Arabica
Mount Elgon & the Rwenzori
High-altitude, washed, slow to ripen. Grown on volcanic slopes above 1,600 metres where the nights are cold enough to concentrate the sugars.
Coffee-origin expeditions, Uganda 1°22′N 32°17′E
Drink coffee where coffee began.
Owner-operated expeditions to the farms of Mount Elgon, the Lake Victoria basin and the Rwenzori. Eight travellers, never more. Straight to the people who grow it.
Scroll
- Small groups max 8
- All-inclusive pricing
- No payment to inquire
- Direct to farmer
- Local expert guides
Why Uganda
Robusta coffee grows wild in the forests of the Lake Victoria basin — it was born here, and it never left.
Most coffee travel takes you to plantations. We take you to origin itself: the forest floor where the species began, the smallholder plots that still work it, and the washing stations where the day's cherry is graded by hand.
Cherry by cherry, grade by grade — photographed on our own farm visits, not from a stock library.
The two coffees
One country, two species, two entirely different days.
Uganda is one of the few origins where arabica and robusta are both native to the landscape. You can stand in both within a single week — and taste exactly why the altitude changes everything.
Robusta
The Lake Victoria basin
Indigenous, shade-grown under banana, and still found growing wild in the forest. This is the species' original home, not an introduction to it.
Expeditions
Three ways to travel to origin.
All-inclusive from arrival in Entebbe. Nothing to pay to start a conversation.
01
Mount Elgon · Arabica
The Source — Elgon Arabica Immersion
$1,850–2,400€1,700–2,200 per person, all-inclusive
Enquire
02
Lake Victoria + Mount Elgon
Two Coffees, One Country
$2,900–3,600€2,650–3,300 per person, all-inclusive
Enquire
03
Rwenzori + Safari
Crater & Cup — Rwenzori and Safari
$4,200–5,500€3,850–5,000 per person, all-inclusive
EnquireThe journey
Bean to cup, day by day.
A sample itinerary from the Elgon immersion. Every trip is adjusted to the season and your pace — the timeline follows the coffee itself, from green cherry to your own roasted cup.
- Day01
Arrival & welcome cupping
Airport pickup in Entebbe, a relaxed evening in Kampala, and your first guided tasting across Uganda's coffee regions.
- Day02
Into the highlands, onto the farm
Drive up Mount Elgon. Walk the rows with the farming family hosting you, pick ripe cherries by hand, and share lunch at their home.
- Day03
Processing, hands in
Pulp, wash and spread your harvest on raised drying beds at the cooperative — the same beds in these photographs.
- Day04
Sipi Falls & the high country
Hike the three-tier falls, visit hillside plots at 2,000 metres, and cup with the producers who grew what you're tasting.
- Day05
Roast, brew & carry it home
Roast a batch of the lot you helped process, brew it side by side with the farmers, and fly home with beans that have your fingerprints on them.
Washed parchment going onto the screens, and the raised beds you'll load on day three — photographed at a partner farm.
Uganda trips
And the rest of the country, with coffee woven through it.
- 01
Gorilla highlands — Bwindi
Trekking permits, with highland cupping in the afternoons.
- 02
The source of the Nile — Jinja
River activities and rafting, robusta country either side.
- 03
Savannah safari — Queen Elizabeth
Game drives across the crater floor, coffee brewed at camp.
- 04
Kampala & culture
Markets, roasteries, and the city's own coffee culture.
The Golden Cherry draw — travel anywhere with us, you could win the farm.
Every traveller on every Tibz trip is entered into the season's draw. One winner each season is awarded a free five-day coffee-farm expedition — back to the source, on us.
One winner drawn each season from all travellers who completed a trip that season. International flights excluded. Full terms shared before you book.Beyond the cup
Don't just taste the industry. Join it.
Uganda's coffee sector is growing fast, and it runs on relationships. If you are a roaster, an importer or an investor, we turn a trip into introductions that matter.
- Sourcing journeys — cup fresh lots at the washing stations and build farm-gate relationships directly with cooperatives.
- Investment introductions — meet the operators behind washing stations, drying infrastructure and export ventures looking for partners.
- Learn at origin — hands-on processing stays with host cooperatives, for anyone serious about the craft.
- Honest brokering — we open doors and translate context; the opportunities stay yours to judge.
A partner nursery — thousands of seedlings headed for smallholder plots.
From cleared slope to bearing farm — one plot's journey above the valley.
Most coffee travel takes you to plantations. We take you to origin itself.
Sustainability & community
Travel that pays the people who grow the coffee.
Coffee tourism only means something if it strengthens the farms it visits. Every trip is built around that.
- Farm-visit fees go directly to host families — paid transparently, on the day, for their time and knowledge.
- Cooperative partnerships — income spreads across the community rather than a single gatekeeper.
- Locally owned lodges and kitchens wherever we stay and eat.
- Low-impact travel — small groups, refill water stations, no single-use plastics on tour.
Benson Tumwine — your host
Tibz Coffee Journeys is owner-run. I am Ugandan, I plan every itinerary myself, I travel these routes with our guides, and I personally answer every inquiry that comes through this site. When you write to us, you are writing to me.
The coffee party
Bring Uganda to your table.
Host a Ugandan coffee party — at your office, your event, or your living room. We bring the beans, the brewing and the stories from the farms; you bring the people. Some guests come for the coffee. Many end up coming to Uganda.
Host a partyBefore you ask
Questions we get most.
What exactly is included in the price?
Everything from arrival at Entebbe: accommodation, all transport and fuel, farm and washing-station access, guiding, permits where relevant, and meals. International flights and personal spending are not included.
Do I need a visa for Uganda?
Most nationalities apply online in advance. We send the current guidance for your passport once we know your dates, and we check it again before you travel.
What about vaccinations and health?
Yellow fever certification is required on entry. We send a full health note covering malaria prophylaxis and altitude when we confirm your itinerary.
Is it safe to travel with you?
Groups are capped at eight and led by local guides who work these routes year-round. You are with someone who knows the road, the farm, and the family at the end of it.
How fit do I need to be?
Farm walking is on uneven ground and some slopes are steep. If you can manage a few hours on your feet, you can manage the coffee days. Gorilla trekking asks for more.
When is the best time to come?
Harvest differs by region, which is the point of asking. Tell us what you want to see — picking, washing, drying — and we will place your dates around it.
How do payments work?
Nothing is due to make an enquiry or to plan. A deposit confirms your dates once the itinerary is agreed, with the balance before arrival.
How does the Golden Cherry draw work?
Every confirmed traveller is entered once. The draw covers a return trip at the following year's harvest — full details go out with your confirmation.
Plan your trip
Tell us when you want to be at the farm.
Send the form, or message us directly with rough dates and what you want out of the trip. We will come back with a route, a cost and an honest answer about the harvest.