Murchison Falls National Park Entrance Fees : Murchison falls national park is one of the top tourist destinations to visit while planning a safari in Uganda. This national park is ranked as the largest and oldest national park in the country, which was established in 1952 by the British administration, and currently, the Uganda Wildlife Authority, which is known to be a government agency programme that has a main role of conserving and protecting all the national parks in the country, is managing it. Murchison falls national park was formerly commonly referred to as “Kabalega national park” but later it derived its name from the Murchison falls that are within the park and act as one of the top tourist attractions. This game park is located in Masindi district and it covers a distance of about 305 kilometers from Kampala to be able to access the park.

More so, Murchison falls national park is a good adventurous destination to travel to due to the fact that it is a home to over 76 mammal species such as; giraffes, buffalos, Uganda Kobs, Hartebeests, Oribis, waterbucks, warthogs, hyenas and many others. this game park is also seen as birders paradise because it harbours over 451 bird species that tourists can be to spot while touring around different areas of the park and some of these birds include; Abyssinian ground hornbill, black headed lapwing, Senegal thick-knee, malachite kingfisher, yellow fronted tinker bird, long tailed nightjar, giant king fisher, Africana jacana and many others.

Murchison Falls National Park Entrance Fees

The Uganda Wildlife Authority is the one that is responsible for setting the entrance fees of Murchison falls national park, which tourists are always, required to pay. However, these fees are always revised every after 2 years; therefore, individuals are encouraged to always check about the updated fees in order to avoid any destructions while on their tour. And in the essay below; we will delve more through the basic information such as; how to access the park, part entrance fees, some of the activities carried out within the park and the accommodation facilities offered in Murchison falls national park.

More so, tourists should note that The Entry fees for Murchison Falls national park are charged basing on per person per day and vary depending on the visitor’s residence status, age and the number of days that the visitor will be spending in the park.

Murchison Falls National Park Entrance Fees For Tourists

Foreign Non Residents visiting Murchison Falls national park are always required to pay USD 40 dollars as entry fees to the park, while foreign residents are charged USD 30 dollars per person and UGX 20,000 for East African Citizens.

Children aged between 5 to 15 years pay a discounted fee as follows;

• USD 20 dollars per person for Foreign Non Residents.
• USD 10 dollars per person for Foreign Residents.
• UGX 5,000 shillings for East African Citizens.
• UGX 3,000 shillings for children from schools within Uganda.

UWA also offers visitors annual park entry passes which are valid for Foreign Residents and members from the East African Community Only.  However, to qualify for this annual park entry pass, one must present his/her valid work permit.

• USD 350 dollars per person for Foreign Residents and UGX 150,000 for East African Citizens.
• Couples get to pay USD 500 dollars for Foreign Residents and UGX 200,000 for East African Citizens.
• Corporate persons get to pay USD 1,500 per person for Foreign Residents and UGX 2,500,000 for members from the East African Community.
• Family with a maximum of 4 children pay USD 700 for Foreign Residents and UGX 300,000 for East African Citizens.
• Tour operators fees are as follows; USD 50 dollars per person for Foreign Resident and UGX 125,000 for East African Community members.
• Safari guides and taxi drivers accessing the national park must be citizens from any of the East African Community States. Members are charged UGX 100,000 shillings per person. Tour company drivers get to enter the park for free.

Murchison Falls National Park Entrance Fees Charged On Vehicles

Entry fees charged on vehicles entering the national park depends on the type of vehicle and its carrying capacity;

• USD 150 dollars for all Foreign tour operator vehicles and 4×4 safari vehicles, and UGX 30,000 for Uganda registered tour operator vehicles.
• USD 50 dollars for all Foreign registered Pick-up vehicles, Mini-buses and Omni-buses, and UGX 30,000 for Ugandan Registered vehicles.
• USD 150 for Foreign owned Over Landers, and UGX 100,000 for Ugandan Registered vehicles.
• USD 150 for foreign owned buses and Lorries and UGX 150,000 shillings for vehicles registered in Uganda.
• UGx 50,000 shillings for Ugandan Registered School Buses.

Boat Landing Fees in Murchison Falls National Park.

Boats landing in the national park are also charged depending on their carrying capacity.

• 15 seater Foreign owned boats pay USD 50 dollars, and UGx 50,000 for Ugandan owned boats.
• 15 seater Launch/ Speed Boats pay USD 100 for those that are Foreign Registered boats, and UGX 150,000 for Ugandan Registered Boats.
• UGX 10,000 per day as parking fees for the boats.

Entry Fees for Ferry crossing in Murchison Falls National Park.

Vehicles using the ferry to cross while in the park are charged depending on the weight of the vehicles, as follows;

• Vehicles weighing 2 tons and below are charged UGx 20,000.
• Vehicles weighing 2-5 tons pay UGx 40,000.
• UGx 80,000 for heavy vehicles weighing between 5 to 10 tons.
• UGx 150,000 for vehicles weighing between 10 to 20 tons.
• UGx 5,000 for motorcycles using the ferry crossing.
• *UGx 5,000 for passengers using the ferry crossing.*

Please note that vehicle drivers and school buses with children are not charged the ferry crossing fees. The above fees are valid for one way transit vehicles till 7pm. Vehicles in excess of 20 tons are required to get special approval from management at the park prior to using the ferry crossing.

Entry Fees for air crafts landing in the park.

Air crafts landing in Murchison Falls National Park are also charged entry fees into the park as follows;

• USD 10 for Foreign owned glider and micro light aircrafts landing in the park, and UGx 20,000 for Uganda Registered aircrafts of the same make.
• USD 20 dollars for Foreign Registered three seater planes, and UGx 40,000 for Ugandan owned aircrafts.
• USD 40 dollars for Foreign Registered aircrafts carrying between 4-6 passengers, and UGx 60,000 for Uganda Registered aircrafts.
• USD 40 dollars for 7-14 seater aircrafts that are Foreign registered, and UGx 80,000 for Ugandan aircrafts.
• USD 50 for 15-20 seater aircrafts that are foreign registered and UGx 100,000 for Uganda Registered aircrafts.
• USD 60 dollars for 21 seater aircrafts that are Foreign owned, and UGx 120,000 for Ugandan Registered aircrafts.
• USD 60 dollars for foreign owned helicopters and UGx 250,000 per landing for those that are Ugandan Registered.

All aircrafts pay a fee of UGx 10,000 per day as parking fees. Landing fees exclude entry fees payable by passengers and pilots en-route do not get to pay entry fees if they are spending less than 2 hours in the national park.

Entry fees for activities done in Murchison Falls National Park.

Exploring in Murchison falls national park always blesses tourists with great opportunities to participate into several interesting activities where they gain new experiences and capture remarkable memories that they will tell people back at their home. In addition, below are some of these activities and their charges.

 Game Drives:

Murchison Falls National Park in Uganda offers its visitors both day and night game drives.

• USD 30 dollars for both Foreign Non Residents and Foreign Residents, and UGx 30,000for East African Citizens for the day game drives.
• USD 40 dollars per person for Foreign Non Residents and Foreign Residents for the night game drives, UGx 40,000 per person for East African Citizens, and UGX 800,000 per day for UWA buses.

More so, in case one s needs to hire an UWA guide, an addition fee is required as follows; USD 20 dollars and UGx 20,000 for foreign tourists and East African citizens respectively. For the night game drive with an UWA guide, visitors will be charged USD 30 dollars and UGX 50,000 for East African Citizens. Please note that day games drives in the park are charged basing on per vehicle and night game drives are charged basing on per individual/per person.

• Boat Cruise/Launch Trips:

Boat cruises in Murchison Falls national park take roughly 2 hours and take a maximum of 45 persons. USD 30 for both Foreign and Foreign Non Residents, and UGx 30,000 for East African Citizens.

• Day Guided Nature Walks:

USD 15 dollars per person for both Foreign and Foreign Non Residents, and UGx 10,000 for East African Citizens.

• Night Guided Nature Walks:

Night guided nature walks in the park cost USD 40 dollars per person for foreign non-residents, USD 20 dollars for foreign residents, and UGx 15,000 for East African Citizens.

• Birding:

Birding safaris in Murchison Falls national park cost USD 30 both Foreign and Foreign Non Residents, and UGx 10,000 for East African Citizens.

• Top of the Falls Walk:

Visitors hiking to the top of the Murchison falls pay USD 15 dollars per person for foreign non-residents, USD 10 dollars for foreign residents and UGx 10,000 for East African Citizens.

• Sport Fishing Permits:

Visitors interested in taking part in sport fishing activities in Murchison falls national park cost USD 50 dollars per day for both Foreign and Foreign Non Residents, and USD 150 for four days. The sport fishing permit excludes park entrance fees.

• White Water Rafting:

White water rafting activities in Murchison falls national park cost USD 50 dollars per person for both Foreign and Foreign Non Residents, and UGx 50,000 for East African Citizens. Fees exclude park entrance fees.

 Where can one stay during the Murchison safari?

Murchison falls national park has a variety of accommodation facilities where tourists can opt to have their stay after a long day of touring around the park. but these lodging facilities always happen to be ranged differently for example; from budget, mid-range and luxury hence giving a chance to the visitors to choose where they would love stay according to their preferences and where it matches with their budget. therefore, Some of these lodges include; Paraa safari lodge which is located near Nile River, Nile safari lodge, Red Chili Rest Camp, Sambiya river lodge, Pakuba lodge, Murchison River Lodge, Masindi lodge and many more.

How to access Murchison Falls National Park?

Visitors who wish to visit Murchison Falls national park can access the national either by road or air.  The park is located about 260 kilometers from Kampala via Kampala-Packwach highway. There are also air transfers available to transport visitors from Entebbe International Airport to Murchison falls national park. Air transfers to the park can take between 1½ to 2 hours depending on the aircraft routing.

Contact our trusted tour operators for more information about the entrance fees at Murchison falls national park and then book with our tours and travel companies such as; Achieve Global Safaris who offer the best tour packages while on your safari in Uganda.