Domestic travel, rising investments, stronger hotel demand and a broader mix of international markets are creating new engines of growth for Uganda’s tourism sector.
For decades, Uganda’s tourism industry has largely measured success through the number of foreign visitors crossing its borders.
International arrivals, foreign exchange earnings, and overseas marketing campaigns have traditionally dominated discussions about the sector’s performance.
However, the Tourism Industry Performance Report 2025 reveals that the foundations of Uganda’s tourism industry are changing.
While international visitors remain critical to the sector, tourism growth is increasingly being supported by Ugandans themselves.
A rapidly expanding domestic tourism market, rising investments, stronger hotel occupancy levels, and growing visitor interest from new international markets are collectively reshaping the industry.
The report paints a picture of a sector that has not only recovered from the devastating effects of Covid-19 but is also becoming more diversified, resilient, and economically significant.
The report suggests that the tourism industry is gradually moving away from dependence on a single source of growth to building multiple pillars capable of sustaining long-term expansion.
Recovery moves beyond Covid
Few sectors suffered more during Covid-19 than tourism. The closure of international borders, suspension of flights, and restrictions on movement brought global tourism to a standstill.
Hotels, tour operators, transport companies and tourism attractions across Uganda experienced unprecedented declines in visitor numbers and revenues.
Five years later, however, the industry has staged a remarkable recovery.
The Tourism Industry Performance Report 2025 shows international tourist arrivals to Uganda increased by 19.7 percent in 2025 to reach 1.64 million visitors, up from 1.37 million in 2024.
More importantly, the tourism sector has now surpassed its pre-pandemic benchmark.
Worldwide, international tourism grew by 4 percent in 2025, reaching a record 1.52 billion international arrivals. Africa outperformed the global average, recording 81 million arrivals, an increase of 8 percent.
Sub-Saharan Africa reached 45.6 million visitors, surpassing the 44 million arrivals recorded before Covid-19 in 2019.
Uganda accounted for 2 percent of Africa’s tourism market and 3.6 percent of sub-Saharan Africa’s tourism arrivals, underscoring the country’s growing position within the continent’s tourism landscape.
The recovery is also reflected in earnings. Tourism receipts reached $1.62b (Shs5.83 trillion) in 2025, representing a 21.3 percent increase from the previous year, with the sector accounting for 10 percent of Uganda’s total exports and 57.2 percent of service exports.
Rise of domestic tourism
Perhaps the most significant story emerging from the report is the rise of domestic tourism.
For many years, tourism was often viewed as an industry built primarily around international visitors. National parks, wildlife experiences and tourism attractions were largely marketed abroad, while local participation remained relatively modest.
That picture is changing. The report shows that 3.27 million Ugandans participated in domestic tourism in 2024, representing a 17 percent increase from the previous year.
The growth is part of a broader trend that has been building over several years.
Domestic tourism participation increased from 2.42m visitors in 2019 to 2.66m in 2022, then rose to 2.8m in 2023 and ultimately reached 3.27m in 2024.
This means Uganda has added more than 850,000 domestic tourists in just five years.
The pace of growth has also accelerated, with domestic tourism growing by 9.9 percent in 2022, 5.2 percent in 2023, and then surging by 17 percent in 2024, marking the strongest growth rate recorded in recent years.
The average Ugandan tourist now makes six domestic trips annually, suggesting that local travel is becoming increasingly integrated into everyday lifestyles.
Business travel, family visits, cultural events, religious pilgrimages, conferences, sports tourism and leisure holidays are all contributing to the growth.
Importantly, domestic tourists provide a dependable market that is less vulnerable to global economic downturns, travel restrictions and geopolitical shocks than international visitors.
A major economic force
The growth in domestic tourism is translating into substantial economic activity.
According to the report, domestic tourism expenditure reached Shs5.41 trillion, representing a 6.3 percent increase compared to the previous year.
The spending patterns reveal the growing influence of domestic travellers across the tourism value chain.
Passenger transport accounted for the largest share of expenditure at 56.4 percent, equivalent to approximately Shs3.03 trillion.
Food and beverages accounted for 19.7 percent of spending, while accommodation represented 15.7 percent.
Travel agency services emerged as one of the fastest-growing segments, recording a 29.3 percent increase year-on-year, an indication that more Ugandans are purchasing organised travel experiences and tourism packages.
The figures demonstrate that domestic tourism is now a significant economic driver supporting transport operators, hotels, restaurants, tour companies and small businesses across the country.
Rediscovering national parks
The growth in domestic tourism is increasingly visible at Uganda’s protected areas.
Domestic visits to national parks rose by 6.1 percent in 2025 to reach 259,680 visits, reflecting growing interest among Ugandans in wildlife and nature-based experiences.
Overall visitation to Uganda’s national parks reached a record 467,065 entries in 2025, up from 436,767 entries in 2024, representing a growth of 6.9 percent.
Significantly, domestic tourists accounted for 55.6 percent of all park entries, meaning that Ugandans now make up the majority of visitors to the country’s national parks.
Foreign visitors also increased by 8.1 percent during the year.
Murchison Falls National Park maintained its position as Uganda’s most visited park, accounting for 32.3 percent of total park visits, while Queen Elizabeth National Park remained the second most visited destination with 26.4 percent of total visits.
The growing participation of Ugandans in national park tourism suggests that wildlife experiences are no longer viewed solely as products for foreign tourists.
Kampala is the hospitality capital
The rise in domestic travel is also benefiting Uganda’s accommodation sector.
The report indicates that the national average hotel occupancy rate stood at 52.1 percent in 2025, reflecting stable demand across the country.
Kampala recorded the highest occupancy rate at 67.1 percent, followed by the Eastern region at 56.5 percent.
The increase was largely due to domestic tourism, business travel, and MICE tourism: meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions. Kampala continues to dominate Uganda’s hospitality industry, hosting all of the country’s five-star hotels and the largest concentration of accommodation facilities.
The occupancy figures suggest that hotel performance is no longer dependent solely on international leisure travelers. Domestic business activity, conferences and local tourism are increasingly supporting the sector.
Expanding overseas markets
While domestic tourism has become a powerful growth engine, Uganda is simultaneously attracting a more diverse mix of international visitors.
The Tourism Industry Performance Report 2025 highlights a major shift in the structure of international arrivals.
Overseas visitors recorded the fastest growth, increasing by 140.4 percent and doubling their share of total arrivals from 10.1 percent in 2024 to 20.1 percent in 2025.
Africa remains Uganda’s dominant tourism market, contributing 1.3 million visitors and accounting for 79.2 percent of total arrivals.
However, Africa’s share declined from 89.9 percent in 2024 as arrivals from Asia, Europe and the Americas grew significantly.
The report identifies Asia, Europe, and the Americas as the fastest-growing overseas markets.
India and China remained Uganda’s largest Asian source markets, jointly accounting for 71.8 percent of arrivals from Asia.
In Europe, UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and France continued to dominate visitor arrivals, while the US and Canada accounted for more than 90 percent of arrivals from the Americas.
This diversification is particularly important because overseas visitors tend to spend more and stay longer than regional travelers.
Visitors are spending more
The changing composition of Uganda’s visitors is also reflected in spending patterns.
The average tourist expenditure per trip increased from $933 in 2024 to $986 in 2025, representing a 5.7 percent increase.
Average length of stay increased to 8.8 nights, while average daily expenditure reached $119.
Leisure tourists emerged as the most valuable market segment, spending an average of $2,144 per trip.
The report shows that a single leisure tourist injects approximately 2.5 times more money into the economy than a visitor travelling to visit friends and relatives, and nearly twice as much as a business traveler.
This explains why government continues to place increasing emphasis on attracting high-value international visitors while simultaneously growing domestic tourism.
A big economic contributor
The benefits of tourism growth extend well beyond visitor numbers.
The report estimates that tourism contributed 5.9 percent of Uganda’s GDP in 2025.
Direct tourism GDP reached Shs6.99 trillion, equivalent to 3.3 percent of the country’s GDP, while the sector also generated Shs5.77 trillion in physical capital formation, accounting for 12.6 percent of Uganda’s total national investment.
Hotels and accommodation absorbed 41 percent of tourism-related investment, followed by transport services at 24.8 percent, tourism infrastructure at 22.3 percent, and recreation facilities at 11.9 percent.
The figures demonstrate the sector’s growing importance as a driver of investment and economic development.
Supporting the jobs ecosystem
Beyond investment and foreign exchange earnings, tourism remains a major source of employment.
The report estimates that tourism directly supported 876,512 jobs in 2025, equivalent to 7.5 percent of total employment.
In practical terms, approximately one in every 14 jobs in Uganda is directly linked to tourism activities.
This includes employment in hotels, restaurants, transport services, tour operations, conservation, travel agencies, and tourism attractions.
A more resilient future
The Tourism Industry Performance Report 2025 tells a story that extends beyond visitor arrivals and hotel occupancy rates.
It reveals a sector that is becoming more diversified, more resilient, and less dependent on a single source of demand.
International arrivals have surpassed pre-Covid-19 levels, with earnings reaching a record $1.62b. Domestic tourism participation has grown, national park visitation has reached historic highs, while hotel occupancy rates are improving, and tourism-related investment now accounts for more than 12 percent of national investment.
Together, these trends point to a profound shift in the tourism model, whereby the future of tourism is no longer defined solely by the number of foreigners arriving at Entebbe International Airport, but is increasingly shaped by millions of Ugandans travelling within their own country, supporting local businesses and creating a stable foundation for industry growth.
In many respects, Uganda’s tourism success story is entering a new chapter, one in which growth depends not only on bringing the world to Uganda but also on encouraging Ugandans to discover Uganda for themselves.