Uganda has been ranked by Lonely Planet as the world’s most preferred tourism destination for the year 2012. Lonely Planet is the world’s largest Travel Guide Book and Digital Media Publisher. Uganda emerged number one out of 10 other countries surveyed, followed by Myanmar (Burma), Ukraine, Denmark, Bhutan, Cuba, New Caledonia, Taiwan and Switzerland.

Considering the country’s variance in the tourism products, it is little wonder that it was ranked the world’s most preferred. The ranking comes at a time when Uganda is focused on intensifying marketing and promotion of the country both domestically and internationally.

The Lonely Planet singles out Uganda as the place where Savannah meets the vast East African lakes and where snow-capped mountains bear down on sprawling jungles, but there is more to this Pearl of Africa. Apart from being home to half to the world’s surviving mountain gorillas, Uganda is also blessed with half of Africa’s bird species, waterfalls, hot springs, forests, national parks and unique climate among others.

Uganda’s history is very rich with UNESCO world heritage sites including Nyero rock paintings, Kasubi tombs (currently being reconstructed after the 2010 inferno), Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and the newly discovered home of early man in Karamoja.

The government of Uganda in partnership with the Italian government is preparing for the centenary since the ascent of Mount. Rwenzori in 1906 by the then Italian
Duke Luigi da Savoia of Abruzzi.

A back ground to the Rwenzori Mountains is revealed in the writings of Ptolemy in AD 160 who wrote of these ‘Mountains of the Moon’ as the source of the river Nile. The mystery was finally solved centuries later with the expedition of the duke who carried out a complete topographical, survey of the 5109m snow capped mountains.

The geographical, astronomical, geodetical and meteorological findings of the mountains are contained in two bulky appendices in the official volume of the
expedition, Il Ruwenzori: Viaggio di esplorazione prime ascesioni (Hopepli, Milano 1908).

As we prepare for the centenary, the Italian Embassy in Uganda together with stake holders like Uganda Tourist Board, Mountain Clubs of Uganda, Uganda Wildlife Authority e.t.c have planned a series of activities including Art and anthropological exhibitions, travel exhibitions, scientific conferences, Winter Olympics, BIT Milan tourism Borse from 18th-21st Feb, 2006, the highlight being an expedition code named in the ‘Footsteps of the Duke’ in which a delegation from the region of Piedmont led by the descendants of the duke are expected for the celebrations, culminating with the climb on 18th June 2006 exactly a century later.

For more details on the centenary celebrations visit our event website on: www.rwenzoriabruzzi.com