Walk with rhinos on a day trip from Kampala: track southern white rhinos on foot with Ziwa’s rangers, the only place in Uganda to see them.
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary is the only place in Uganda to see rhinos, and walking with them on foot is one of the country’s most memorable wildlife experiences. Founded in 2005 with six rhinos, Ziwa now protects around 50 southern white rhinos and is the base for returning rhinos to Uganda’s wild areas.
This day trip from Kampala is perfect for travellers with a spare day, families, and anyone who wants to add rhinos to a gorilla safari.
After the drive north from Kampala, the day at Ziwa is relaxed. The rhino walk usually lasts one to two hours, on mostly flat ground through grassland and light woodland. Rangers approach the rhinos from downwind and keep the group together, and you can watch and photograph them for as long as they stay calm.
Ziwa is also home to antelopes, monkeys, hippos and crocodiles, and its swamps are a good place to look for the shoebill on a guided walk. Lunch is served at the sanctuary’s lodge.
Families with children, travellers with a spare day in Kampala, and anyone who wants to add rhinos to a gorilla or chimpanzee safari.
Leave Kampala early and drive north on the Gulu highway through Luweero and Nakasongola, a landscape of farms, papyrus swamps and small towns, arriving at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary mid-morning. After registration and a briefing on the sanctuary’s history and safety rules, drive a short distance with a ranger and continue on foot to find the rhinos.
Approach to a safe distance as they graze, rest in the shade or wallow, while the ranger explains how each rhino is monitored and how the population has grown from six founders to around 50. Many were born at Ziwa, and rangers know each one by name.
After lunch at the sanctuary, join an optional guided walk in the Lugogo swamp, where the shoebill is sometimes seen, or a nature walk for birds and antelopes. Then drive back to Kampala or Entebbe, arriving in the evening.
Yes. Ziwa is about three hours from Kampala, and rhino tracking takes about two hours, so it fits comfortably into a day.
Sightings are almost guaranteed because rangers monitor every rhino around the clock.
Usually 20–40 metres, depending on the rhinos’ behaviour and the ranger’s judgement.
Yes. Rhino tracking at Ziwa is suitable for families.
Yes. Ziwa is on the way to Murchison Falls, which is 2–2.5 hours further.
Neutral colours, comfortable closed shoes, a hat and sunscreen. Bring water and binoculars.
Yes. Staying at the sanctuary’s lodge lets you track rhinos in the early morning or late afternoon light.
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.
