Photo Keyur Nandaniya / UnsplashWhy you go
Why go to Kidepo Valley
Kidepo Valley lies in the far northeast of Uganda, in the Karamoja region against the South Sudan and Kenya borders — the country's most remote national park, and for many its most beautiful. Rugged semi-arid savannah runs out to a horizon of mountains, with the Morungole range rising over a landscape that feels genuinely wild and little visited.
Two valleys define the park. The Narus Valley in the south holds water year-round, and its grassland draws the concentrations of game — buffalo herds, elephant, zebra, giraffe and the lions that lounge on the rocky kopjes. The seasonal Kidepo Valley to the north is a broad sand river. The park also holds species found almost nowhere else in Uganda, and the Karamojong communities around its edges add a strong cultural dimension.
Signature experiences
Narus Valley game drives
The park's wildlife heart, where lion, elephant, buffalo and giraffe gather around permanent water.
Big cats on the kopjes
Lions are often found draped over the rocky outcrops; cheetah and leopard are present too.
Karamojong culture
Visits to the pastoralist communities of Karamoja and their distinctive manyatta homesteads.
Experiences here
Getting there
Getting to Kidepo Valley
Kidepo is a long haul overland from Kampala — a full day or more on the road — so many travellers fly, taking a scheduled or chartered flight to the Apoka airstrip inside the park and transferring to a nearby lodge.
Safaris that visit
3 journeys go here
14-Day Amazing Safari in Uganda
A fourteen-day Uganda tour running from Sipi Falls and Karamoja to Kidepo Valley, Murchison Falls, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth and Bwindi. It combines game drives and gorilla and chimpanzee tracking with rhino tracking and Lake Bunyonyi.
22 Days the Best of Uganda
A 22-day tour across Uganda combining wildlife, landscapes and culture, from Kampala and Jinja to Sipi Falls, Kidepo, Murchison Falls, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth and Bwindi. Includes gorilla trekking and time with the Karamojong and Batwa communities.
28 Days Kenya, Tanzania & Uganda — The Great East Africa Safari
A 28-day private safari across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The route covers the Maasai Mara and Serengeti, a stay on Zanzibar, and Uganda's northern savannahs and western forests, including chimpanzee tracking in Kibale and gorilla tracking in Bwindi.
Good to know
Kidepo Valley: questions travellers ask
- Why is Kidepo so highly rated?
- Its remoteness is the appeal: vast, scenic wilderness with very few other vehicles, big herds in the Narus Valley, and a sense of wild Africa that the busier parks no longer offer.
- How do you get there?
- Either a long overland trip through northern Uganda, usually broken over more than one day and combined with other stops, or a flight to the Apoka airstrip, which most shorter itineraries prefer.
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