5 Tips of Uganda Self Drive Safaris to Sole Travelers

The concept of solo traveling has become so popular among tourists who come to Uganda. The benefits of solo traveling are crystal clear since it gives the tourist the freedom to do whatever he/she wants. In addition solo travelers have an opportunity to cover a wide range of tourist places and also to interact with the locals and also make new friends on your travel. Most of these solo travelers engage in self-drive safaris since they do not want to put up with anyone while traveling even though it is a driver guide. They always want to travel on their own without any guidance or tutelage of anyone. They always say they want to enjoy the ultimate adventure in an adventurous country like Uganda.

Though it is fun to go for a Uganda self-drive safari for sole travelers there are some challenges that one might face along the way which in the end might make the trip one hell of an experience. There has to be some guidelines to follow in order to make your Uganda self-drive safari easy.

We bring to you tips of Uganda self-drive safaris to sole travelers;

Pack all the necessary safari equipment

While traveling to the national parks of Uganda, there are specific travel items one has to carry for instance the safari boots, insect repellents, sun jelly, sun glasses, hat or cap, travel map and also pain killers and antibiotics. The aforementioned items are very essential while traveling in Uganda as they will help one to have a very convenient travel procession in Uganda. So as a sole traveler going on a Uganda self-drive safari ensure that you pack these equipment.

Get a 4×4 vehicle

Uganda is a country with a very challenging terrain to drive on and furthermore most of the roads are marram and raged. Therefore a traveler is advised to get a four wheel driver which is made to maneuver through such roads like the ones in Uganda. So when you inquire from a car operator make sure you request for a 4×4 vehicle. For a sole traveler a Toyota rav4 would be condonable since it is economical both the rental price and fuel consumption.

Use highways while driving

When traveling in Uganda always use the main roads and fortunately enough all the national parks in Uganda have main roads that lead to them.  When a sole traveler uses the main roads he/she is likely to get to the destinations without losing his/her bearing. The main roads are also safer as there is enough security for the travelers. More to that in case of a car breakdown while using the main road it is easy to rescue the traveler.

Do not drive at night

Driving in the dark in unfamiliar places is very dangerous. Some roads of Uganda have potholes and also death spots if you are not familiar with them, you can easily land into trouble especially at night. It is best for a sole traveler to drive during day where he/she can visibly see whatever is on the road.

Be friendly

When traveling alone in Uganda, it is be friendly to the local people. This can be done by greeting them whoever you come across. Ugandans are very welcoming people especially when you greet them.  It is best for the traveler to be friendly in that if he/she gets a problem the locals always try to help out.

 

 

Advantages of Manual Transmission Rental Cars

 Automation may have taken over manual machines even in the car world but for Uganda car hire manual cars is more meritorious that an automatic transmission. 4×4 manual vehicles may look to be old fashion but they are very user friendly on a self drive car hire expedition.

Here are the advantages a 4×4 manual transmission vehicle has to offer to a traveler wishing to hire a car in Uganda:

  1. Staying in Control

Manual transmission gives the traveler the opportunity to be in full control of the car that is selecting the best gear for the speed and situation. There is no anticipation or prediction of what to do while driving a manual as the person is in control of the gears and the cars so the driver is able to come up with a solution of his/her own during accident bound situations.

  1. Available for Cheaper Prices

For travelers who are budget sensitive manual cars are the ideal cars as these are cheaper than the automatic cars to hire. There is no doubt about this as the models of automatic cars are newer than the manual cars yet car operators price tag their rental cars in accordance to the model and the size of the car. The traveler is likely to get a big bargain of a cheaper price when hires a manual car other than the automatic one.

  1. Low Maintenance

4×4 Uganda rental cars which are manual transmission are cheaper and are of low maintenance since they have simple machinery compared to the automatic cars that have sophisticated machinery. The machinery found in manual cars is always easy to maintain and their spare parts are readily available in most spare workshops in Uganda.

  1. Better Gas Mileage

Due to the less technology in manual cars, the engines consume less gas to run the system while driving the car and this puts manual cars in a good position to consume less gas than their automatic counterpart that have hi-tech of which it has to use lot of gas to run the driving system.

  1. Advantage of Skill

Manual transmission involves lots of technical know-how as the driver must be well conversant with the wheels. It involves comprehensive manual driving where by the driver has to control the gears and the speed of the car on his\her own which is not the case with automatic cars where by a driver has to only be in position to control the sterling, the accelerator and the brakes and he/she is good to go. With the automatic one becomes very dull and lazy as no skill or brain matter is used to drive the car.

It is best for the traveler to use manual cars for self drive car rental experiences in Uganda since most of the times it involves driving long distances of which manual cars have the best qualities  to martial up the ragged roads  of most of safari Uganda destinations.

Simple Ways to Save on Car Hire in Uganda

Every person is a rational consumer whether rich or not. People are always looking for services at affordable prices. Money is a scarce resource everyone would like to save money at any one time.

People hiring cars in Uganda for vacation, business, long distance tours, and city tours would love to spare some money to use it on other expenses on the trip.

Let’s look at the simple ways that can make you save some money on car hires

Look for discounts

This is the greatest way of saving money as you are given car hire services at reduced price. There are always car rental companies in Uganda giving out discounts to their loyal customers and also clients that hire cars for long period of time. There are also those who give out promotion discounts. So always rent cars from those companies with discounts.

Stay away from big car hire companies

These normally set high standard and at times do not haggle the rates for the car hire services. They are always fixed and do not appeal to everyone. Look for small car hire companies in Uganda, these understand the customer’s needs and situation and they are always willing to offer customers car hire services at affordable rates.

 Stick with relatively small cars

Smaller cars are obviously cheaper than big cars. Sometimes there is no need of traveling by a big car when you are two people or one. A small car can serve you the same purpose and at a cheaper price. At times you may book for a small and you find they are unavailable; a good company may make you an upgrade to a big car but at a small fee.

Go for travel packages

When hire a car in Uganda for vacation or city always do it with a tour and travel company as these travel companies work hand in hand with car hire companies in order to simplify some work for the traveler. By using a tour and travel agent you will have around your tour items all booked at once that is accommodation, car hire, attraction fee and food and these always come with a discount. Furthermore you are saved from the work of booking each item separately and in most cases you are more likely to spend more money when you book them separately.

Consider long term rates

Always consider to rent a car for a long period of time like a week or more. Long term car hire tend to be cheaper than short term as some car hire agencies give discounts to customers who hire cars for a long period of time.

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