The Western tourist cluster is the leading tourist destination in Uganda because it takes the largest share of Uganda national parks. 8 out of 10 Uganda national parks are found in southwestern Uganda which include Lake Mburo national park, Queen Elizabeth national park, Kibale forest national park, Murchison falls national park, Semuliki national park, Ruwenzori mountains National park, Bwindi impenetrable forest national park and Mgahinga gorilla national park.
Heading to south western Uganda on safari, most of wildlife itineraries start in Kampala, the capital of Uganda or Entebbe international airport. Lately, tourists also land at Kigali and travel across the Rwandan border to southwestern Uganda.
The Kampala-Masaka highway route via Lake Mburo, crossing the equator to Mbarara city and to southwestern tip of Uganda is the most used by tourists on Uganda safari going to southwestern Uganda. The route from Kampala to Murchison Falls via Kibale forest to Queen Elizabeth national park might be another. These two are more or less leading to southwestern Uganda.
In other words, travelling to and from southwestern Uganda inevitably takes in the popular route which crosses the equator monument. There are several cultural attractions along this route providing unique cultural experiences for tourists. Not only do their offer cultural experiences, they also provide tourists with the chance to interact and understand real life experiences of Ugandans and their culture and history.
An itinerary usually contains stopover at one or two sites which include the equator monument and Igongo cultural center. It is our hope that visitors can have more cultural experiences.
From Kampala to Bwindi for example, takes 9-10 hours drive. To visit more sites along the journey, it requires one to make an overnight stay in Lake Mburo national park en route to Bwindi or Queen Elizabeth national park. It is okay to travel to southwest without overnight but not you if you want to have more. Apart from the equator monument, there are other several sites and attractions to visit along your route.
Looking into other stopover options gives visitors on Uganda safari the opportunity to experience more.
Entanda cultural village
Entanda cultural village is located 1 hour drive from Kampala city before you even reach the equator monument. A visit to entanda is suitably half day or full day depending on what you decide to do and continue on. There are no accommodations on the site which means that you will spend the day and continue to Lake Mburo national park for overnight stay. At entanda you can enjoy a range of activities including traditional hunting and hiking, traditional food harvesting, preparation and dinning including fresh fruits and vegetables, swinging in a tree, grazing cattle, listening to the traditional Buganda kingdom bedroom secrets as revealed by the Senga among others. This is truly unspoilt traditional Ugandan village life at its best presenting the authentic Africa.
Drum making village
Making an African drum is one of the skillful hands-on-experiences that involve several processes, from the skin selection, shell preparation, to wrapping the strings. It takes around 2 days to make a complete drum. Mpampire village located along the Kampala-Masaka road is where drums are crafted in Uganda. Visitors can make a stopover to learn the whole drum making process from the experienced drum makes who will also reveal why the drum is an important instrument in African culture and heritage. You can get involved in making your own drum if you have the time or you can buy the already made drum as a souvenir.
Biharwe Eclipse monument
the Biharwe Eclipse monument is located on Biharwe hill overlooking the famous Igongo cultural center before reaching Mbarara city. It was built to honor the historical eclipse that took place long time ago around 1520 AD. it provides history associated with eclipse involving cattle wresting wars among three traditional kings of Buganda, Bunyoro-Kitara empire and Ankole kingdoms and the monument stands on 3 legs signifying the three kings. It is also a way of hiking the hill and having eclipse experience. Uganda is known as one of the best places to view eclipse. Pakwach town in north eastern Uganda was the point to view the eclipse most recently, total solar lunar eclipse that occurred in 2013.
