2. Chimpanzee tracking: Indiana University habituated some clans of Chimpanzee that are now open for tourism. Chimpanzee tracking permits cost $30 for international visitors. While tracking the chimpanzees, visitors should also expect to spot smaller primates like the Black and white Colobus monkeys, Central African red colobus, Dent’s Mona monkeys, grey-cheeked mangabey, Olive baboons, and Red-tailed monkeys among many others.
3. Forest and Nature Walks: One of the popular activities in the park is taking a walk in the forest jungles to spot the vegetation, birds, butterflies, and primates. Forest Walks usually begin from around the Sempaya Park gate ending at the hot springs. There are three established walking trails in the park. One of them is the Sempaya Nature Trail which is 8 km long, the Red-monkey Track of about 11 km long, and the Kirumia Hiking Trail of 13 Kilometers long.
4. Visiting the Semuliki River: The Semuliki River is about 160 kilometers long. This muddy forest river is one of the water bodies that supply water to the great river Nile. The river is home to crocodiles, hippos, and hundreds of birds. Visitors love taking long walks to follow the river as it meanders through forests and rift valley flours.
5. Visiting the Sempaya Hot Springs: The two hot springs have made the park very famous. Tourists are more fascinated by the local stories about their formation than the scientific explanation. There is a female and male hot spring. The Male hot spring is about 12 meters in diameter and is called Bintente while the female in Nyasimbi. A boiling geyser gushes out steam and bubbling water several meters high and can be seen more than 1 kilometer away. The water gushing out is hot enough to boil eggs in ten minutes. In the past, the people living in the forest would use the hot springs to cook food but this has been limited by the park management to allow tourists to visit the place. As visitors head towards the hot springs, they encounter several species of birds and small primates climbing up and down the trees. The park authorities have built a tower and boardwalk for observing the hot springs at a safe distance. Local tribes usually organize cultural dances to entertain visitors who have come to see the hot springs. Apart from the hot springs, birds, and primates, visitors can also visit the Mungiro Falls or go for a forest walk nearby.
There are few accommodation facilities within the park. Most of the good hotels and lodges are in the towns of Bundibugyo and Fort Portal. The Uganda Wildlife Authority came up with a solution and set up two campsites near their main offices and gates. It is important to book these hotels in advance in order not to miss out on the rooms, especially the budget ones. Let’s look at the services offered by these campsites and other hotels in greater depth:
Campsites and Bandas by the Uganda Wildlife Authority: The campsites are built 3 km away from the Sempaya trail where most activities in the park begin. Although the rooms in the Bandhas are comfortable, there are no meals. Visitors need to order the meals or hire cooking utensils if they wish to cook their packed food.
Semliki Safari Lodge: This lodge is the oldest in the area and is found in the Semliki Wildlife Reserve near the park with wonderful views of Congo’s Blue Mountains. The lodge is made up of luxury tents that are built with local materials without jeopardizing quality.
About 18 people can be accommodated in a day. As the only lodge in an area of about 500 sq km, it offers a truly private wilderness experience. Some of the facilities in the lodge include a bar, restaurant, hot showers, comfortable sofas, a lounge area, a reading area, and a swimming pool. Food and breakfast can be brought to the room and comprise of well-made local and international cuisines. The lodge helps run a chimpanzee research project in collaboration with the Indiana University. Residents can therefore have an opportunity to visit the researchers and to learn about the process of habituating chimpanzees and how studying their lifestyle helps understand the evolution of man.
Ntoroko Game Lodge: This lodge is also built at the Semuliki Wildlife Reserve near Lake Albert. The lodge has Luxury tents that are next to the beautiful and unspoiled sand beaches of Lake Albert. Ntoroko Game Lodge is suitable for visitors on honeymoon vacations who desire privacy. The lodge has beautiful wooden floors and stylish stone exteriors with great views of Lake Albert. There are both single and double rooms that have fans, a safe, hairdryers, heaters, and private balconies.
Kirimia Guesthouse: This guesthouse is built 10 km away from the Sempaya gate towards Bundibugyo town in the village of Kirimia. The guesthouse is popular with tourists because it offers budget rooms that are still of good quality. The rooms are self-contained and meals can be served in the room on request. Because it is built near the Kirimia Head Trail (for birding) and the park headquarters in Ntandi, visitors to this guesthouse can use it as a starting point to go for game drives, bird watching, and spotting primates like chimpanzees and Colobus monkeys.
Hotel Vanilla: Hotel Vanilla is a budget hotel located in Bundibugyo town and close to the largest town market. The hotel rooms are clean and self-contained with showers. Meals are served from the hotel restaurant while drinks can be ordered from the hotel bar.
By Road:
The journey from Kampala to Fortportal by road is 300 km. There are two roads from Kampala to the park. One can use the shorter Kampala to Fort Portal road via Mubende which takes between four to five hours or use the longer route from Kampala through the towns of Kasese, Mbarara, and Masaka. This longer journey (7 to 8 hours of driving) offers opportunities to see some of Uganda’s great national parks like Queen Elizabeth, Rwenzori Mountains, and Lake Mburo Once one reaches Fort Portal town it takes about 52 kilometers to reach the junction leading to the park from the main highway. One needs a good 4-wheel drive to pass through the park roads, especially during the wet season.
Those using public means need to get a taxi to Bundibugyo from Fort Portal town and stop at the Sempaya gate of the park. The Park offices in Ntandi are 5km away from the Sempaya gate. Public transport to Bundibugyo is not reliable and one may need to wait a while before the taxis and minibuses heading to Bundibugyo arrive especially in the evening.
By Air:
Chartered flights can land at an airstrip on Toro Semuliki Wildlife Reserve.
