Kampala

Built across a cluster of rolling green hills just north of Lake Victoria, Kampala is one of East Africa's warmest, most energetic capitals. Historically founded across seven hills, each crowned by a seat of faith, learning or royalty, the city has expanded across more than twenty ridges where marabou storks roost in giant fig trees, hillside cafés pour Ugandan arabica and rolex griddles sizzle on every corner. Start with the royal heart of the Buganda Kingdom in our Kasubi Tombs and Mengo hill overview.

From the top of the minaret at the Uganda National Mosque on Old Kampala Hill, you can trace the entire amphitheatre of hills down to the bays of Lake Victoria at Ggaba and Munyonyo. Pair our first-timer tips with our street food, Nakasero Market and Ndere Cultural Centre overview.

International flights land on a peninsula in Lake Victoria at Entebbe International Airport (EBB), connected to Kampala by the modern four-lane Entebbe-Kampala Expressway in roughly 45 to 60 minutes outside peak commuter hours. Inside the city, visitors rely on ride-hailing cars, private drivers and orange-helmeted SafeBoda riders. See how to get to Kampala and move around.

Leafy central Kololo and upper Nakasero offer the easiest walkability to speciality coffee shops, embassies and garden restaurants, whereas Muyenga (Tank Hill) and Munyonyo trade central proximity for breezes off Lake Victoria. Compare the top hills in where to stay in Kampala.

Climb the minaret of the Uganda National Mosque (Gaddafi Mosque) and cruise Lake Victoria, explore the thatched UNESCO Kasubi Royal Tombs, Mengo Palace and the Royal Mile, and spend an evening enjoying traditional drumming at Ndere Cultural Centre after tasting a roadside rolex. Browse our top ten in things to do in Kampala.

Kampala's signature street snack is the rolex (from "rolled eggs"), a freshly griddled chapati wrapped around an omelette laced with cabbage, tomatoes and onions, while sit-down meals celebrate luwombo (chicken, beef or groundnut sauce steamed inside scorched banana leaves), mashed green matooke and whole crispy Nile tilapia from Lake Victoria. Read more in our Kampala food and culture overview.

Kampala takes its name from Kasozi K'Empala ("Hill of the Impala"), the hunting ground of the Kabaka (King) of Buganda before Captain Frederick Lugard established a fort on Old Kampala Hill in 1890. Today, the constitutional Kingdom of Buganda remains a living pillar of identity alongside communities from every corner of Uganda.