Wondering about how to get to Kampala – Uganda’s Capital? When you want to visit Kampala there are many ways to get here.
By Air
As opposed to many cities the world over, Kampala does not have an airport and therefore no direct flights to Kampala. You will have to fly into Entebbe which is about 37km (23 miles) southwest of Kampala. You will arrive at Entebbe International Airport (EBB) – which is Uganda’s getaway to the world by air, and access Kampala by road.
There are cheap flights to Entebbe from all over the world daily.
Getting to Kampala by air is quite limited to that ‘am afraid; much as you might also still come into the country through the other smaller airports, most of these will only handle local flights with exception of a few that handle cross-nation flights from the neighboring countries.
Depending on what you will be doing in Uganda, if you are flying into one of the local airports, you might want to take an extra local connection flight into Entebbe and take the 45 minutes drive into Kampala or take the longer option of about 2 to 5 hours drive to Kampala from the other airports – depending on which.
The road from Entebbe to Kampala is quite good and with normal traffic, getting to Kampala should be just about 45 minutes – plus or minus for the traffic, you should comfortably get there in just under an hour. If it’s your first visit to Uganda, you will find it such a scenic drive into the city.
If you have had one of those long seemingly never ending flights and been yarning for your final destination, you could consider having a rest to cool off the jet lag in one of the excellent hotels in Entebbe town before heading to Kampala.
There are many services for you to take advantage of on your arrival at Entebbe International Airport. From car rentals, taxis, shuttle services, banking, communication services, shopping, restaurants to major hotels.
Fly-in visitors will arrive in Uganda at Entebbe International Airport, which lies on the Lake Victoria shore about 3km from Entebbe Town. If you arrive outside banking hours, there are 24-hour foreign-exchange facilities at the airport. Here are some of the airlines that fly to Uganda;
British Airways
Centre Court, Plot 4 Ternan Avenue, Nakasero, Kampala
Tel: (041)4257414/5/6.
Email:contactba.1.uganda@ba.com
http://www.ba.com
Emirates
FNC Building,Kimathi Avenue
Tel: (041) 4349941/2
http://www.emirates.com/ug
Kenya Airways
Jubilee Insurance Building Parliament Avenue
Tel: (031) 2360000 / 118 / 119
http://www.kenya-airways.com
Precision Air Service
Jubilee Insurance Building Parliament Avenue
Tel: +256 (0)31 2360000/0312 360113
Email:info@precisionairtz.com
http://www.precisionairtz.com/
From the airport, there are several possible means of transport that can link you to Kampala. There are;
- Special hire taxis from the airport cost around US$10 to Entebbe and US$50 to Kampala. Fairly priced transfers from Entebbe to Kampala and destinations nationwide can be booked in advance through Airport Transfers Entebbe
- Car Rental Agencies also offer free airport transfers if you book a car hire with them in advance. Airport collection is always arranged in advance through most tour operators and upmarket hotels in Kampala and Entebbe. Several of the latter send their buses along to pick pre-booked clients and hopefully some additional trade.
- Bus Shuttle Services: The cheapest and simplest option is to take the regular City Bus shuttle to Kampala from the main public car park.
- Alternatively, take a shared taxi from the airport to Kitoro in Entebbe to hop on a public minibus to Kampala. This is safe enough during daylight hours, but probably not too sensible after dark, and if you do arrive in central Kampala with all your luggage at any time of day, you’re strongly advised to catch a special hire taxi to a hotel rather than walking the streets looking for a room.
(In such circumstances, as with any major African city, its better to find a reasonable bed quickly and wait for the morning to locate more comfortable/affordable/quieter lodgings if this proves necessary.) If you’re heading out to the airport from Kampala, minibuses to Entebbe leave from both the old and the new taxi park.
By Sea
Uganda is a landlocked country and therefore not quite easily accessed by sea. Depending on where you are coming from, access by sea will either be via Kenya or Tanzania and taking the long drive or bus ride to Kampala.
For the adventurous travellers, this could definitely be a memorable way to get to Kampala. Your reward will be all the magnificent scenery along the way.
Better still, you could easily take a connection flight from Kenya or Tanzania to Entebbe and get to Kampala by road.
Getting to Kampala by cruise vessels on Lake Victoria is unfortunately no more. The services had there bad times over the years with the sinking of MV Kabalega in 2005 after a tragic collision with MV Kaawa and the suspension of the services on MV Pemba – the last of the Ugandan ships, the same year, Uganda was left with no ship in operation.
By boat
Uganda’s main ferry port in Kampala is Port Bell, which is about 15 minutes from Kampala and reached by regular minibuses from the old taxi park.
At the time of writing, however, no passenger boats operate out of Port Bell.
The ferry service between Port Bell and Mwanza (Tanzania) was aborted following the sinking of the MV Bukoba in 1996 (in which as many as 1,000 people are thought to have drowned) and although it resumed briefly at one point, it is unlikely it will again in the near future.
Cargo boats between Port Bell and Mwanza will sometimes take passengers, however, and many travellers crossing between Tanzania and Uganda use the thrice-weekly overnight ferry from Mwanza to Bukoba, which connects with a direct bus service to Kampala via Masaka.
By Land
Getting to Kampala is a road trip either driving by car, taking a taxi or bus.
The roads are relatively good, depending on where you are travelling from. They might certainly not be what you are used to in terms of size – the highways are single carriage ways with no walkways and if you are driving in Uganda, it is best to observe the recommended speed limit and taking into account all other road users and traffic conventions.
And… I should hopefully see you some time in Kampala!
By rail
There used to be two internal rail services in Uganda, one connecting Kampala to Kasese in the west, and the other connecting Kampala to Pakwach via Tororo and Gulu.
Neither service was much used by travellers, because the trains were very slow and unreliable, and both were suspended in 1997 with little likelihood of resuming in the foreseeable future.
The weekly overnight train service between Kampala and Nairobi, at one time the most attractive means of transport between these cities, has also been suspended on an indefinite basis.
By bus
Kampala’s minibus-taxi station was once the most chaotic in east Africa: several hundred minibuses, identical in appearance bar the odd bit of panel-beating and with no indication as to their destination, all sardine-packed into a couple of acres of seething madness.
To counter this, the city council built a second taxi station about 100m from the first – which means that Kampala now boasts the two most chaotic taxi parks in east Africa.
Minibuses to most destinations west of Kampala leave from the new taxi park while minibuses to Port Bell and destinations east of Kampala leave from the old taxi park .
Local minibuses leave for Entebbe from both taxi parks every few minutes. Prices are generally slightly higher than the bus fares quoted below, but departures are far more regular – before noon, you’re unlikely to wait for more than 30 minutes for a minibus to leave for Jinja, Tororo, Mbale, Kabale, Kasese, Mityana, Mubende, Fort Portal, Masindi, Gulu or Hoima.
Most bus services operate out of, or from sites close to, the central bus station , which lies between the two taxi parks, enhancing the general aura of chaos in this congested part of town.
There are regular departures – every one to two hours from around 07.00 until noon – for most of the destinations listed above, though it’s worth checking out departure times and booking a day ahead to save waiting around on the day.
It also connects Fort Portal to Kabale. The most extensive network is operated by the Gateway bus company, whose drivers are neither the most considerate nor the most careful of road users.
Far better to take the popular and relatively safe Post Bus which operates from the main post office on Kampala Road. Services leave from the parking yard at the back at 08.00 daily Monday to Saturday. The most useful services for tourists are: