Backpacking Uganda. Budget for independent travellers.

¿ How much money do you need to travel through Uganda ?

We visited Uganda in April 2015 during 1 month, moving with public transport, doing couchsurfing and sleeping in small local hotels, eating in local restaurants. You can see all the details on the right sidebar menu.

The tourist infrastructure in Uganda is good, and for all budgets. Yes, it´s possible to travel on a budget in Uganda. Many cheap rooms (there are local lodges in towns!), public transport goes to all the main towns and it´s also cheap, the main roads are now tarred, local restaurants are cheap.  Great!

But if you want to do activities, they are expensive like always in Africa and specially in Eastern Africa. Viewing wildlife is quite expensive (you are in East Africa and the national park fees are really high). To see the gorillas is out of price (600 $/pp!!!). 

We didn´t do any activities in Uganda.
But, good news: it´s also possible to see wild animals for free. Yes, just read the Queen Elizabeth NP information! And monkeys around the Crater Lakes (Fort Portal).


Uganda is a very recommended and complete country in Africa, also for backpackers and independent travellers. Welcome! 


If you are planning a budget trip in Uganda, some price references are:

- Price for double room in local lodges: 
From 20.000 Sh (6 €) basic-shared WC
From 30.000 Sh (10 €) self-contained.

In tourist places, camps and national parks, places focused on foreign customers, hard to find this, you will need to camp and probably pay much more than for a local room in town.

- Price for cheap accommodation in tourist places:
Camping: from 3€ per person
Dorm: from 5€ per person
Banda: from 7€ per person

- Food in Uganda: in local restaurants, dish from 3.000 sh (1 €) and with meat from 5.000 sh (around 2€).
   Water bottle: 1.500- 2.000 Sh for1,5 l (1 €) or bigger 5 l around 5.000 sh(2 €). Not too cheap.
   Sodas: 800 - 1.000 Sh for a 33-40 cl, cheap (less than 0.30 €).
   Fresh milk: around 1.200-1.500 Sh/l (0.5 €).
   Local beers (Nile, Bell, Club, etc.): from 3.000 Sh for a 50 cl bottle(1 €).

- Transport in Uganda:
   Bus or van: 5.000 sh/h ( around 2 €/h) for 50 - 80 km.
   Boda-boda or mototaxi: 3.000 - 5.000 sh (1-2 €).

- National parks in Uganda:
The famous ones, like Queen Elizabeth or Murchison Falls cost from  40$/pp/day.


Uganda Currency:
It´s the Uganda Shilling (UGX or Sh).
For tourist activities (national parks, gorillas, safaris, etc.) and in some tourist hotels, you can pay in dollars US$. But also possible to pay in Shillings or other currencies for the NP.

In April 2015 the exchange rate was: 1 € = 3.150 Sh
Good ATM rate, similar to money changers.

If you are planning a budget trip through Uganda,
 our budget and expenses can be a reference:

Budget in Uganda (33 days/ 33 nights), for 2 people:


  • Accommodation: 645.000 Sh ( 205 €)
          Note:  10 nights with couchsurfing.

  • Food/drinks: 395.000 Sh ( 125 €)
  • Transport: 246.000 Sh ( 78 €)
  • Mixed: 35.000 Sh (11 €) 
  • Visa: 55 €
         East Africa visa (Rwanda+Uganda+Kenya) 100$/pp
  • Insurrance: 17 €

Total Budget:    491 € for 2 people for  33 days/33 nights

Average budget /day in Uganda: 14,9 € for 2 people.

Average budget /month in Uganda: 446 € for 2 people.
 

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