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Best time to visit Uganda

The best time to visit Uganda is June to September, which is the peak season for seeing gorillas in the wild. March-May and October-November have wetter weather, which can be less pleasant for gorilla tracking. Wildlife can be seen in Uganda’s national parks throughout the year, while gorilla permits are in lower demand in the rainier months and can be obtained at shorter notice.

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Best time to visit Uganda

Equatorial Uganda has a blissfully springlike climate – a 25°C average with cooling night-time breezes.

June, July, August and September are the best time to visit Uganda. These peak months are generally dry (although rain can fall at any time). Book well in advance if tracking gorillas, as permits sell out months in advance. Really, though, this is a year-round destination. Uganda sits squarely on the equator so there are no true seasons, plus an average altitude of around 1,000m tempers the heat. March to May and October to November see the highest rainfall, but gorillas are still lurking in the mist – although trekking to find them will be slippery and slower. Accommodation can be much cheaper at this time, and gorilla permits easier to come by at shorter notice.

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A month by month guide on when to go to Uganda

January in Uganda

Great time to visit

Dry season: warm and dry

Wildlife easy to spot

The start of the year is a great time to visit Uganda. It’s dry and warm, and wildlife is often concentrated around water sources as the dry season reaches its midpoint. While technically this month and next are the hottest months of the year – with average daily highs of 29°C in Uganda in January – there isn’t much temperature variation in this equator-straddling nation.

February in Uganda

Dry season: warm and dry

Wildlife easy to spot

Lots of small group tours run

Join a photography tour in Uganda in February: our specialist trips depart this month as it’s a great time for wildlife watching. Whether you’re a photographer or just a keen wildlife-watcher, we’ve got lots of small group tours departing now. It’s peak dry season and you’ll spot animals converging on water sources, and at the foot of the falls in Murchison Falls National Park.

March in Uganda

Long rains begin

Drier in the northeast

Fewer visitors

The long rains arrive in much of Uganda in March, but they might not start until later in the month. You can still go gorilla trekking in the wet season – but expect the going underfoot to be harder on muddy paths. Murchison Falls in the north and the semi-arid Kidepo Valley National Park in the northeast have a drier climate and are good places to head during the wetter months.

April in Uganda

Long rains – wettest month

Green vegetation

Roads can be difficult

Uganda in April experiences its wettest weather. Scan the trees in for Ishasha’s famous tree-climbing lions who might seek shelter in the canopy in rainy season and escape the tsetse flies on the ground. The wildlife is not migratory in Uganda so you can still see plenty of game in parks such as Queen Elizabeth, although thicker vegetation makes spotting the animals a little harder. It’s mango season and start of the robusta coffee harvest in the Masaka coffee region.

May in Uganda

Last month of the long rains

Drying up at end of the month

Green vegetation

In wet season the roads become very bad, which can make long journeys longer in Uganda in May. You’ll need a good vehicle for safari and if you’re gorilla trekking, be prepared for a soggy, slippery trek. Waterproofs and waterproof boots are essential. May is the last month of the long rains – but sneak in towards the end of the month and you might get drier weather, green landscapes, and few other visitors before ‘park season’ begins next month.

June in Uganda

Great time to visit

Dry season begins

Excellent wildlife viewing

Uganda in June is experiencing the start of peak, dry season, which is also known as ‘park season’ – because this is the time of year to visit Uganda’s national parks for safari and for excellent wildlife viewing. Uganda remains happily oblivious to mass tourism, though, and you won’t need to worry about crowds, though you will need to book gorilla permits far in advance. The gorillas tend to move higher up into the mountains in dry season – but getting to them is ok as the paths are in good condition.

June is a good time for our gorilla watching and Masai Mara holiday

Wildlife viewing is better when game is more concentrated around water sources and tracking gorillas and chimpanzees is much easier when the ground is dry.

– Jackson Araali from our partner Primate World Safaris

July in Uganda

Great time to visit

Dry season: warm and dry

Excellent wildlife viewing

Uganda in July is popular: it’s the start of the school holidays, and it’s a brilliant time of year to visit. Days are warm (average high 26°C), dry, with fantastic wildlife watching – wildlife at the waterholes, gorilla and chimpanzee trekking on dry ground, and trekking in the Rwenzori Mountains if you want some proper hiking. July is also the beginning of pineapple season: Uganda produces some beautiful fruit, and its ripest, juiciest pineapples will be appearing from now.

August in Uganda

Great time to visit

Dry season: warm and dry

Excellent wildlife viewing

As summer holidays continue for many around the world, August is the last month of the country’s peak season for tourism. Like the rest of high season, it’s generally dry and sunny, with average daily highs of 27°C, and great conditions for gorilla and chimpanzee trekking as well as safari. Uganda in August might be in mid dry season, but there’s always a chance of rain, no matter the time of year.

September in Uganda

Last month of peak season

Excellent wildlife viewing

Some rain towards end of the month

While peak visitor season is over, it’s mostly dry in Uganda in September, which makes this month fantastic for wildlife watching, and a great time of year to go on a specialist wildlife tour. Late summer is often better value than high summer though there may be more rain towards the end of the month as the short rains approach.

September is a good month for our ultimate small group tour in Uganda

October in Uganda

Short rains arrive

Low season for tourism

Some heavy rain, interspersed with sunshine

Migratory lesser flamingos return to Lake Munyanyange near Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda in October. With the coming of the short rains comes the beginning of a low season for tourists. Heavy rain falls for a short time most days, interspersed with sunshine, but Uganda is a year-round destination and there’s still good safari. This is the last month for combining Uganda with the Masai Mara – the wildebeest migration can be seen all summer, and into early October.

November in Uganda

Great month for birding

Migratory birds arrive, birds breeding

Short rainy season continues

Uganda in November is in the second month of its short rainy season. This season’s rain tends to fall in short bursts that last no longer than an hour or so, with sunshine in between showers. The landscape is green, and there’s lots of food around for Uganda’s birds, many of which are busy this month in their breeding season: expect interesting displays, more birdsong, and the arrival of migratory birds, too, swelling avian numbers.

December in Uganda

Popular time to visit

Dry season: warm and dry

Wildlife easy to spot

Sekukkulu Ennungi – happy Christmas! Uganda is a predominantly Christian country, and this is how to spread seasonal greetings in Luganda. Visit Uganda in December and you won’t be alone as the country gets a few more visitors around the holidays. It’s also the start of the dry season that will last until mid-March – a good time for safari, and to head to the Rwenzori mountains for hiking. While there’s a bit more rain about than later in dry season, it’s mostly warm and sunny.

Uganda Weather Chart

MIN °C

MAX °C

RAIN (mm)

JAN

FEB

MAR

141

APR

194

MAY

172

JUN

JUL

AUG

SEP

OCT

129

NOV

163

DEC

101

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Responsible Travel recommends

Jackson Araali, from our leading Uganda holidays partner Primate World Safaris:
“The best time to travel in the year would be between the months of January and February then June to September. The weather is perfect, dry season with little or no rainfall. Wildlife viewing is better when game is more concentrated around water sources and tracking gorillas and chimpanzees is much easier when the ground is dry.”

Spokesperson from our Uganda holidays partner Natural World Safaris:
“March, April, May is a heavier rainy season, but having said that, I was there in May in the Kyambura Gorge doing chimpanzee trekking, and there was no one there except me and some guides because most tourists don’t come until the end of May when, traditionally, the rain stops. People do work in ‘calendars’ but of course weather doesn’t work like that. I think there is a lot to be said of going in the last few days of what is supposedly the wet season, because when I was there it was perfectly dry and there was nobody there.”

Our travellers also ask…

When is the best month to go to Uganda?

We recommend June as the best month to go to Uganda – it’s the start of the dry season that runs to September. Alternatively, look at the other dry season between December and February.

Which month is the rainy season in Uganda?

There are two rainy seasons in Uganda – the long rains from March to May and the short rains from October to November, though it can rain at any time in the country. The official rainy seasons are wetter. This make roads less easy to travel, and it less easy to go gorilla-trekking or wildlife watching (like us, animals are less likely to go out and about during a downpour). However, rain tends to fall for just part of the day, and then the skies become blue again. As weather patterns become less predictable with climate change, Uganda’s rainy seasons are becoming less defined.

What is the hottest month in Uganda?

January and February tie in first place as the hottest months in Uganda, and the average daily high is 29°C in Kampala. But Uganda is equatorial and so there isn’t much temperature range throughout the year – the coldest month is July, and the average daily high in the capital is still 26°C.

How cold is Uganda at night?

The average elevation in Uganda is around a kilometre above sea level which tempers its climate compared to other nations at similar latitudes. Expect an average daily low of between 15°C and 17°C at night. On our holidays you might spend a night camping with Karamojong herders at a kraal – an enclosure for cattle – but you shouldn’t be chilly round the campfire. A jumper or cardi makes it much easier to sleep but it never reaches the chilly extremes of places such as Kruger or the Kalahari.