How to get to Kidepo Valley National Park?

How to get to Kidepo Valley National Park?

How to get to Kidepo Valley National Park? Traveling to Kidepo Valley National Park is possible by means of either road or air transport. Kidepo Valley National Park is located in the Kaabong district in the northeastern part of Uganda. It is the most isolated national park in the country and thus visited by few tourists.

The national park was listed as the second most beautiful national park in Africa by CNN Travel, beautiful for its charming landscape and unique wildlife, including the big four out of the big five mammals, which include the elephants, buffaloes, lions, and leopards, plus other animals like Jackson’s hartebeest, oribis, Rothschild giraffes, zebras, waterbucks, bohor reedbucks, eland, Uganda kobs, and many others.

Traveling to Kidepo Valley National Park.

When travelling to Kidepo Valley National Park by road, you can either go on a self-drive using your personal car, a tour company vehicle, or public means. There are various routes that you can use when using road transport, which include

Eastern route to Kidepo national park through Karamoja region

• When using this route, you will drive from Kampala city via Mbale, Nakapiripirit, Moroto, Kotido, Kaabong, and then to the park headquarters. This route covers about 740 kilometers, which is about a 12-hour drive, and you can have stopovers at Sipi Falls and an overnight in Kotido town to cut the journey short and continue to the park the next morning.
• Another eastern route is driving from Kampala via Mbale, Soroti, Moroto, Kotido, Kaabong, and then to the park. This is a longer route in that it covers about 792 kilometers and takes about 13 hours’ drive. When using this route, you can have an overnight stay in one of the towns like Kotido to cut on the journey and proceed the next morning.

Western route to Kidepo national park via Murchison falls national park 

• When using the western route, you will drive from Kampala via Karuma, Lira, Kotido, and Kaabong and then to Kidepo Valley National Park, which is 705 kilometers and takes about 12 hours’ drive. When using this route, you can have a stopover at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for rhino tracking and an overnight in Kotido town and then continue to the park the following day.
• There is also another route, which is the most used route from Kampala via Karuma, Gulu, Kitgum, and then to Kidepo Valley National Park. This route covers 571 kilometers and takes about 10 hours’ drive, and visitors who use this route can also have a stopover at Karuma Falls, Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, and Murchison Falls National Park, which is the largest and most visited national park in Uganda. Visitors using this route can have an overnight stay in Kitgum Town to cut the journey and continue to the park the next morning.

Traveling to Kidepo Valley National Park by public means.

Visitors can also travel to Kidepo Valley National Park by public means of transport. There are buses that travel daily; therefore, you can board a bus from Kampala via Mbale and Nakapiripirit to Moroto, which takes 6 hours, or from Kampala via Mbale and Soroti to Moroto, which takes about an 8-hour drive, and then hire a private taxi to the park headquarters.

You can also board a bus from Kampala via Jinja, Mbale, and Soroti to Moroto, which takes about a 12-hour drive; board from Kampala via Jinja, Mbale, and Soroti to Kotido, which takes about a 14-hour drive; or board from Kampala via Jinja, Mbale, Soroti, and Kotido to Kaabong, which takes about a 16-hour drive. Public means of transport are not recommended for visitors on a safari in Kidepo Valley National Park because they spend a lot of time on the road as they move, disembarking passengers in different towns, and you can be cheated when hiring a private taxi to the park headquarters.

Travelling to Kidepo Valley National Park by air.

The national park can also be accessed by air transport means, which is convenient for tourists who wish to skip the long road trip to Kidepo Valley National Park. There are domestic companies like Aerolink Uganda Limited, which operate scheduled and chartered flights from Entebbe Airport to Kidepo Airstrip.

Air transport is favorable for visitors who don’t like travelling long-distance journeys. When booking a flight to Kidepo Valley National Park in northeastern Uganda.

Kidepo Valley National Park offers interesting activities in which you can engage during your safari in Uganda, such as guided game drives where you will view various animal species and night game drives to view nocturnal animals. Nature walks in Kidepo Valley National Park will allow you to explore the park on foot as you enjoy the cool breeze. You can also do some birding in the park, where you will view bird species such as migratory and endemic bird species like the Kori bustard, ostrich, and others.