Queen Elizabeth National Park Fees: Kazinga Channel Cruise, Game Drives, Lion and Chimp Tracking (2026)

Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda's most visited savanna park and the easiest to fold into a gorilla or chimpanzee itinerary. It packs open grassland, crater lakes, a forest gorge and the hippo-crowded Kazinga Channel into one protected area in the far west. This guide sets out the Queen Elizabeth National Park fees you will pay, activity by activity, plus the price rises due in January 2027 and how to get there, using the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) conservation tariff, as of October 2026.

One caution before the numbers. UWA's rates page still lists its July 2024 tariff as the current schedule, and the tariff itself says fees can change without notice. UWA has announced revised rates for several activities from 1 January 2027, including two in this park, which are set out below. Confirm prices with UWA reservations or your tour operator when you book.

The park at a glance

Queen Elizabeth covers 1,978 square kilometres of Kasese District and neighbouring areas, straddling the equator with the Rwenzori Mountains on the horizon, according to UWA. It was founded in 1952 as Kazinga National Park and renamed two years later after a visit by Queen Elizabeth II. UWA records more than 95 mammal species, including 20 carnivores, and more than 600 bird species.

The park is best understood by its sectors. The Kasenyi plains in the north are open country of acacia woodland and candelabra trees. Mweya, on a peninsula above the Kazinga Channel, is the hub for boat trips. Ishasha, in the remote south, is famous for lions that rest in fig trees. Kyambura Gorge holds a small chimpanzee community, and the Katwe explosion craters rise to the park's highest point at about 1,350 metres.

Park entrance fees (as of October 2026)

Entrance is charged per person for each 24 hours inside the park, counted from the time you enter. Children are those aged 5 to 15, and under-5s enter free.

Foreign non-residents: 40 US dollars per adult, 20 dollars per child.

Foreign residents of Uganda: 30 dollars per adult.

Rest of Africa citizens: 25 dollars per adult.

East African citizens: 20,000 Uganda shillings per adult, 5,000 shillings per child.

On a typical two-night stay a foreign visitor pays for two or three park days, so budget 80 to 120 dollars per adult in entrance fees, depending on your entry and exit times.

Activity fees

These are UWA's charges for the main activities, quoted for foreign non-residents, then foreign residents, then East African citizens. Entrance fees are paid on top.

Kazinga Channel launch cruise: 30 dollars, 25 dollars, 30,000 shillings. Rest of Africa citizens pay 20 dollars. The UWA launch takes up to 40 passengers and lasts about two hours, passing hippos, buffalo, crocodiles and water birds along the 40-kilometre channel between Lake Edward and Lake George.

Guided game drive with a UWA ranger: 25 dollars, 20 dollars, 25,000 shillings. A self-drive game drive costs 10 dollars per vehicle.

Night game drive: 30 dollars, 20 dollars, 30,000 shillings per person under UWA's general rate. Night drives are only for guests staying inside the park and need a UWA guide.

Bird watching and nature walks: 25 dollars, 20 dollars, 20,000 shillings.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura Gorge: 100 dollars, 80 dollars, 50,000 shillings. The price includes the guide and a nature walk on the day.

Experiential lion tracking: 200 dollars, 150 dollars, 200,000 shillings, plus a 10-dollar community fee and vehicle fees. You must book in advance.

Mongoose tracking: 30 dollars, 25 dollars, 30,000 shillings.

Hippo census: 100 dollars, 80 dollars, 100,000 shillings.

Cycling: 30 dollars, 25 dollars, 30,000 shillings.

Sport fishing: the tariff gives 15 dollars for one day and 25 dollars for four days for foreign visitors, though another table in the same document lists 20 dollars a day, so check when you book.

What changes on 1 January 2027

UWA's notice on revised conservation fees, reported by Muzungu Blog Uganda in February 2026, lists two increases that affect Queen Elizabeth.

Kyambura Gorge chimpanzee tracking rises to 200 dollars for foreign non-residents and 150 dollars for foreign residents. East African citizens stay at 50,000 shillings and Rest of Africa citizens pay 100 dollars.

Experiential lion tracking rises to 500 dollars for foreign non-residents, with 300 dollars for foreign residents and Rest of Africa citizens and 250,000 shillings for East African citizens.

The same notice introduced low-season chimpanzee tracking rates of 200 dollars for foreign non-residents in April, May and November, but that discount applies to Kibale, not Kyambura. For the Kibale details see our chimpanzee tracking in Kibale guide.

Vehicle entry fees

If you drive in, the vehicle pays separately for each 24 hours. Tour company vehicles and four-wheel drives registered in Uganda pay 30,000 shillings, and saloon cars 20,000 shillings. Foreign-registered tour vehicles pay 150 dollars and foreign saloon cars 40 dollars.

Getting there

By road, Queen Elizabeth is about 410 kilometres west of Kampala, a drive of at least seven to eight hours, according to UWA. Most visitors split the journey or arrive from Kibale and Fort Portal to the north, or from Bwindi to the south via Ishasha.

By air, scheduled and charter flights from Entebbe International Airport or Kajjansi airfield serve the Kasese and Mweya airstrips, and Kihihi airstrip for Ishasha and southern Bwindi.

Sample costs per person

For a foreign non-resident adult on a two-night visit, a realistic UWA bill looks like this: two to three days of entrance at 40 dollars a day, one launch cruise at 30 dollars and one guided game drive at 25 dollars, a total of 135 to 175 dollars before lodging, transport and tips. Adding Kyambura chimpanzee tracking brings it to 235 to 275 dollars in 2026. Those figures are our arithmetic from UWA's published rates.

Planning a visit

Lion tracking must be booked in advance, and it is sensible to reserve Kyambura chimp tracking and the launch cruise ahead of busy months too. If you are travelling in 2027 and want Kyambura or lion tracking, ask your operator whether a permit bought before January is honoured at the 2026 price. Many travellers pair the park with gorilla trekking in Bwindi; see our Uganda gorilla permits guide and our guide to the best time to visit Uganda.

Photo: Kateregga1 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).