Updated
You can see all of the Big Five in Uganda, but not in one park. Lions, elephants, buffalo and leopards live in Queen Elizabeth, Murchison Falls and Kidepo Valley National Parks, while rhinos survive only at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, a fenced reserve on the road from Kampala to Murchison Falls, where you track southern white rhinos on foot. A route of Ziwa, Murchison and Queen Elizabeth gives a good chance of all five, and gorillas and chimps can be added along the way.
Lion
Uganda’s lions live in Queen Elizabeth, Murchison Falls and Kidepo. Queen Elizabeth’s Ishasha sector is famous for lions that rest in fig trees, while the Kasenyi plains in the north of the park are good for early-morning sightings around Uganda kob herds. In Murchison, the Buligi and Queen’s tracks north of the Nile are the best areas, and Kidepo’s Narus Valley has open views and few vehicles. Lion numbers have declined because of conflict with livestock keepers, so a sighting is likely on a multi-day trip but not guaranteed.
Elephant
Elephants are the easiest of the five. Murchison Falls has Uganda’s largest population, often seen on game drives and from the Nile boat trip, and herds come to drink along the Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth. Kidepo has elephants in its valleys, and forest elephants live in Kibale and Bwindi, though they are rarely seen in the dense vegetation. See our guide to Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Buffalo
Cape buffalo are common in all the savannah parks, in large herds on the plains of Murchison and Kidepo and along the water in Queen Elizabeth, and are also found in Lake Mburo. Old bulls, often seen wallowing alone, can be aggressive, which is one reason guides keep walking safaris carefully controlled.
Leopard
Leopards live in most of Uganda’s parks but are shy and mostly active at night, so they are the hardest of the five to find. The best chances are on early-morning and evening drives in Murchison’s Buligi area, around Mweya and the Kasenyi tracks in Queen Elizabeth, and on night drives in Lake Mburo, one of the few parks where these are allowed. Patient searching with an experienced guide improves the odds considerably.
Rhino
Uganda’s native black and northern white rhinos were wiped out by poaching by the early 1980s. Since 2005, southern white rhinos brought from Kenya and the United States have been bred at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, about three hours north of Kampala, and the population has grown steadily, with the long-term aim of returning rhinos to the national parks. Rangers lead small groups on foot to see them at close range, usually in about one to two hours. See our guide to Ugandan animals that came back from the brink.
A Big Five route with gorillas
A practical 10–12 day route: Kampala to Ziwa for rhino tracking, Murchison Falls for two nights, then south via Kibale for chimps to Queen Elizabeth, and on to Bwindi for gorilla trekking, which costs US$800, or US$600 in April, May and November. See our guides to safari animals in Uganda and a 12-day Uganda safari.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Four live in the national parks; rhinos are only at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.
Murchison Falls and Queen Elizabeth each have lion, elephant, buffalo and leopard.
Southern white rhinos, bred there since 2005.
The leopard, because it is shy and mostly active at night.
