BEST ISLAND PLACES TO VISIT WHILE IN UGANDA.
Due to the fact that the pearl of Africa is surrounded by water bodies, it has over 84 islands to visit in Uganda. However, these islands vary in size but with beautiful white sand beaches, palm trees, rare plants, flowers, fancy luxurious accommodation facilities, green vegetation, and stunning historical spiritual tales among others. The 84 islands are the best place to relax and amazing place for photography and command an admirable vacation place for families, singles, couples and friends which enable you to clearly catch a glance of freshwater sundowners on Lake Victoria while you experience panoramic skies patterned with millions of stars in the night. Some of these islands include Ngamba island, Bugala Island, Banda island, Bulago island and many more. While on an island, the economic activities for local livelihood are palm oil growing, fishing and farming.
What are some of the islands?
Bugala island.
The island is the largest on ssese island covering an area of 250sqkm. However the island being among the 10th largest island, it is more visited and developed suitable for tourists. Bugala Island neighbors kalangala town which is the destination of many islands. While on the islands, amazing hills which offer the best view of the lake are spotted as well as the largest palm oil plantation. The island is the best birding paradise on kalangala island and primates like velvet monkeys, colobus monkeys, bushbucks and snacks.
Ngamba Island.
Ngamba Island covers an area of about 100 acres and is well known for harboring primates like chimpanzees that are habituated. The chimps are trained for some years to be used with people since they are close relatives of human beings and were once wild. However chimpanzee habituation is a common activity on the island, there are other mammals that are spotted like crocodiles, hippopotamus and lizards. While on the island, there are over 119 bird species thus making it a birding paradise for bird lovers. The rescued and orphaned chimpanzees in Ngamba island sanctuary spend their time swinging from the rainforest trees as they attract many tourists.
Banda Island.
Unlike the noisy Bugala island, Banda island is private land owned by an individual and can be accessed by either boat or canoeing starting from kasenyi landing site. However, the means of transport can be a speed boat which is expensive compared to canoeing and boat. The island is best for camping and for those who prefer cottages are still there on your service whose rates are affordable to visitors and for the campers without their own tent equipment, worry not for the island has got tents to hire.
Bulago island.
Bulago Island is also among the largest islands covering 510 acres of land surrounded by white sand and rocks thus giving it a unique look from other islands. It is located in the eastern part of Entebbe International Airport and developed exclusively for leisure use. While on the island, more resorts will be spotted like pineapple Bay resort which provides accommodation to visitors. The island is perfect for water sports, jogging around the island, sunbathing, lakeside views, horse-riding, hiking trails and also an excellent base for bird-watching as the island is home to approximately 200 bird species where they can be spotted at the lakeside and during nature walks.
What to see on the islands?
Swimming.
Due to the fact islands are surrounded by water bodies, swimming is the most popular activity a visitor couldn’t miss on Kalangala Island. However, swimming in the lake isn’t advisable to secure the lives of visitors since the lake harbors crocodiles and other aquatic animals. Since most of the hotels around the lakes have swimming pools, visitors can still have the best time on the island. However, Bugala island is well protected from swimming in the lake and sunbathing around the white sand to have a memorable safari on island.
Boat cruise.
Since most islands are in kalangala district that is surrounded by water bodies, the island can be accessed by boat cruise where birds, green vegetation and other islands can be spotted. Mv kalangala , mv Vanessa, mv Nathalie, , MV Ssese and MV Pearl and canoe boats can make your safari on an island memorable one. If any visitor needs a speed boat, they are always costed as well to have the best time on the water.
Sports fishing.
UWA fishing permit is not required on lake victoria but you must go with a licensed boat operator, registered by the Ministry of Fisheries thus making the fishing activity the most popular activity on an island. A fantastic fishing spot is tilapia and Lake Victoria’s largest fish, the Nile Perch which has developed a fishing industry at the island that has improved people’s standards of living. Fishing is done either morning hours or evening hours to have the best experiencing moment.
Birding.
Islands are the best birding paradise for bird lovers. Despite the fact that they are being surrounded by the lake, forest birds, water birds and endemic birds can be spotted like Crested Crane, shoebill Stork, Shelley’s Crimsonwing, Great Blue Turaco, marabou Stork, African Green Broadbill, Doherty’s Bush-shrike and many more.
Agriculture tours.
Since 2005, Palm Oil is the major cash crop grown in Kalangala majorly by Kalangala Oil Palm Growers Trust (KoPGT). The island is surrounded by water bodies, the land is fertile and so a lot grows on it. You don’t wish to leave an island without tasting such delicious meals of their palm oil products, maize, g.nuts and matooke. Such meals will make a memorable trip for visitors and they would wish to come back for it.
Nature walks.
Due to the fact that Ssese Island has got some trails, nature walks and hiking is expected as a spiced activity after swimming or boat cruise. Some of these islands have got hills which spot a nice view of the lakeside as well as a spot of other islands with green vegetation which gives a good feeling of wind breeze and relaxation of a visitor who had traveled to have a peace of mind on an island.
Wildlife viewing
Most Islands are homes for primates like velvet monkeys, chimpanzees and colobus monkeys. However it being sounded by water bodies, there are many aquatic animals in the lake like hippopotamus, crocodiles and many more. However, the island is popularly visited due to chimp habituation where visitors are given more time to be with chimps which UWA permits them by accessing chimp permits. These chimps are said to be orphans who were got from poachers who had separated them from the whole family.
How to access the islands on kalangala?
Due to the fact that Ssese Island is located on Kalangala Island, it can be accessed either by chartered flight or by water transport. While on water transport, visitors will use boats, ferries and canoes. There are two main entry points to reach the island that is Bukakata in Masaka and Nakiwogo (Entebbe). While on water transport, the ferry (mv kalangala) will approcimently use 4-5 hours to reach an island. For visitors using a ferry are supposed to be in the time since the ferry sets off Nakiwogo at 2:00pm to an island and settings off from an island at 8:00am in the morning back to Nakiwogo.
However, MV Vanessa and MV Nathalie operated by Nyanza Evergreen Waterways company vessels are among the luxurious boats on an island for luxurious visitors.
Whereas at Bukakata and dock at Bugoma landing site, MV Ssese and MV Pearl operate a 30-minute trip on the Masaka to Kalangala route carrying both cargo and passengers.
Where to stay on Ssese Island?
While at the island, do not worry about where to stay because there are a number of accommodations that are pocket friendly. However luxurious visitors should be well aware that there are no 5-star hotels but nice hotels that fit their class like Brovad hotel, victoria hotel and many more. There are other mid-range and bridge hotels like mirembe hotel, pearl hotel, ssese Habitat lodge, Philo Leisure gardens ,kingfisher hotel and many more. For those visitors who prefer camping, ssese island is still the best secure camping site for you where the camping requirements can be hired.
How to access the Ssese islands?
