Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge
Bandas and tented camp · Katunguru, on the Kazinga Channel · Nature Lodges Uganda
Budget
Inside the park
Safari company
The Bush Lodge sits at Katunguru on the Kazinga Channel, a fishing enclave inside the park's outer boundary on the Kasese to Mbarara road. That puts the Mweya launch jetty and the Kasenyi plains within an easy morning while keeping the rate at the bottom of the range for a bed inside the line. Ishasha is another matter at about three hours to the south on murram, so treat it as a separate leg of the trip.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Channel frontage at Katunguru, among the cheapest beds inside the park
- Three price steps from a $50 tent to a $165 banda
- Self-drivers favour the Heritage Safari Tents, closer to the lodge
- 5 to 10 percent off when combined with sister lodges elsewhere
- Channel cruise jetty and Kasenyi plains an easy morning away
Cons
- Park entrance fees and activities are billed separately, the lodge says
- No capacity total published across the tent and banda grades
- Ishasha's fig tree lions are a three-hour drive south
- No dedicated family room, so check the sleeping plan first
What's here
- Restaurant
Read from Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge's own website in July 2026. Anything not listed we could not confirm, which is not the same as it being absent.
What the park charges on top
The rate above buys you a bed. Queen Elizabeth National Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entryCharged per 24 hours rather than per night.
- $40per person, per day
- VehicleA Ugandan-registered 4x4, the usual hire car, at UGX 30,000; a foreign-registered 4x4 pays $150.
- $8per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $264 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
Entry is sold in 24-hour blocks that begin when you pass the gate, so a trip that starts at midday and ends at 16:00 two days later is charged as three days, not two.
The full fee schedule for Queen Elizabeth National ParkRates at Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge
From $50 per tent, B&B. 2026 rates, per unit per night on bed and breakfast: Explorer's Tent $50 single and $80 double, Heritage Safari Tent $70 and $95, Signature Banda $115 and $165. The lodge states plainly that park entrance fees are not included and that activities are billed separately. Half board and full board can be added.
What the rate covers is not confirmed. We do not know yet whether meals, drinks and activities are included, so read this as the bed only.
Every figure on this page is in US dollars.
Indicative 2026 rates, read in September 2026 from each property's own website, rate card or factsheet. Twenty-three of the forty-two publish a rack rate of their own. The other nineteen say on request, and no agent or tour operator figure has been used to fill a gap. Watch the basis, because it decides whether two numbers can be compared at all: some quote per person per night sharing, others per room, per tent or per cottage, and meals sit inside some rates and outside others. Park entry is extra almost everywhere at $40 per foreign non-resident adult per 24 hours, plus the vehicle, and the Kazinga Channel cruise is $30 on top.
Questions about Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge
What does the rate at Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge include?
Bed and breakfast is the base rate across the three categories, from $50 for a single Explorer's Tent to $165 for a double Signature Banda. The lodge states plainly that park entrance fees are not included and that activities are billed separately, with half board or full board available as an addition. Confirm which board basis you are quoted before you pay.
Can you self-drive to Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge?
Yes. The lodge sits at Katunguru on the Kazinga Channel, inside the park's outer boundary on the Kasese to Mbarara road, an easy stop for anyone driving the northern circuit. The lodge's own site notes that self-drivers tend to book the Heritage Safari Tents, which sit closer to the main lodge than the Explorer's Tents.
Is Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge good for families?
Yes. Nature Lodges Uganda runs a group-wide child policy across all eight lodges: children under 5 stay free sharing a bed, under 12 pay half price, and under 18 get 30% off, usually charged as a discounted extra bed alongside one adult. Rates here run per unit rather than per person, but no room is described as a dedicated family unit, so check the sleeping configuration before you book.
How do you book Queen Elizabeth Bush Lodge?
Book through Nature Lodges Uganda at booking@naturelodges.biz. The lodge also runs a combination discount: 5 percent off when you also stay at its sister properties, Kibale Forest Camp or Fort Murchison, and 10 percent off when you stay at both. Ask about it when you enquire if your itinerary already includes those parks.