Semuliki National Park
An extension of the Congo lowland rainforest into Uganda, with hot springs and birds found nowhere else in the country.
Saved in this browser only - no account, nothing sent anywhere. See your map
Semuliki is the only part of Uganda that is genuinely Congo Basin: an eastward extension of the Ituri lowland rainforest, flat and hot at around seven hundred metres, with plant and animal species that occur nowhere else in the country. Around forty bird species here are found in Uganda only at Semuliki, which is why it draws serious birders. The Sempaya hot springs are the other draw, one of them a geyser throwing boiling water two metres up.
What you actually see
- The Sempaya hot springs - a female and male spring, one of them a boiling geyser.
- The Congo forest birds - around forty species found nowhere else in Uganda.
- The lowland rainforest - an eastward extension of the Ituri forest.
- The Semliki river - the river forming the border with the Congo.
When to go
June to August and December to February are the drier windows. The forest is hot and humid year round. Birding is best in the early morning.
Honest expectations
It is hot, humid and buggy, and the forest is dense with limited visibility. Large mammals are present but very rarely seen. The road in from Fort Portal is rough.
Nearby
Fort Portal is southeast, and Toro-Semliki is south.
What to pack for Semuliki National Park
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
