Entebbe Information

Entebbe is a city in Central Uganda. Located on Lake Victoria peninsula, approximately 36 kilometers (22 mi) southwest of the Ugandan capital city, Kampala. Entebbe was once the seat of government for the Protectorate of Uganda prior to independence in 1962. The city is the location of Entebbe International Airport, Uganda's largest commercial and military airport, best known for the Israeli rescue of 100 hostages kidnapped by the militant group of the PFLP-EO and Revolutionary Cells (RZ) organizations. Entebbe is also the location of the State House, the official office and residence of the President of Uganda.

How Entebbe got its name.

The word came from the Luganda language “e ntebe” which means 'seat' / 'chair'. Entebbe was a cultural site for the Mamba clan and it was called "entebbe za Mugula" - Mugula was the title of a chief of a subdivision of the Mamba clan - and is now the location of the official office and residence of the President of Uganda, as it was for British governors before independence. Entebbe was the former seat of power in the country, but has now been replaced by Kampala.

Location 

Entebbe sits on the northern shores of Lake Victoria, Africa's largest lake. The town is situated in Wakiso District, approximately 34 kilometers (21 mi) south of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city.The metropolis is located on a peninsula into Lake Victoria, covering a total area of 56.2 square kilometers (21.7 sq mi), out of which 20 km2 (7.7 sq mi) is water. Neighborhoods within Entebbe City include Bugonga, Katabi, Nakiwogo, Nsamizi, Kitooro, Lunnyo and Lugonjo.

History of Entebbe

It first became a British colonial administrative and commercial center in 1893 when Sir Gerald Portal, a colonial Commissioner, used it as a base. Port Bell went on to become Kampala's harbor. Although no ships dock there now, there is still a jetty, which was used by Lake Victoria ferries.

Climate of Entebbe

Entebbe experiences tropical rainforest climate according to the Köppen climate classification as the city has no real dry season throughout the year. The driest season is January with a precipitation total of 65 millimeters (2.6 in), while the wettest season is April with a precipitation total 256 millimeters (10.1 in). The temperature is moderated by the altitude. The hottest month is February with average temperature 22.8 °C (73.0 °F), while the coolest month is July with average temperature 20.6 °C (69.1 °F).

Attractions in Entebbe

• Entebbe International Airport. Entebbe International Airport is the only international airport in Uganda. It is located about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) southwest of the town of Entebbe, on the northern shores of Lake Victoria.This is approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) by road south-west of the central business district of Kampala, the capital city of Uganda.

• Entebbe Botanical Garden. Entebbe Botanical Garden is an attractively laid-out mix of indigenous forest, boutique hotels, shopping malls, and a desirable birdwatcher’s destination. The gardens offer an excellent introduction to Uganda’s birds ranging from Lake Victoria specials such as gray kestrel, yellow-throated leaflove, slender-billed weaver, and Jackson’s golden-backed weaver to the more widespread but striking black-headed gonolek, Red-chested sunbird, gray-capped warbler, and common wattle-eye.

• Uganda Wildlife Education Center (UWEC Zoo). The Zoo was established as a sanctuary for animals that would be unable to fend for themselves in the wild, and it has played an essential role in the protection of rare and threatened animals.

• Entebbe Golf Club. The open expanse of the 18-hole golf course sloping towards Lake Victoria is Entebbe’s most attractive feature on the drive towards the airport. A far friendlier setup than the snotty Kampala Golf Club, it’s also far more affordable

• Day Trips Out of Entebbe. Further afield, the Mpanga Forest, Mabira Forest, Mabamba Swamp, and Entebbe Botanical Garden make for good day trips

• Sightseeing Flights. Flights are offered by Ndege juu ya Africa, Air Serve, and Asante Aviation out of Kajjansi Airfield (7.4mi/12km on Entebbe Road) over Kampala, the Ssese Islands and Jinja/source of the Nile. 

• Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Situated 23km southeast of Entebbe, Ngamba Island forms part of the Kome archipelago, a group of about 15 islands and islets separated from Lake Victoria’s northern shore and the 10km-wide Damba Channel.

• Zika Forest. This small (100 acre) patch of the remnant forest lies a couple of hundred meters off the Kampala—Entebbe road at Kisubi, 14mi (23km) from Kampala. If you’ve insufficient time to visit larger and better-known forests or are short of money, a visit to Zika provides a cheap and convenient taste of a tropical forest.

• Mabamba Swamps. No more than 15km west of Entebbe as the crow flies, the Mabamba Swamp extends across more than 38 sq mi (100 sq km) from a shallow, marshy bay on Lake Victoria’s northern shore. Listed as an Important Bird Area, Mabamba harbors an excellent selection of water-associated species and is possibly now the most reliable place anywhere in the country for shoebill sightings.

Other points of interest in Entebbe

Other points of interest within the city limits or close to its edges include;

•  the offices of Entebbe City Council and several branches of foreign and indigenous commercial banks. 
• In 2014, the American fast-food chain KFC opened a franchise in the town.
• Entebbe is the location of Nkumba University, one of the more than thirty licensed institutions of tertiary education in Uganda.
• State House, the official residence of the President of Uganda, is located in Entebbe.
• Entebbe is also home to the historical site in Kigungu where the first catholic missionaries Brother Amans and Father Mon Maple Lourdel landed to establish the catholic faith in Uganda.

Accommodation in Entebbe

Spend a day or two in Entebbe before/after your countryside journey. There’s accommodation to cater to all travel styles. From budget hostels to upmarket luxury hotels, restaurants, and bars, Entebbe cuts off the crowded and noisy Kampala experience.

Getting To Entebbe

Mini Buses from Kampala to Entebbe leave from the Gwanda taxi park - located in Kisenyi, every ten minutes or so, and they take up to an hour. Entebbe is a sprawling place, and the central taxi park is in the Kitoro suburb 1km beyond the town center.

For flights out of Entebbe, Read, How To Travel To Uganda, Getting There & Away, and Domestic Flights in Uganda. You can also reach Entebbe from Masaka via the Ssese Islands or Nakiwogo Port.

Sources

• Wikipedia