TOURISM | TOURISTS | UGANDA

KAMPALA - We are in the first week of the new year and Uganda's tourism sector has got a great start. 

The Cable News Network (CNN) has ranked Uganda among the best destinations that travelers should consider visiting in 2023.

In the CNN travel article titled “Where to travel in 2023: best Destinations to visit”, the CNN cited Uganda as an East African country that offers unique travel experiences and thus its inclusion among the best 23 destinations to visit this year. 

It reported that Uganda has moved away from the traditional safari and wildlife spotting to package itself as a unique destination. 

Uganda’s packaging of the unique cultural experiences that include promises of Ugandan food, cycling, the hospitality and music are some of the attributes that make the Pearl of Africa, a distinct travel destination.

The media giant also mentioned some of the unique attractions that make Uganda a unique destination to be visited in 2023. 

“From the expansive shores of Lake Victoria to the snowy Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda is a beautiful wilderness playground, with opportunities for adventure including treks through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest or up to the craters of the Virunga volcano chain or whitewater rafting along the Victoria Nile” cited CNN.

The positive news is a good keynote for Uganda's image that has been greatly affected by the Ebola Outbreak in the last 5 months of the year. 

The Ebola Outbreak was confirmed by the Ministry of Health in September 2022 and currently the situation has been stabilized with no new case registered in the last month.

It should be noted that this is not the first time, CNN has listed Uganda among the best destinations. 

In 2012, the same international media listed Uganda among the best destinations to visit in 2012 which gave the country a great boost in the tourism industry the following years. 

Further, in 2016 CNN highlighted Kidepo valley national park among the best national parks of what Africa has to offer. 

It attributed its highlight to the fact that Kidepo is home to one of the African legendary tribes the IK tribe. 

They were also taken away by the wilderness experience of Kidepo that is relatively unmatched by any other Savannah park in Uganda.

In 2019, CNN named Bwindi impenetrable national park as the most beautiful place in the whole world. It is still unfortunate that the most people only know gorilla trekking as the highlight of the impenetrable forest. 

But besides gorilla trekking, camping a week in Bwindi is one of the best experiences;

Bwindi offers a quiet environment for those who love to meditate. Its temperature is relatively low that you might not need to freeze the water for a cold shower therapy. 

It has a number of rivers and streams that you can just sit in and relax, but because these experiences are often tailor offered, many people only know Bwindi for gorilla trekking. 

Uganda boosts of unique tourism attractions that cannot be easily found elsewhere in the world. 

The country is the source of the Nile, boosts of over 165 lakes, 506 central forest reserves and more.

There are ten Uganda national parks that protect a rich biodiversity including the rare and endangered mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, and the big five animals sought after by safari travelers. 

In the same list of the top travel destinations for 2023, CNN included only three other African countries namely; Egypt, Rwanda and Tanzania. 

Rwanda made it to the list because of its gorilla tourism in the Volcanoes National Park as well as the strong conservation efforts that include the reintroduction of the white rhinos into the Akagera National Park and the Sextantio lodges that are opening this year along Lake Kivu.

For Tanzania, the spectacular wildlife in its beautiful national parks and beautiful beaches set apart this safari destination from the rest. Egypt still stands out because of the pyramids and the ancient history it has to offer. 

Other African destinations that would have potentially made it on the list include; South Africa because of the Kruger national park, Namibia for the best African desert safaris, Zimbabwe & Zambia for the Victoria Falls and Kenya because of the Masai Mara reserve.