Nope.
Score capped: at least one government has a "do not travel" advisory in effect.
Governments, one trip
What they're telling their own citizens about Uganda
The advisories disagree by 3 level(s) — read all four before you decide who to trust.
The real score
The breakdown
See it from your perspective
Nope.
The general Sketch Score, unweighted for any specific traveler.
Staying healthy
What to watch out for, health-wise
Active notices
- • Ebola Bundibugyo Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda
- • Global Measles
Vaccines
Required: Yellow Fever
Recommended: Cholera, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Malaria, Measles, Meningococcal disease, Monkeypox, Rabies, Typhoid
Source: CDC Travelers' Health →Getting in
What you'll need at the border
Visitors to Uganda must obtain an e-Visa, unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
Passport validity required: 6 months beyond entry.
Source: Wikipedia →Real, not invented
Terrorism
Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Uganda. Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in major cities and places frequented by foreign nationals and tourists, such as: hotels diplomatic premises transport hubs restaurants and bars places of worship shopping centres major gatherings such as sporting or religious events government buildings security installations such as police stations national parks Stay aware of your surroundings, keep up to date with local media reports and follow the advice of local authorities. The Uganda Police Force regularly issues alerts, particularly around public holidays or religious events. Consider whether locations that you visit have effective security arrangements in place, like bag searches, physical security and guards. Avoid large gatherings of any kind in Uganda as these may be targets for an attack. Previous terrorist attacks and disrupted attacks in Uganda have targeted the security forces, places where football matches were being viewed, restaurants, buses, schools, churches, national parks and government buildings. There have been a series of terrorist attacks in areas of western Uganda near to the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo ( DRC ), including in national parks. You should exercise particular caution in these areas and follow the advice of local authorities. Terrorist attacks have also occurred in other parts of the country, including Kampala. Recent significant attacks include: in December
Source: UK FCDO →Real, not invented
Cultural & legal notes
LGBT+ travellers
Same-sex sexual activity is illegal in Uganda. In May 2023, Uganda introduced the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023. This act introduces long prison sentences, and the death penalty in some cases, for same-sex sexual activity. There are also severe penalties for promoting LGBT+ rights. Sexual activity with someone of the same sex carries the punishment of life imprisonment. Offences classed as ’aggravated homosexuality’ carry a sentence up to the death penalty (though the death penalty has not been implemented for civilians in Uganda since 1999). ‘Aggravated homosexuality’ is defined as sexual activity with someone of the same sex who is: a person aged 17 or under a person aged 75 or above a relative or someone under your care disabled or suffering from mental health issues a person who is unconscious or under the influence of medicine or other substances that impair their judgement under duress or misrepresentation threatened or intimidated A person who has a previous conviction of homosexu
Source: UK FCDO →Right now
In the news the last few days
Media coverage of safety topics here has turned notably more negative in the last 2 days (as of 2026-07-17) compared to its usual tone — a real-time signal, not part of the Sketch Score itself. The headlines below are why.
Real talk
What travelers actually say
Travelers express anxiety regarding Uganda based on news reports of kidnappings and regional disease outbreaks like Ebola in neighboring areas. Discussions focus on the perceived safety of the region compared to Western standards, specifically regarding safari destinations such as Queen Elizabeth Park, Bwindi, Kibale, and Jinja. There is no consensus on ground-level safety or specific crime patterns provided in these discussions; the discourse is limited to pre-trip concerns about health risks and isolated reports of tourist kidnappings. Travelers remain focused on the potential dangers of the region rather than sharing concrete experiences regarding daily safety, transit risks, or specific criminal activity.
“With the kidnapping of the American tourist and the Ebola outbreak in North Kivu in the DRC one can’t help but second guess the safety of that region.
— r/travel
“Given the Ebola outbreak in DRC and the region, what do you think about the health safety for us to travel to Uganda?
— r/travel
“I've never been to Africa before, but like most people I grew up watching the Discovery channel and am also aware that Africa isn't Europe/North America in terms of safety.
— r/travel
Pack this, know this
The little things that trip people up
Plug & voltage
G · 240V
Driving side
left
Emergency
police: 112 / ambulance: 911 / fire: 112
Cash vs. Card
The national currency is the Ugandan shilling, sometimes written as "USh" or "Shs" (ISO code: UGX). You'll also see this notation: 5,000/-. There are banknotes in denominations of USh1000-, 2000-, 5000-, 10,000-, 20,000 and 50,000 and coins in denominations of USh50-, 100-, 200 and 500 (10, 5, and 1-, 5 and 10 shillings coins but are rarely used). Do not accept banknotes from the 1987 series of no
Show the receipts (8 sources)
- us-state — observed 2026-09-09
- uk-fcdo — observed 2026-09-09
- ca-gac — observed 2026-09-09
- worldbank-political — observed 2026-09-09
- worldbank-policeTrust — observed 2026-09-09
- cdc-health — observed 2026-09-09
- reddit — observed 2026-09-09
- lgbtq-legal-wikipedia — observed 2026-09-09