganda airlines or KLM or any other airlines. By road, drive for about 1 hour from Kampala capital to Entebbe.
