Fort Portal is a beautiful little quiet town located some three and a half hour drive from Kampala, Uganda; the drive is a little longer if you are using public transportation means. The town is surrounded by hills found on your way to Kasese, Bundibugyo, and Mbarara. Over the Valentine’s Day weekend, the town was the top travel destination for travelers.
Sitting in the western parts of Uganda, Fort Portal gives travelers a beautiful view of the Ruwenzori Mountains. It is also the provisional headquarters of the Kabarole District. The town got its name after late Gerald Portal, a British officer that lived in the region during the British colonialism in East Africa.
When driving from Kampala to Fort Portal, your breath will be taken away by the picturesque lush green beautiful landscape you encounter as you drive further from the city. You will encounter enchanting forests, farmland, and occasional homesteads in between after a considerable distance.
The town has a cool feel that will almost give you a relaxing lazy feel. Virtually everything in Fort Portal happens in a simple, easy pace, with meticulous boulevards running through its center with clean roads and curbs. There are also some excellent restaurants, hotels, banks and convenience stores along the streets of the town.
Fort Portal has a residence of about 50,000 people; making it quite a little town. It is also home to some of the most intriguing cultural sites like the Amabeere ga Nyinamwiru caves with its stalagmites and stalactites, which the locals believe to be the breasts of the Tooro Princes Nyinamwiru.
You can take a stroll through the beautiful Tooro Botanical Gardens cared for by the people and see the flora and fauna that have found a sanctuary there. Few kilometers south of Fort Portal, there are the Karambi Royal Tombs, where you can get to learn a thing or two about the Royals who lived here decades ago.
To wrap things up, you can visit the Tooro Kingdom Royal Palace sitting on top of a hill and watching over the town like a mother. The currently serving Omukama, Rukirabasaija Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV broke the Guinness Book of Records by becomes the youngest ruling monarch at the age of three when he ascended to the throne in 1995. His father, the late Omukama Patrick David Mathew Kaboyo Olimi III, passed away.
A day spent sightseeing and touring Fort Portal can be as tiring as it is thrilling. You can call it a day and retreat to the lavish hotels like the Reinah or Mountains of the Moon to treat yourself to spas that will take away all the tensions and sores accumulated with all the touring. Not forgetting there will be some delicious cuisines in the offering as you enjoy the scenery around you.