Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo National Park is located in the Southern part of Uganda in Kiruhura district and Its nearest City is Mbarara which is about 30km East of the Park. With an area of just 260sqkm, Lake Mburo is home to over 68 mammal species such as buffalos, Defassa waterbucks, oribis, leopards, hippos, hyenas, topi and reedbuck, the park also boosts of its large herds of zebras, Impalas, Elands, Topis and buffaloes among other species.

About the park

A home to about 350 bird species some of which include water birds, forest birds and savannah birds which are, mosque swallow, black bellied bustard, bare-faced-go away bird, Ruppell’s starling, African wattled lapwing, pied kingfisher, Malachite kingfisher, Saddle-billed stork, Red-faced barbet and Yellow-breasted apalis among other bird species.

Its  the only park in Uganda with elands, impalas and klipspringers, It is also home to the largest population of zebras in Uganda estimated at about 5,000 and probably contains the highest concentration of leopards found anywhere in else Uganda. Buffaloes, waterbucks, Topis and warthog are also very common, Reedbuck and oribis can be spotted in the open valleys whereas Hyenas, bush pigs, genet and white tailed mongoose are often seen on night game drives. At the centre of the Park is Lake Mburo, which together with 14 other lakes in the area forms part of a wetland system which occupies 20% of the park area, these swamps are both seasonally flooded and permanent swamps.

Almost a fifth of the Park’s area consists of wetlands – both seasonally flooded and permanent swamps. The various types of swamps are home to a wide variety of wetland birds, as well as the shy, rare sitatunga antelope. Lake Mburo’s surface and its fringing vegetation are always changing, and it is delightful to take a boat out and experience the lake’s moods and watch the numerous hippos, some crocs and an incredible amount of African fish eagles. The lake is also one of the best places to spot the rarely seen African fin foot and white backed heron amongst many other water birds.

Activities in Lake Mburo National Park

Though small, Lake Mburo has a number of activities that can spice up your stay and they include;

Game Drives

Game drives are the best way to explore Lake Mburo National Park, this gives Tourists an opportunity to meet up close with the different wildlife species of the park like impalas and the buchelle’s zebras.   Meanwhile, game drives in Lake Mburo are in the Morning, Evening and Night and these drives offer frequent sightings of Leopards and Lions.

Nature Walks

Nature walks are done with the guidance of a ranger guide and it is one of the activities that sets Lake Mburo National Park apart from other parks. These Nature walks involve moving off the beaten paths as you search for more wildlife and bird species. During your walk, you can as well hike up the hill top to see Lake Mburo and far beyond together with its 9 regional Lakes.

Boat Rides  

Boat Rides in Lake Mburo is the best way to encounter crocodiles, hippos, buffaloes, Antelopes and several bird species such as African fish eagles, malachite kingfishers, pied kingfishers, pelicans among others.

Horse Riding 

With Horse rides, Lake Mburo can extensively be explored and it also allows riding off the beaten tracks to search for the various wildlife species of the park.

Birding

Lake Mburo is home to over 350 bird species and it gives an opportunity to identify several birds like mosque swallow, black bellied bustard, bare-faced-go away bird, Saddle-billed stork, Red-faced barbet among others.

When to Visit

Lake Mburo National Park is open all year round but the best time to visit the park is June to August and December to February since it is the dry season and animals gather around the lake and other water sources.

How to Get to Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo accessed by both Road and Air Transport.

By Road, the park is about 220km from Kampala about 4 hours drive.

By Air, the park  reached through Mbarara Airport and about 30 km drive to the park.

Lake Mburo Entry Gates

Lake Mburo National Park  accessed through 3 Gates and they are;

Nshara gate

Sanga gate

Kyanyanshara gate

Accommodations in Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo National Park offers comfortable stay for its visitors in Luxury Accommodations and they include;

Luxury Accommodations

Arcadia Cottages

Mihingo Lodge

Emburara Farm Lodge

Mantana Tented Camp

Kigambira Safari Lodge