Entebbe.
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Overview

Entebbe is a pleasant town built on the shores of Lake Victoria in Uganda. Entebbe offers a relaxed stop-over alternative to Kampala if you're flying into or out of Uganda, as the air is clean, the streets are safe to walk, and the old colonial gardens and parks with the lake in the background make for a serene atmosphere.

Understand

Entebbe hosts Uganda's international airport. The drive from Kampala is about an hour in light traffic, and more than two hours when it is heavy. The United Nations increasingly use a heavily guarded airport compound at Entebbe as a depot and staging area for their heavy equipment and vehicles that are used in peacekeeping missions in the region of Central Africa. They have their own immigration and customs procedures and a heavy lift capability using Antonovs.

Entebbe is perhaps most famous for an Israeli commando raid on 4 July 1976, when over one hundred mainly Jewish hostages held on a hijacked Air France plane were rescued. The rescue was complicated by the fact that Uganda's president at the time, Idi Amin, was supporting the hijackers. Over 40 Ugandan troops were killed by the Israelis during the rescue.

Talk As Entebbe is in central Uganda, the dominant local language is Luganda, although other languages are spoken too.

For a town pretty well slap bang on the equator, Entebbe is a few degrees cooler than you might expect because of its elevation. Instead of the day-time temperatures hovering around 32°C as residents of Guayaquil, Cayenne, Singapore or Pontianak, Indonesia might expect, maximums are usually closer to 26°C or 27°C. However, humidity is consistently high.

Get in

The airport of Entebbe is Uganda's sole air gateway and, as such, is served by several African and international airlines.

As of April 2017 there are flights from Addis Ababa, Juba and Kigali with Ethiopian airlines, from Cairo with Egyptair, from Dubai with Emirates, from Doha with Qatar Airways, from Istanbul with Turkish airlines, from Johannesburg with South African Airways, from Kigali, Juba and Nairobi with Rwandair, from Dar es Salaam with Precision Air, from Dubai with Flydubai, from Brussels with Brussels Airlines, from Amsterdam with KLM. Kenya Airways flies in four times a day from Nairobi. Fly-Sax airlines has flights from Nairobi. Jambojet flies twice a day from Nairobi. As of 2025, Uganda Airlines has direct flights from London, three times a week.

As of 2026, he airport is undergoing final states of a renovation, which started a few years ago. There is a collection of ATMs in the building, notably ABSA and Stanbic, which accept different VISA cards. There are several exchange bureaus. There are about 3 restaurants and 5 cafés, and a small collection of souvenirs shops, about 8. The Karibuni lounge is open mainly to business and first-class passengers, as well as to Star Alliance Gold frequent flyer members and some other groups. It has decent coffee and drinks, internet terminals, and a pool table.

Taxis are abundant in the parking lot outside the terminal. Security keeps all vehicles away from the terminal proper, so when departing you have to walk from the parking lot up the upper roadway to departures. Officially you can't enter the terminal from ground level (arrivals). However, if you ask the guard nicely he will let you use the single lift rather than haul your baggage up the concrete external stairs. Taxis can't drop you at departures. There are numerous porters to help you with this trek.

By road To get to Entebbe from the rest of Uganda will usually involve passing through Kampala. Small minibuses ("taxis" in Ugandan English or Matatus in Swahili, usually 14 seaters) go to Entebbe from Kampala all the time. There are designated stages in the taxi parks in town, notably old park (known in Luganda as Park Enkadde) and Gwanda taxi park, which have signs for different stage destinations. You can always ask a driver or taxi conductor to direct you to the Entebbe stage (Ez'entebbe). The journey takes 45–60 minutes, depending on the traffic. Kampala's chaotic rush hours can stretch the journey to 2 hours. You can get off wherever you want en route, but if you ride to the bitter end, your journey will terminate at the in Entebbe, in a place called Kitooro (the K is pronounced as ch).

Get around

There are three types of public transport: boda-bodas, matatu and special hires.

The fastest and most dangerous method is the boda-boda: motorcycles that you see all over town. You won't be in Entebbe long before being propositioned by a boda rider. If you're not interested, a simple 'no' will get them to leave you alone. Men usually ride facing forward while some women ride side saddle.

Boda-bodas can be dangerous as their riders will do whatever it takes to get you to your destination quickly. Many will listen when you request them to ride at a slower speed, though a few wish to show off their fearlessness on the road. Insist on a speed you are comfortable with, in a conversational manner. Expect to dart in front of and against traffic and even through crowds of pedestrians when necessary. Boda-boda accidents account for most of the hospital visits and traffic fatalities in Entebbe.

Boda-bodas got their name from the bicycle taxis that operated at some of the busy border crossing points. Buses had to discharge their passengers at the exit border control, who then had to walk to the entry border control. The distance across no man's land at some borders can be considerable. Hence the bicycle taxis would cry "boda-boda" (a corruption of the English "border to border") to the weary travellers. These bicycle taxis can still be found in most smaller Ugandan towns; however, in Entebbe, they have been replaced by motorcycles.

As boda-boda collisions are one of the most common medical concerns in Uganda, hiring a taxi from a trusted source (decent hotel, friend, or colleague recommendation) may be wiser.

By matatu Matatus are a series of licensed minibus taxis that follow relatively pre-set routes all over town (and many other parts of the country). It might be a bit confusing in the beginning how to use the matatus to efficiently get where you want to go, but it's really not so difficult.

Their routes usually go between the matatu park at the back of the 7Seasons Hotel and Kampala (or, more rarely, some suburb of Entebbe).

Matatus will stand in the park until they are full, something that normally takes less than 15 minutes, but can take over half an hour (or even over one hour late at night or on Sundays). Matatus that leave the area around the park are hence full, which makes it difficult to hop on a matatu at other places in the town centre. Unless you're very lucky, you'll have to go to where the matatus start in order to leave the town centre.

Don't be frightened if you can't understand what they're saying. Ask one of them for your destination and you'll be told yes or no. When you get in, expect to be squeezed. Each vehicle is licensed to carry 14 people, but they will pack in as many as will fit (and their belongings). If you don't like this, it's a good idea to sit in the back of the vehicle, since the squeezing is usually limited to the first 2 rows or, alternatively, pay double for the whole of the front seat next to the driver. Once the matatu starts moving people can get off at any time. When you reach your destination, tell your conductor "Stage" and they will stop the van.

Whenever a matatu has empty space the driver will go slowly and honk repeatedly. If you want to get on, just make some gesture and it will slow further down and shout out the destination, just shout your destination as response and they will pick you up if it's along the way. There are often also a number of further staging points along the way where the driver will again stop and wait until they can fill the vehicle. This can take a few seconds or several minutes; just be patient. In some cases, drivers won't take you if you only go relatively short distances, since that will mean they'll risk losing money if they can't fill your place quickly once you're dropped. You pay the conductor when you exit, although some people give the conductor money while the vehicle is moving so that he can make change ahead of time. There is another option of organised Matatus called Fly Express Travellers. These are quicker, cleaner, and don't make many stops on the way to seek passengers. Stops are for passengers to alight. When a passenger gets off mid-way the journey, they don't look for other passengers to fill the empty seat. They are faster whether from Kampala, or Entebbe. Their stage in Kampala is on Nasser Road opposite the railway station entrance, near the drivers' licencing office headquarters.

Going with a matatu is generally cheap, safe, slow and nice. Ugandans are often happy to start up a conversation or help you out, and if the conductor tries to overcharge you or make you take an inefficient route, passengers are likely to point that out to you and scold him. People also complain if a driver takes too long to wait for passengers or drives recklessly and will even collectively quit the matatu in protest if a driver drives badly.

By special hire If you aren't up for the thrill of the bodas and don't have time for a matatu, then saloon car taxis - also called special hires - are readily available near the matatu park. Few taxis have meters. Don't be afraid to haggle either; most destinations within Entebbe can be reached for USh15,000 or 20,000. Uber, Safe Car, Faras, are now accessible with access to the internet. A Ugandan with any of the apps can also help you to book a vehicle.

See

Uganda Wildlife Educational Centre. If you don't have a safari planned, this might be your opportunity to catch a glimpse of Africa's wildlife. It's no Singapore Zoo but, unlike many third world offerings, this is not a depressing place. There are good play facilities for children and the aviaries are especially interesting with weaver birds, shoebills and fish eagles. There's a medium-size collection of wildlife saved from captivity, including lions, rhinos, zebras, crocodiles, giraffes, hyenas, chimpanzee and others. All animals (apart from the snakes and crocodiles) are held in large, natural-like areas that gives a nice semi-authentic feeling. The trees and lianas are magnificent and you can understand why various 'Tarzan-type" movies were filmed here. There is also dormitory accommodation available for USh 30,000 and camping is even cheaper.

Entebbe Botanical Gardens. The gardens are not spectacular but birdwatchers and botanist will find it interesting. The gardens host stands of large trees in a park like setting, a supposed filming site of a "Tarzan" movie, a troop of vervet and colobus monkeys, along with many kinds of birds.

Do

Boat trips on Lake Victoria. These include fishing trips and a visit to see the chimpanzees on Ngamba island. Companies offering such trips include Wild Frontiers.

Aero Beach. Entebbe's beach (Aero Beach) also features some plane wrecks that depending on your preferences may be plain ugly or interesting to explore.

Entebbe Golf Club. Play golf at the local 18-hole golf course.

Buy

Cobblers. This tiny godown or sari-sari type kiosk not only repairs suitcases, zips, footwear and other leather goods but also will attempt to rescue the rollers on your case. The owner is honest, although his English limited but there are lots of bystanders glad to help. Next door but one is a photographic studio for passport size photos for visas, etc.

Pearl Supermarket. Supermarket on the ground floor with a well stocked hardware and sundries emporium on the first floor.

Stanbic Bank. Has a Visa/MasterCard ATM. Also has an ATM at Entebbe airport.

Victoria Shopping Mall. Air conditioning is not really necessary for most people in this part of Uganda and there are now some tenants in this mall which opened in 2014 that include fashion shops, an optician, 3 banks, Western Union agents, a Le P'tit Quebec offering 12 types of panini for USh 15,000 and Yummy Yoghurt selling 100 g of frozen yoghurt for USh 5,500. There is a KFC, clean toilets, and a large Carrefour Hypermarket, a UAE based franchise by Majid Al Futtaim, Middle East restaurant, Cafe Javas, a Ugandan-owned eatery with branches in Uganda's main Cities like Kampala and Mbarara, LC Waikiki shop, electronic appliances shop, Telecom service centres for Airtel and Mtn. The restaurants and supermarkets accept cash, visa card and mobile money payments.

Ecobank. Has a Mastercard/Visa card ATM.

Eat

4 Points. Great Indian food, good atmosphere, cheap beer. Has a bar with a pool table, and expats are welcome. Also does "Chinese" dishes, but not as the nationals of most countries would know them. There's a dance floor and the attached bakery has scrumptious strawberry sorbet imported from Kenya. Attentive and rapid service and candles on the tables after dark. Open to the mosquitoes throughout.

Anna's Corner. Most of the comfy and romantic seating is outdoors - so watch the weather. There's also an inside coffee shop and they show interesting movies every Friday night and there are Salsa lessons Tuesdays. Full Engkish breakfast USh 17,000, Spanish Omelette USh 10,000, two pancakes (either lemon and sugar, maple syrup or Nutella) USh 8,000. Pizzas and pasta dishes from USh 12,000. Daily specials include a free drink of your choice (water, carbonated or beer).There is also a Ugandan arts and crafts shop with an extensive range adjacent.

One9 Lounge. Wood fired, clay oven pizza. Indoor and outdoor seating. Slot machines and a pool table.

Goretti's Pizza. Lovely little coconut grove on a golden sand, lakeside beach. Service is very slow, so plan on having a few drinks. Beautiful scenery. Don't go around dusk unless you don't mind being eaten while you eat.

Phaze 3. Great deck overlooking the lake. Large enclosed restaurant with an extensive assortment of western and Indian foods. Arguably Entebbe's best food. Try the daily pot pie. Great coffee.

Thammaphon Thai Restaurant. Looks like a bit of a dump but the food is authentically good.

Casual diners can also book at the Boma; see below

Drink

4 Turkeys Pub. Heineken & Guinness served and has a half sized billiard table. Also serves typical British pub grub.

See also listing for 4 Points above.

Sleep

Partly because of the increasing number of UN and NGO visitors passing through, there is a lot of accommodation available, particularly in the mid-range section. Much of it is distinctly over-priced and some have got shabby and dilapidated rather quickly when (often absent) owners either lost interest or failed to generate the profits they expected. Mattresses and bedding are usually clean, but rooms are rarely fastidiously cleaned even when some outrageous prices are charged.

Budget Dormitory accommodation & camping is also available at "the Zoo" See the listing for the Uganda Wildlife Educational Centre above

Entebbe Backpackers. Free Wi-Fi. Large clean garden, and has its own standby generator for use during the frequent power outages. Less than 6 km from the Entebbe airport.

Green Valley Guest House & Backpackers. Large and well-kept walled gardens in a quiet residential part of town make this a peaceful and secure budget option. Free Wi-Fi & satellite TV.

Shade Guest House. Gruby, dilapidated, single storey courtyard reminiscent of a tiny stableyard just opposite the Matatu (minibus) station so noisy and dusty. Rooms are small, depressing and fly-blown with shared ablutions that are not quite as bad as the general ambience might lead you to expect. No security whatever, but Entebbe is a relatively honest place so this might not worry you as much as if it were in Kampala. The more hygienically sensitive may prefer to camp in one of the more leafy suburban establishments for a few thousand shillings less.

Skyway Hotel. You'll probably think you're at the wrong place when you arrive and see the red tiled roof, immaculately shaved lawn and smartly clipped box hedge. Once you go inside, it's clear that this place doesn't see too many big-spenders. The reinforced concrete construction with internal courtyard keeps the public areas cool but make sure there is a fan in your rather dilapidated but not too unsanitary room. Like most tourist offerings in Entebbe, there's a 24/7 armed guard and a high wall. There is a standby generator. Two channels of centrally-selected satellite TV are available in most of the rooms and almost all have an en suite shower, wash hand basin and WC. Make sure you ask for a mosquito net since most of the room windows are not screened. Intermittent Wi-Fi via Orange cellular ISP and a meagre breakfast is included in their tariff. The 8 bunk dormitory on the first floor is a light and airy room with windows (without net screening) opening on to a mature shade tree. The large bathroom for this dorm actually has a hip bath and hot water and each bunk has individual mosquito nets. Popular with those few UN staff that have to pay for their own accommodation. Main business is budget safaris. Room tip: Room 7 on the second floor is larger and quieter than most, is fairly effectively mosquito screened (May 2014) and has views from 2 windows in two walls set at right angles.

SMK Guest House. Quiet, private 10-room guesthouse in Kasenyi. All meals available on-site.

Thames Hotel. Free Wi-Fi, free airport transfer, free breakfast.

City Park Motel. 12-bed room guest wing, clean rooms with a satellite TV, all rooms have private shower and toilet.

Gorilla African Guest House. Budget-friendly guesthouse with mango trees on the lawn, colorful gardens, 20+ en-suite rooms (single, double, twin, triple, deluxe) with mosquito nets, wardrobes, desks, and garden views. Private bathrooms include hot-water baths/showers and free toiletries. Free high-speed WiFi (strongest in public areas), free secure parking, and 24-hour front-desk service. On-site restaurant and bar under the mango tree. Breakfast is complimentary: continental, halal, or vegetarian. Children’s playground, bike hire, spa treatments (massage, manicure/pedicure), room service, and paid airport shuttle. 4×4 car hire available on-site for day trips.

7Seasons Hotel. 4-storey ferro-concrete hotel has 37 Queen-bedded rooms, 5 twin-bedded rooms & 1 family room being renovated. All rooms have individual air-conditioning and well screened sliding windows. Soft top, orthopaedic mattresses are particularly good quality and comfortable. Queen-bedded rooms have hip baths, wash hand basins and WC; the twin-bedded rooms are slightly larger and the bath is swapped out for a modern shower cubicle. Free Wi-Fi & satellite TV with 4 channels available including CCTV4 and Al Jazeera.

Bethany House. Founded as a retreat centre and hygienic, tranquil base for visiting Roman Catholic clergy and missionaries in 2007, Theresa keeps everything spotless and homely. Rooms are in villas separate from the main house at the bottom of the well-kept garden and have a double bed and a single bed, both with mosquito nets, although all the windows are also properly screened. Shower room has a flush WC and is en suite. The ceilings are high and have a fan. There is also a tiny food preparation area with running water and a sink but no fridge or cooking facilities in one corner of the room. The library in the main house has an interesting selection, not all of them ecclesiastical, but there is no internet; Theresa usually answer emails promptly.

Newhaven Guest House. Ten Queen-bedded rooms in the family compound of retired local civil servants means that you are assured of all the local insider tips. Peace of mind comes from knowing that you are looked after by the family's personal household. Bedrooms and shower rooms are tiled and comfortably furnished; mosquito netting is unusually comprehensive. There is a relaxing garden with mango, orange, paw-paw, guava, avocado and tangerine trees and the pineapple served at your breakfast will probably have only had to travel 20 m. The view from both the main house and the front garden over the lush suburban gardens of Bugonga as the sun sets over Lake Victoria makes a fine coda to your day. Free Wi-Fi. Credit cards not accepted.

Rosemary Courts. Opened in Jan 2014 with 6 tastefully and comprehensively furnished double rooms and 2 family rooms each with modern fitted kitchen and air-con. 25m swimming pool with an attractive, rainbow opalescent tiled bottom will open in Jul 2014. Authentic and hygienic fruit juices and smoothies in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Kampala trained chef specializes in Italian cuisine and there is a restaurant. Free Wi-Fi (provided by a cellular link, so rather intermittent like most of Uganda). Lush garden has mature shade trees and relatively quick beverage and cake service for Uganda.

Sunset Entebbe. Relatively clean single-storey buildings in a tranquil setting with 5 rooms in the main building and another 4 in outbuildings, some with their own patio. All rooms have en suite showers, wash hand basins & WCs but maintenance is haphazard and most shower room windows are unscreened allowing mosquitoes to enter via the ill fitting adjoining door to the bedroom. A meagre breakfast and intermittent Wi-Fi is included in their tariffs. Centrally controlled satellite TV with two channels available at any one time from a larger selection. Airport transfer on arrival or leaving free of charge one way. If you stay more than one night, airport transfer's free both ways.

Boma Guesthouse. Colonial homestead set in extensive and lush gardens with abundant bird life, this boutique hotel has attentive, friendly and helpful staff looking after its 16 rooms. There is a large and comfortable guest lounge and an adjoining games room with guest computers and scanner. Printing a boarding pass is free, other printing & photocopying for USh 500 per page. All bedrooms & ablutions are effectively fly-screened and have digital safe, TV with 7 individually controlled satellite channels including Al Jazeera, BBC World News, CNN, Fox & M-NET movie channels, desk & chair and an outside patio well equipped with electrical outlets. Rooms 1 & 2 have hip baths. There is both a standby generator & lavish provision of lead acid, battery-backed inverters. Each accommodation building has solar powered water heating with a good head of water. Extraction fans are wind powered and mineral water is available from water coolers and jugs in each bedroom. Bird tables and baths are well maintained. The children's sandpit has shade umbrella, swings, slides, toys, toy-car & a pirate castle for climbing. All interior areas, bedrooms, restaurants and the pool area are smoke-free. Reliable and fast Wi-Fi provisioned by Infocom UG.There is an intimate restaurant adjacent to the sparkling, small pool where breakfast, lunch from noon & dinner is served. Room service is 24/7. Pan-fried tilapia was USh 28,000 (May 2014) and served with some of the nicest boiled potatoes in Uganda (as might be expected from an Irish-owned establishment), three different vegetables and fragrant, rosemary bread. Lemon meringue pie with home-made ice cream was USh X15,000. There is a separate patio restaurant adjacent to the reception area for non-house guests to be entertained and served.

Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel. A large hotel with 229 rooms on land allegedly originally grabbed from the Botanical Gardens by someone with political clout; perhaps appropriately, spectacularly ugly and menacing looking marabou storks up to 5 feet tall and with wingspans of more than 10 feet across now regularly prowl the car park. Mainly used for conferences and functions and there are many large meeting rooms dotted around the grounds. Can get rather depressing when no meetings are in progress as it is very quiet and the service is somewhat lacking. The "beach" is very small and swimming is forbidden but, in compensation, there is an enormous swimming pool. Ordinary rooms are of a good three-star standard but you may need to call maintenance once or twice.

Imperial Resort Beach Hotel. You'll either loathe or love this massive and architecturally distinctive building very different in scale and style to the other buildings in Entebbe. Inside, there is a large atrium with glass fronted lifts at each end. Like most of Uganda, service is slow, and rather hit and miss. Its 181 rooms spread over four floors are large and furnished in an Arab potentate style with good views over Lake Victoria and the extensive grounds but have poorly functioning, central air-conditioning. If you open the windows that have no screens to cool off, the lakeside location means your room will then quickly become an entomologist's delight after dark. Business people will appreciate the Ziba conference centre with its 1000 seat capacity equipped with six hi-tech screens descending from every corner of the ceiling, with a follow-on camera and a cordless digital sound system remotely controlled. There's a simultaneous translation system. In addition to the Ziba are nine other conference halls. There's also an amphitheatre. However, first impressions of the loose guard rail in the lift and dribbling shower in the changing rooms rather set the tone. Try your haggling skills and you may end up with a bargain in this often empty hotel.