Here’s the muzungu’s guide on how to travel to Arua, 10 things to do in Arua and West Nile, all about Arua town, what to buy in Arua market – and the best times of year to travel.
The Muzungu writes: I first visited Arua in 2016. That trip to the far north west of Uganda would not have been possible without the guidance of Gerard Iga. He is the ‘go to’ guide for Arua and West Nile. In 2022, I revisited. The town has seen a number of changes, in particular: new roads and a huge new shopping centre in the middle of the town. I haven’t updated all the restaurant and hotel recommendations in this blog post yet but, as ever, if you have a question just send me a message.
Special thanks to my friend Harriet Fowler who gave me a return Eagle Air ticket to Arua!
Flight to Arua from Entebbe with Eagle Air
The Victoria Nile flows down from Lake Victoria through Lake Kyoga via Karuma Falls and thundering down over the famous Murchison Falls. Heading north, the water becomes known as the Albert Nile, and flows from Lake Albert on through South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt.
If you like aerial photos, check out the Air Photo Archive of Settlement and Agriculture, Rural Uganda 1963, created by Walter Deshler, University of Maryland.
The land below remains surprisingly green as we headed north. Superficially at least, not much seems to have changed west of Pakwach in 50 years!
I could see no brick constructions and no tarmac roads, just dirt roads as far as the eye could see and the very occasional tin roof. Not a vehicle in sight. I could make out the occasional person on a bicycle on the red dust roads.
Borassus Palms are one of the distinguishing trees of the north bank of the Nile, their seeds carried from Sudan in the stomachs of wandering elephants, and later expelled to transform the environment.
Eagle Air flight to Arua. Landing from @CharlieBeau Diary of a Muzungu on Vimeo.
We had a very easy landing at Arua Airstrip. Watch the short clip to the end – how delightful to see the schoolchildren watching the plane land! Pretty as a picture.
About Arua – a great town!
Arua: think ‘Fort Portal without the hills’. We’re talking calm, clean and organised, with a touch of retro, thanks to the colonial architecture.
I travelled with friends from Kampala and Nairobi. We were all impressed by Arua. Many friends had not visited for a decade or more and noticed huge changes in the town.
Arua is a cosmopolitan town, heavily influenced by its proximity to DRC and South Sudan. Apparently the Congolese of eastern DRC do more trade with Kampala than they do with Kinshasa, their own capital.
There are many forex shops in town. Arua also benefits from the many NGO offices, including Red Cross, Welt Hunger and others, here for humanitarian work in South Sudan.
Cars are few in Arua. You have to feel sorry for the abused vehicles: overloaded trucks carry 30 men at a time.
Gerard and Charlotte take a boda boda motorbike ride through Arua town, West Nile, Uganda from @CharlieBeau Diary of a Muzungu on Vimeo.
While the road tarmac is in good condition, you can see the poverty as you drive north, up to the South Sudan border. The road is lined with thatched huts. Mabati tin roofs are few and far between (showing how little money there is in the area).
Arua town has colonial buildings such as the Post Office style that is common to Kampala, Fort Portal and elsewhere. There is a Public Library too.
The small town has a population of 62,000, with 785,000 in the District. Apparently the late emeritus Bishop of West Nile developed many projects for the local community during his 30 years in office.
“And we should remember they produced a president!” My friend Daniel added, when we were trying to work out why Arua is such a thriving town.
West Nile has historically been isolated, both physically and politically, from the rest of Uganda. There is only one road bridge that crosses Nile (at Pakwach) to connect the region with the rest of the country although there are lesser used ferry crossings.
Former President Idi Amin was born in West Nile (his mother was from Arua and his father was from Koboko). During Amin’s reign, local people are said to have benefited but post-Amin, they were punished politically and economically.
To read more about the history of West Nile, read Dark past to glimmering future; the West Nile you never knew! One day, with an investment in facilities and itineraries, I can imagine tourists visiting the region just to learn more about this period of Uganda’s history.
10 little-known things to do in Arua
1. Take a walk to the top of Arua Hill for a panoramic view of the town
2. Eat local food
Market Lane in Arua has a good number of restaurants serving goat’s meat, beef, chicken, smoked dried fish with g’nut [groundnut/peanut] sauce.
“What food will you take with it?” In Uganda, ‘food’ is specifically the starchy stuff like rice, kalo, matooke, sweet potato and chapatis. Side dishes [no jokes please] include tasty osubi, finely chopped greens, prepared with gnut sauce and rock salt.
The Still Baghdad Restaurant in Arua does a good beef pilau rice – with enough chunks of beef to satisfy a Kenyan!
3. Enjoy the live Congolese music at Club Matonge
The Congo is just a short drive from Arua, meaning the town is a great place to hear Congolose musicians perform. Club Matonge is a ‘free to enter’ outdoor bar. (The bar doesn’t serve spirits, just beer and wine from a box). We spent a couple of hours here. When the band realised we had Kenyans in our crowd, the singers launched into some classic Swahili songs. Our friends from Nairobi reminisced!
4. Go clubbing at Vino Lounge
Vino is the place to hang out, particularly on Friday nights. It gets packed! Club entrance is free.
Everyone had told us we had to check this place out. It’s a late night / all night club, with several bars. Head for Galaxy, the VIP section, on the 2nd floor to get away from (some of) the crowds. These guys can DRINK! OMG. We’re talking neat spirits.
5. Eat at Café Cosmo, Arua’s best café and restaurant
Open 11 to 11 every day, Café Cosmo is very affordable, has good service and a great menu of international, Indian and local African food. This popular restaurant is frequented by Indians, UGs, expats, everyone. [2022, the pandemic plus construction of the new mall have changed things].
Sham the chef’s ‘Cosmo Bites’ include the freshest beef samosas ever. Indian dishes include tandoori and a scrumptious chicken tikka. ‘Afro favourites’ include goat stew and chicken pilao. Fridays and Saturdays, Cosmo make pizzas including a tikka paneer one! I’ll try that on my next trip 🙂
The very friendly Martin recommends C.F.C. the ‘Cosmo Fried Chicken’ [geddit?] Café Cosmo is opposite the URA building on Pakwach Road.
6. Oasis 247 bar and restaurant is open every day
Karaoke nights, quiz nights and pool competitions make this a popular hang-out. Oasis is a good bar for beer promotions and music videos.
7. Walk round the back streets of Arua to see the Hindu Temple
The striking red wall enclosing Arua’s Hindu temple. The ladies here are selling sweet potato seedlings
8. Visit Arua’s markets. The muzungu’s shopping suggestions
- Kitenge material from the Congo
- Termite mushrooms – click here for A Kitchen in Uganda’s Curry Termite Mushroom Soup recipe!
- Groundnuts in their shells
- Shea butter (locally farmed)
- Sim sim sesame seeds
- Sugarcane
- Jackfruit (peeled into bitesize pieces)
- Pineapple (chopped into long chunks)
- Dried enswa white ants – don’t forget to ask for the recipe!
- Salt-dried Angara fish
- Wooden mortar and pestle
- … and bucket after bucket of dried beans of different colours
9. Visit Miriadua Falls along the Arua – Koboko road
Gerard Iga writes: “I have a personal attachment to this one since it was my very own uncle that named the falls after himself. He was the county chief of Maracha in colonial times. When he went to visit this place, he asked the locals what the falls were called and they said “Iyi Kuru” which literally means “rough flowing waters”. Since all over Lugbara land, such falls are called iyi kuru, he decided to name them after himself and that is the name by which the place is known everywhere else except the locality. There, people still call it iyi kuru.”
Miriadua Falls are a 20 minute journey outside Arua Town.
10. Enter inside Uganda’s smallest church! Near Goli, Nebbi
Imagine … a church that “can only accommodate three people, including the preacher.” What a great place to get married (and keep down the cost of your wedding!)
I’d heard rumours that this is “the smallest church in the world” but I can’t seem to verify it – it certainly is petite though, according to my travel writer friend Solomon Oleny. The muzungu failed to reach… the church on Biku Hill is near Nebbi, a good hour’s travel from Arua.
How to get to Arua, West Nile
Fly to Arua
Currently, Eagle Air is the only operator to fly scheduled flights to Arua. They fly 3 times a week between Entebbe and Arua.
They are efficient in person e.g. at Kampala office in Portal Avenue. Tel +256 (0)414 344292 / +256 (0)772 777338/7 and +256 (0)752 793860.
The new airstrip should be a real boon for trade with the DRC. Will commercial flights open up West Nile to tourism too? I heard rumours of Kenya Airways and RwandAir… let’s see!
Take the bus to Arua
A number of bus companies supply Arua with daily services. Generally, the standard daytime bus costs 30k UGX and the executive (overnight) bus costs 50k. They all depart from Arua Park, downtown Kampala. Contacts in Arua recommend the executive Gaaga bus which runs overnight and has reclining seats. KKT are ‘more reliable than Gaaga’ according to another source. California bus company started up last year. Nile Coach is an old school provider that ‘overpacks vehicles.’ [2022 there are new bus providers].
If your bus (or car) stops at Kafu, en route to Arua, think twice before you eat the roasted ‘muchomo’ meat!
How to get around Arua town
Bodas in Arua are cheap and everywhere. If you don’t have the right money, you won’t have to argue to get your change. Refreshing. (I am constantly overcharged in Kampala!)
Arua is a very pleasant town to walk around. Main roads have good wide pavements (and the boda drivers do not seem to drive on them either!)
In 2016, the 4km taxi journey from the airport cost me 10,000 ugx. By boda, it cost me just 2,000 UGX.
When to visit Arua
Arua is at an altitude of 1,200 metres meaning nights can be cooler than in most places in Uganda.
Generally expect:
April to June – lighter rains; August – cold, day and night; August to October – heavier rains;
December to Feb / March – cold mornings, very hot in the day, warm at night.
A few words of Lugbara, one of the local languages
Mi efu ngoni – good morning [mifun-GO-ney]
Mi ngoni – how are you? [min-GO-ney]
Awadifo – thanks [awad-if-O]
I love exploring new parts of Uganda and learning a few words of local language. But in West Nile, as soon as I got the hang of greeting somebody in Lugbara, I was told that we were in a different district where a whole range of other languages and dialects are spoken!
Awadifo!
I was drawn to the northern region of West Nile and Arua town by the lure of a tourism ‘familiarisation’ trip. I really had a great time.
Thanks to Kampala House Harriers (KH3) for finally getting me to Arua – an invitation I most definitely could not ignore! My Arua trip included three days of fun supplied by KH3. Read that story here “Nagawa – you cowardised!” A detour via the Congo.
A big thank you to Dolorence Were of USDC Uganda Society for Disabled Children for letting me transfer the Eagle Air ticket (that my friend won in the USDC fundraiser raffle) into my name.
Thank you for promoting my home land
No need to thank me – your homeland is so interesting, I had to write about it 🙂
Kudos and well done with this objective article.
Cheers Yikii! You know the great thing about being a travel blogger is not only the travelling – when you blog, you get to relive all your adventures again and again, plus you have a permanent record of them…
Thank You for the write up. Your visit has been a blessing. I have been to some of the places you visited but i didn’t write anything about the adventurous places like Miriadua Falls, Goli, etc. Thank you for the spreading the gospel of the West Nile Hospility and it’s adventures.
Hey Denno, thanks 🙂 I really enjoyed getting a whole new perspective on Uganda, and there’s so much history and culture to be explored – on another visit…
Thanks thats true bro its time to blog WestNile.
Wow i loved it all Arua well described keep it up gerald . you would make the best tour guide in westnile
Gerard is a great guide, my trip wouldn’t have been the same without him.
Thanks for your kind thoughts. It was great having you around – looking forward to having you again!
I’ll be back! [To quote a certain Terminator…]
Thank you for appreciating every thing. Please come again and invite more friends to come and explore the place.
Hey Aldo, for sure… I’ve been telling EVERYONE what a great place Arua is to visit.. it may not be known yet as a place to tour, but the town has a great feel to it.
I don’t know how this piece evaded my eyes but thank God I finally got to read this! Having lived and experienced this story which I couldn’t write my self, I can only say thank you and come again!
Hey Atiku, thanks for the appreciation… which other places should I visit next time?
Interesting write up.
Cheers Julius!
Can somebody explain Lugbara are NOT Sudanic speaking.
Big up for the adventure in Arua! You may have missed Pork at Ediofe, variety of sweetest fruits in the world: mangoes, avocados, paw paws, ‘brotherheart’ etc. Sketch for these and lots more next time. The first European missionary to Arua, ‘Bwana Vola’ said; ”Mungu le Lugbara ambo!” (God so loves tge Lugbara)
Nice suggestions Eli – thanks. What is ‘brotherheart’ exactly?
God so loves the Lugbara… I can see why 🙂
Brother heart is Soursop Graviola.
Lovely post. Arua is certainly a must see in Uganda.
Ah – soursop! An unusual name – seen it but not tried it (yet) 🙂
Pork is Forbidden in the bible my friend!
Really?
Awesome piece, an easy read. I guess you equally received a new identity, Mundu (White).
Thanks Innocent, Arua is a very refreshing place.
The Mundu
🙂
For sure, Arua is a beautiful piece of art. though Neglected but still strives to shine.
I really appreciated Arua. I found it to be cleaner and better organised than many towns in Uganda. The influx of refugees (and thus NGOs) has had a positive impact on development of the town as far as I can see.
Great article ….welldone
🙂
I have always been lazy reading lengthy posts but when I started reading this, I kept scrolling that I wished it had no end..Thanks for the nice work done..Next time you should add Rhino camp to your places of adventure
Thanks Aliti, awadifo!
Tell me more about Rhino Camp? Don’t see it on Google… unless you mean Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement?
Rhino Camp was named Camp Rhino by Theodore Roosevelt where he and his hunting expedition felled one of the big five in that area. At that time West Nile was still part of the Lado Enclave – a heaven of sorts for poachers and ivory hunters.
Interesting!
And a story about this big game hunter is here http://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/-Uganda–wild-game-Theodore-Roosevelt-US-president/689844-2616282-kw8abj/index.html
This is very interesting especially the smallest church at Goli in Nebbi that i didn’t know.
Keep it up
Thanks Prisca!
And did you see the aerial photo of the mountains? Hope I named them correctly.
Your welcome Charlotte.
Yes you named them correctly, Panyimur and Mount Erusi.
The shimmering water of Lake Albert & the river nile alos caught my eye.
Theb lunch you had at Oraba leaves one salvating…..
Miriadua Falls is a place to visit….
Thanks Prisca! I found it difficult to verify the names of the mountain ranges online. Hopefully there will soon be more information about West Nile available.
I was very lucky to get the bird’s eye view of the river and lake 🙂
I loved the write up so much. Felt nostalgic reading about Panyimur — this is where Maternal grandma comes from. Arua is where my sister married from and to think that I am a West Nile gal and have not travelled extensively breaksmy heart. However it was nice to see all these places through your writing.
My eyes moistened a little
Thanks Anna Maria. I hope you get to visit West Nile soon. I’m looking forward to a return visit. I really like Arua 🙂
Awadifo.
Karibu sana!
(What is the correct reply in Lugbara?)
Were (not at all)
That feeling you get after reading an awesome article about your home – a pleasant one.
I’m sure all those who have read this article feel the same.
Thank you, Please come again and bring others too. Arua has warm and welcoming people.
Gerard, i see you. Beautiful piece mzungu. Typing while having a samosa at cafe cosmos
Seriously the BEST samosa I’ve ever eaten…!
Been visiting Arua annually since 2000, stayed since 2013 and must confess that this is the Most Comprehensive Description I have seen from a Muzungu, enlightened 3rd November 2016 by a Link on facebook from my Big Brother in KLA City and just had to read it. Great Photos too, wish Arua Hill was among! Very educative Writeup, Madam! Gerard is a good Tourism Consultant…
Hi Aiko, great to read your positive feedback, thanks.
There is still more to write about Arua, e.g. where to stay.
I was in touch with Philip Briggs recently. He has complete rewritten the chapter about West Nile for the Bradt Uganda guide. This book is the no. 1 guide to tourism in the country, and touches many subjects in detail. Recommended reading
This is an eye opener.. we have to learn how to write our own story so as to inspire the generation to come..thank you very much.. it is so sad to know that this region does not have her own local news paper that would highlight some of these issues.
Gerard Iga writes a good blog, Inside West Nile, and there are lots of young people from West Nile who are active on social media, so the foundations are for promotion are there.
I strongly agree with you. It’s only vital that Westnile has her own television and newspaper so that it’s true picture is shares with Ugandans and the world at large
Thanks Nagawa for exploring the WestNile and discovering some unique features we never knew. After reading this article, I have discovered that we lack very many things. That is publicity and research. We may be researching but the way we publish our research is fake. All our information and research is not online.
Since I have seen that in Arua they a Public Library, I pledge to create a blog for it and then they start publishing their research there especially about West Nile.
Wow! I love this Ronald. I would be more than will to contribute and create a connection between you and the people running the library. We need community libraries too so that people can have easy access to the world of learning.
Hello Ronald, many thanks to your positive feedback. I’m sure I have simply skimmed the surface. There must be lots more activities you can do in West Nile that have yet to be discovered, and developed. Think about historical tourism, for example, the birthplace of Idi Amin. The history needs researching, the guides need training and then signage, marketing materials, can be put together. Tourists of course need simple facilities like toilets too! Arua has some great infrastructure in terms of road access and with the new airport runway that is being built, surely the area is set for tourism development.
Great idea to create a blog for the public library! I miss public libraries, we have them in most towns in the UK (where I grew up). Sadly very few in Uganda. At least websites and blogs can bridge the information gap 🙂
Good luck.
i ve really loved ur story though its old now
Thanks for loving my story 🙂
West has many scenery features if development explodes especial you have not reached Metu springs on mountain tops down and mender road to river nile in Moyo district, it will be a great tourist centre Thanks Muzungu
Hi Natal, thanks for your travel tips. I will add them to my list for my next trip to West Nile!
Been here for 7 month now, got a butiful Lugbara girl friend and still need to explore those places. I hope this will guide me through. Thanks
That’s great to read Julio. Enjoy West Nile! Any other places I should add?
Yet seen another difference between the Muzungu and ‘us’, the Ugandans from this post. A very inspiring post. Our ‘ Uganda’s media’ mostly embraces negative publicity about Uganda beyond K’la.
Kudos to you for the positivism.
Thanks DDM – as you can see, I really enjoyed Arua – hope to get back there before too long. There’s a lot more to see…
hi, i have to start working there soon, thank u for telling abt the town, I’ve written down some of the places u have mentioned and at least i’m re leaved, i had thought it was a remote town. u didn’t mention any hotels or guest houses someone should consider for accommodation and also the cost of an airticket
Hi Specy
Although Arua may be remote from Kampala, it’s served by good roads most of the way. Its geographical positioning between the DRC and South Sudan borders mean the town is a hive of activity.
Currently Eagle Air are the only airline flying there. Check their web site http://www.flyeagleuganda.com for ticket pricing. Their office is between the Post Office and Christ the King. I found they were not very good at replying to emails or phone calls (but that was two years ago, perhaps they have improved).
My last minute travel plans meant that all hotel accommodation in Arua had been booked up. I therefore stayed in the Christus Centre Catholic Church accommodation adjacent to the cathedral. (The Emeritus Bishop of West Nile Frederic Drandua had been buried the day before and everyone had thronged to the district for his final send-off).
Accommodation was basic (cold water shower) but clean and secure, with lovely gardens. The tranquility was enhanced by the beautiful singing of the choir in the Cathedral. Christus Centre is a boda ride of about 5 – 10 minutes into town. I paid 1,500 UGX for the ride (two years ago).
Regarding where to stay in Arua, friends stayed at Desert Breeze Hotel (rooms from 92k). It’s a modern hotel that makes a superb rolex!
These options were recommended by friends (but I have not stayed in any so cannot vouch for their quality): Orasea Complex, Heritage Courts, Royal Crane Resort and Golden Courts Hotel. I have listed them with cheapest hotel first. Golden Courts is I believe the town’s top hotel. It was recommended to me.
This is well written work about West Nile, thank God for giving our children the brain to think creatively like others. God bless you
I’m glad you didn’t go as a missionary to Africa as many does. I MISS Arua and Pakwach very much. My favorite hide outs.
OMG me a missionary? That’s a funny thought 🙂
I loved West Nile, can’t wait to go back.
I am from Pakwach but I do have family in Arya, Nebbi and Zombo so all those places are dear to me. Thanks for a great write up. I am yet to visit the beautiful falls Gerard, my ‘Mayor of Arua’ friend is always raving about. One day soon. Surely.
Hi Brenda, thanks for dropping by:)
Gerard is certainly the Tourism Mayor of Arua – his passion knows no bounds! I hear his I Love ARUA T-shirts are doing well!
Nice writing muzungu dairy
Thanks for dropping by 🙂
I appreciate Muzungu Dairy
Thanks for dropping by 🙂
Thanks dear… not forgetting brothers and sisters of west nile
I loved my time there – and hope to return before too long 🙂
Wow, thanks for this write up about my home town….it certainly puts Arua on point…
if you came back now..after lock down of course, you will be impressed with the many changes that have taken place…….and Gerald your tour guide will still do the needful..
Thanks for dropping by Gladys and glad you enjoyed my write-up. Very much looking forward to exploring West Nile further one day. I really enjoyed Arua
A big thank you to Geoff Anguyo who writes:
“I promised to send you a pic of this interesting border market in Arua, West Nile. So on the left is named Kampala market and right is Kinshasa market middle is the border. I’m told it opens thrice a week.”