It came as a shock to everybody, when last week, the Rwanda government announced that the price of a gorilla tracking permit would be doubled, from the already expensive $750, to a whopping $1500. The Ugandan Wildlife Authority quickly made the most of the situation by announcing that the cost of gorilla permits in Uganda would be remaining at $600. So why have the Rwandan government decided to go for this increase, and what is the knock-on effect for tourism in the region. W

For a long time, Lake Mburo National Park has been looked down upon as a safari destination, and only visited by those wishing to cut down the long journey from gorilla tracking in Bwindi, to the airport in Entebbe. But, over the past couple of years, we believe lake Mburo has become a top safari destination in its own right. The reason that Lake Mburo wasn’t as well respected as the other savanna national parks was because of its lack of predators. The park does have lions,

People often ask which are my favorite lodges in Uganda, so I thought it might be a good idea to write a post on this subject. The lodges I have chosen aren't all super expensive, ultimate luxury lodges, but lodges that have something special about them and are maybe lesser known than the larger lodges, whether its great value, an amazing atmosphere or anything else that makes them sand out. Haven Lodge (Buhoma, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park) Haven lodge made this list be

You’ll hear plenty of tour operators and conservationists talk a lot about eco-tourism, but what actually is it and why is it important? Well, simply put, eco-tourism is using the money generated from tourism to conserve a specific area or habitat. Sounds simple enough right? Well it is, and it’s a brilliant and effective form of conservation. A great example of eco-tourism would be Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda, home to nearly half of the world’s population of

When I first started to tell friends and family that I was starting a business in Uganda, one of the questions I got most frequently asked was “Is it safe?”. The more I spoke to them the more I realised people seemed to have a preconception of what Uganda would be like; a war-torn and poverty filled nation. And fair enough, I probably had the same preconceptions before I first visited, maybe because of the media portrayal, maybe the fact that Uganda is heavily featured on pro

There are a couple of common fears and questions that people have when deciding whether to book their safari with an African safari company, or one from their own country. I have written this blog to try and answer some of those questions so that you can make an informed decision for yourself. If I decide to book through an African safari company, will the service be as good? Most safari companies from outside of Africa sub contract out their safari's to African operators (ju

Trophy hunting has been a hot topic recently with the killing of Cecil the lion causing international outrage. So as an African Safari Company I thought it was important to share our thoughts on this contentious issue. We could speak all day on the subject, however in this article we will just cover the main points. Trophy hunting is big business throughout Africa, and with permits to shoot a maned male lion regularly exceeding $50,000 US it can be hard to ignore for many aut

Hi there! My name is Ben, I’m from a small village in Lancashire, north western England and this is the story of how I became the co-owner of East African Discovery. A little backdrop: When I was fifteen, I had never left the UK and didn’t really have much of an interest in travel any further than my mates telling me about their summer holidays during the first week back at school. But my dad had just retired and received an initial payment for his pension. He along with my m