NOT JUST A MARATHON… BUT 7 DAYS OF INCREDIBLE ADVENTURE, FRIENDSHIP, CHALLENGE AND FUN IN AFRICA
Explore an East African Community
Volunteer with Local Grassroots Projects
Organise KidsRunWild, a Sports Day for disadvantaged children
"Heading to bed full of excitement and nerves, with running gear laid out for the marathon tomorrow! After an incredible week in Uganda visiting the projects where all the funds we raise goes. I can't describe how inspiring it's been and how phenomenal the work is, that goes into collaborating with the local community in Masaka. Seriously amazing!"
– Kate, Uganda International Marathon Runner
THE 7 DAY UGANDA MARATHON ADVENTURE
This is your itinerary for an adventure like no other!
Sunday - Welcome & Tour Days
The adventure starts here! You will be met and welcomed with open arms and joyous enthusiasm at Uganda’s tiny yet International Airport – Entebbe. Expect an atmosphere of excitement as over 50 adventurers like you descend.
You will then be transported to Masaka. Here you’ll get to know your fellow travellers whilst enjoying a beautiful morning sun and start learning more of what you’ll be experiencing this most amazing week of your life. On the way, you will have an opportunity to stop over at the equator and witness how water develops vorticity or “spin.” You can stand with one foot in the northern hemisphere and one in the southern and be on both sides of the world. It is such an incredible experience that you can’t miss a stopover! The equator stopover has become a thriving hub made up of trendy restaurants and shops to buy souvenirs. One is lighter standing at the equator and you have not lost weight. There is no gravitational pull while standing that the equator and your weight reduces by about 3 percent, Once you leave, your weight returns. Isn’t this magical!
Enjoy your first lunch. You will have the opportunity to taste the popular Matoke! For those who want to try something new.You’ll relax at the beautiful Athletes’ Village Hotel and have full access to the outdoor pool, gym & spa, coffee shop and luscious grounds. Then, you’ll spend your evenings at the Camp fire at Brovad , with beautiful gardens to relax and begin enjoying Uganda. If there is time then pick up a sim card in town (ask for more info).
Choose from a variety of activities including experiencing how to prepare Matoke dish, Masaka Rollex ( best street dish many), Ugandan Pancake, learn simple Luganda phrases e.g greetings, bidding farewell, thank you etc etc….including local Ugandan moves ( dance)… its will be an evening full of fun to have you feel the best of the best experiences awaiting you in a full week!
Do an optional first sunset run and experience the Ugandan aurora like feeling .Enjoy dinner along with a spectacular performance of colorful, high-energy dancing and music that displays the lively culture of the Ugandan tribes with cheers around the camp fire. The enjoyment begins to get closer to you!
Monday- learn and discover Masaka!
Morning run, led by Masaka Runners Club and UGM Staff. Run a short distance within Masaka Town as you enjoy an early raising beautiful Uganda sun! The start of a perfect day, with a view on the sun of course–to stimulate a good appetite for breakfast . In the meantime the sun has raised more. Giving enjoyable warmth.
Welcome to the Marathon and meet your fellow runners, Learn basic Luganda, Meet the UGM team and introduction, Briefing about Masaka and the projects, Briefing about the week’s schedule, manage expectations. Split into groups; take a walking tour around Masaka, Grocery Market, Cultural and Regalia shops, Banks, Currency exchange, Curtsey visit to projects in Town, and enjoy traditional lunch from restaurants.
You’ll be exploring and working with the EcoBrix factory – and experience how plastics can be a source of livelihood for our vulnerable sections of society. We shall tour the Eco Brix factory, Help sorting our aplastics for factory processing learning how plastic gets a second life. We shall Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Up-cycle nonperishable plastics polluting our mother Earth. We shall significantly tackle the big plastic problem haunting Masakas beauty in a creative and enjoyable fashion.Then a sunset run with Masaka Runners Club and UGM staff for those wanting to stretch their legs! And Back to the Hotel Brovad before dark. For those interested, you will have an opportunity to do a guided night walk to see night downtown life for the native women and children and how they hustle and bustle to make life ends meet. It’s a memory you will have forever. By now, you will be ready to enjoy your sweet sound sleep!
Tuesday & Wednesday
See Your Legacy Days
During the day, you will spend time working to transform a community projects and schools. With kids aged 6 – 13, you will help to create a school Vegetable garden to improve nutrition, you will participate in wall Painting and drawing kids exciting pictures on the nursery section walls, you will play various games from football, volleyball, netball etc with joyful kids, you will help in planting Fruit trees on the school compounds. By now, you need to increase your glucose levels. You will help serve food to kids and enjoy lunch at the school, with kids and teachers.
You will spend the day enjoying work at a Charity organisation that supports vulnerable children with special needs and women and youths. Project activities will include but not limited to; having fun with disabled kids, make your own iPhone purse, money purse , creative painting with kids at a place of their choice, engaging with ,talking to kids to restore hope, playing varied games, helping to change ones course of their life hence leaving an everlasting LEGACY!
Thursday - Kids Run Wild
Then the long awaited Kids Run Wild event! You will do an optional 5k run or go by car to the venue. You will find hundreds of kids waiting for you. This is an event where we conduct local sports day for children. The event will be at one of the nearby school projects. You will help kids to play on Bouncing castles, do kids face painting, clowns, have childish games, run and jump with kids, and have fun with kids. This will leave a memorable experience in the life of children. We recommend wearing T-shirts, shirts that keep you fairly covered particular your shoulders. Don’t forget your shorts/ Skirt around knee legs. Its full enjoyment!
Have lunch with kids. Help serve food to kids. What a joy!Relax, Relax, kids can you make you really tired. Relax! Visit the Gym, do some swimming in the Brovad pool, use your social media to tell the world, or immerse yourself to what something you like at the hotel. On Thursday, before bed, we’ll hold a pre-race briefing from the race and medical team, (everyone must attend).
Friday - The race day
There are few more awe-inspiring sights in the world than seeing the sun rising over Africa, just the thought of it sends tingles down our spines…today, you will run under that sun, today you will kick off a new era for Masaka town, today, you will become a superstar.
The starting gun fires at 7am for Uganda’s biggest marathon. For the next few hours you’ll be running alongside 2,000 other runners in some of the most amazing scenery that Africa has to offer. Supported round the course by cheering children, and locals this is one of the toughest but most rewarding races on the planet. Not one to be forgotten easily!At the finish line, there’s a huge free party for the whole town, then it’s back to the Athlete’s Village for a massage, BBQ and a party – before returning to the airport on Sunday, or heading on to a safari or gorilla trek!
Saturday – Relax, reflect, pool and pasta party
On Saturday, wake up at will in the morning; take time while in your bed to reflect on the wonderful experience. After breakfast, we shall have a big screen to project uncensored photos and videos taken. You need to rest your legs, so you can wander into town, relax by the pool, take part in some cooking lessons and generally chill out. It’s a very relaxed day where we’ll also be holding talks from the local community for you to find out more about living in Uganda, the work that the local projects do and how The Uganda Marathon supports them.
Put your experience into context and find out how you can get involved more with the amazing connections that you have made. You will share what each group/ individual experienced in your absence- get ready to have your libs cracked by laughter! Have time for interpersonal communication, make friends! You will have some of the projects you visited come to you for a final meet up and sadly say Good bye!
Can be sweetly emotional! Have a chat and reflection of the experience so far and ideas on how best to make Masaka better. Then, down to the Hotel in town for a pool party – chilling on sun loungers by the pool and resting legs, before a pasta party and carbohydrate buffet feast in the evening.
Sunday
Moving On Sunday!
Sunday morning will see you wake up to the beautiful Ugandan sunrise, no longer stiff, no longer sore, powerfully elated from your achievement in Uganda!
Have a long breakfast with all your new friends, watch the sun warm the Masaka Valley and then await your flight home, or go onwards to continue your Ugandan adventure on one of our extensions trips.
REGISTER FOR THE 2025 UGANDA MARATHON - AN ADVENTURE LIKE NO OTHER!
To sign up for the biggest adventure of 2025 just fill in our registration form and pay a $99 deposit. The remainder of your balance will not be due until the 31st January.