See where the world’s longest river begins: a day trip from Kampala to Jinja for a boat ride to the Source of the Nile, with white-water rafting or a relaxed river cruise.
Jinja sits where the Nile leaves Lake Victoria on its 6,650-kilometre journey to the Mediterranean, and it is Uganda’s adventure capital. This day trip from Kampala combines a boat trip to the Source of the Nile with your choice of white-water rafting, kayaking or a relaxed afternoon in town.
It is ideal on the first or last day of a safari, or as a break during a business trip to Kampala.
The boat trip to the Source of the Nile is calm and easy, lasting about an hour. If you choose rafting, the operator gives a full safety briefing and practice session before you set off; expect big waves, a swim or two in warm water and a lot of laughter. Lunch is usually served by the river.
The drive passes through Mabira Forest, one of the last large rainforests in central Uganda, and the sugar and tea estates around Lugazi. Kampala traffic can be heavy, so an early start makes the day much more relaxed.
Adventure seekers, families (with a family float instead of full rafting), and travellers with a spare day in Kampala or Entebbe at the start or end of a safari.
Leave Kampala or Entebbe early to beat the traffic and drive east through tea and sugar plantations and the rainforest of Mabira. In Jinja, board a boat to the point where the Nile flows out of Lake Victoria. Your guide shows you the springs bubbling up under the water and the monument to John Hanning Speke, who identified the source in 1862, while cormorants, kingfishers and fish eagles hunt along the banks.
After lunch by the river, choose your afternoon: a half-day of white-water rafting through the Nile’s rapids with a specialist operator, kayaking or stand-up paddleboarding, or a relaxed visit to Jinja town and the Mahatma Gandhi memorial. Return to Kampala or Entebbe in the evening.
Yes, a half-day rafting trip fits comfortably. Full-day rafting needs an early start or an overnight stay in Jinja.
Yes, with established operators. Safety kayakers accompany every raft and no experience is needed. Family floats are available on calmer sections.
About 2–3 hours each way from Kampala, depending on traffic, and longer from Entebbe.
Swimwear, a change of clothes, sunscreen, sandals that stay on your feet and a waterproof bag.
Yes. Sipi Falls and Mount Elgon are about three hours further east; see our Jinja guide.
Rafting operators have changing rooms, showers and secure storage at their bases.
Operators usually set a minimum age of 14–16 for big-water rafting, with family floats on calmer water for younger children.
Wildlife 7 daysTwo of Uganda’s greatest wildernesses in one journey: the thundering Nile at Murchison Falls, then the wide, wild plains of Kidepo Valley in the far north-east.
Short break 4 daysRhinos on foot, chimpanzees in a mahogany forest, the most powerful waterfall on the Nile and the big game of Uganda’s largest park, in four unhurried days from Kampala.
Honeymoon 12 daysAdventure and romance: fly in to trek gorillas in Bwindi, see tree-climbing lions and the Kazinga Channel, then fly to Zanzibar for Stone Town and six nights on the beach.
Change the dates, add a night, upgrade a lodge or combine it with Rwanda or Kenya. Tell us what you have in mind and we’ll send a revised plan and price.
