Mugara Hot Springs

At Mugara on the Lake Tanganyika shore south of Bujumbura hot water comes out of the ground close to the lake, collected in basins where people bathe and reputed locally to help with skin and joint complaints. The springs sit in the rift valley, where the same geology that opened the lake basin brings the heat up. The setting is the flat lakeside strip with the escarpment behind. Several other springs emerge along this stretch of the rift shore, and the water at some of them is hot enough to scald. The lake is a short walk from the basins.

What you actually see

• The hot water - springs emerging close to the lake shore.
• The bathing basins - the pools the outflow is collected in.
• The rift setting - the geology that produces both the lake and the heat.
• The escarpment - the wall rising behind the lakeside strip.

When to go

June to September is the dry season. The springs run year round. Mornings are cooler for bathing.

Honest expectations

Facilities are basic and bathing arrangements are locally governed. Cleanliness varies. There is no accommodation at the springs.

Nearby

Rumonge is south, and Bujumbura is north.