Hatching the perfect holiday without breaking the bank  

Taking a vacation is one of the best ways to unclutter your mind. Relaxing on vacation can minimise the levels of your stress hormones and allow your immune system to recover.
 
Going for vacation helps us do that. However, to enjoy the trip, you must budget for it.  As you enjoy the peace and quiet time at that perfect get-away, big questions, — like “What’s most important to me?” — are more likely to crop up.

Emma Kato, a social worker, says while vacations are essential for your well-being, they can also be costly. It is important to budget for a vacation so that it does not become a financial burden. 

He warns that by setting aside money for an annual vacation, you can prioritise your mental and physical health while being financially responsible. When  one thinks about what going on vacation means for anyone, he notices how important it is for the adults in employment as well. As this is a time when we all finally get the chance to take a break from our jobs and pursue our hobbies.

 He says in the previous years, he has arranged vacation trips with friends in a group of at least 10 people. Kato says, in preparations for these trips, it is important that there is someone called a convener. You cannot leave your trip in the hands of many organisers if you want it to succeed.

 “You must get one person who is given responsibility because they are reliable, proactive,” he says.
 Kato gives an example of a trip he organised for five couples to Murchison Falls. First, he had to find the best accommodation, he checked out the lodges online, their prices and phoned them.

 Upon getting the pictures for accommodation, he shared them on the WhatsApp group he had opened up for the couples to ease communication, while organising the trip and so that they can also give an opinion on what will do best for them.

 Eventually, he got a feel of what is affordable and in line with each couple’s expectations before contacting the lodges for a price.

 Kato says he broke down the prices for the couple; since a couple is composed of two people he ordered for a double bed for each and called Uganda Wildlife Authority and inquired about the costs for five couples as park entrance.

 “We are going to spend four days and three nights. I asked the drone car driver how much he was charging us per day. He said Shs150,000 without fuel, and gave me a rough estimate of fuel for Shs200,000 per day,” Kato says.

 Explaining that, he estimated Shs350,000 per day, multiplying it with the four days they were to spend out on trip, giving him a total of Shs1.4m. So, Shs1.4m divided by five couples he got the aggregate figure that each couple would pay for transport.

 He says after he added accommodation and park entrance per couple and noted it down in a table for each couple to know how much they were to pay. For the lodges, he asked for full board prices incorporating feeding for the days they would spend.

 Kato says that for any other incidental cost, each couple had to clear it on their own. In total, each person was paying about Shs550,000 and the lodge they slept in was fairly good.

 He added that each couple paid about Shs1.1m. But this amount,  if each couple was to go independently, would not be enough for transport. So the couples saved because of aggregating costs and cost-sharing.

 For transparency, each couple received their own receipt.
 As a convener, kato checked the prices of the tour cars and the price of a standard tour car was about Shs300,000 per day. That was just hiring without fuel.
 He says a tour company, would have charged at least shs3.5m on transport.   
 According to Brian Tuhaise, the founder Ceryle Tours, to travel with  family, there are some considerations; that is a mid-range, budget and luxury. For a luxury tour, which is supposed to be organised by him as a tour operator, looking at 10 national parks and 12 wildlife reserves.
 “I am looking at a ten day tour, which I will categorise for clients to have the best of the tour of the Albertine rift,” Tuhaise says.

 “So, I have to consider Murchison falls, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Semuliki National Park, Semuliki Wildlife Reserve, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and not forgetting our smallest national park which is Mugahinga,”Tuhaise says.

 “With those National Parks and Wildlife reserves, I will look at one or two that are outside the Albertine rift, or I will look at communities where you will do bird watching or do a community tour which is categorised as a cultural tour,” he says.

 He says for a luxury trip for 10 people, he will look at each of them paying close to $2,500 (Shs9.5m) per person and if it is a family with teenagers, for teens you count half price for each of them.

 However, for children below eight years according to Tuhaise, it will basically be free. A 10-day tour,  will cost $2,500(Shs9.5m) per person.
Uganda has some other accommodations, most especially mid-range that are catering for especially Ugandans which will also go handy for tourists that are targeting mid-range.

 Tuhaise insists that it is better to hire a travel agent to tour. That means you are hiring a vehicle and tourist guide.  The tourist guide takes you around and gives you all the information that you need. 

 Violet Komuhendo, managing director of Afrika Panthera Safaris, says 70 per cent of their tour services are facilitated by female guides.

 She says you should budget for a trip or safari. Komuhendo says if you are a luxury client and would want to explore Uganda, you can look at a budget of $2,500 (Shs9.5m) to $3,500( Shs13.3m) and if you are a Ugandan, you can look at $1,000 (Shs3.8m).

 “You can go for a regional tour across the borders. You can go to Diani Beach in Kenya with a group of four friends. Each person can pay about $1,000 (Shs3.8m) inclusive of accommodation, meals and everything in a very beautiful facility,” Komuhendo says.

 She asserts that it will be for either three or four days. If that is high, they also have camping experiences which range from $200 (Shs761,000) to $500 (Shs2m).

 Other than that, Komuhendo says they have a number of facilities ranging from the budget of the tourist.
 She explains that they have high end facilities all around the country and in the whole of East Africa. 

“At least, I have had a chance to be in Tanzania, Kenya and I have explored different facilities. We also have a chartered flight. You may want to tour but you are afraid of the poor roads or the distance.”

 They have different companies with chartered flights and have doctors on board in case a tourist falls sick. They also have insurance and can pick you whenever you are or back to your destination.