Ndere Cultural Centre - A Must See Attraction in Kampala, Uganda

Entrance to the Ndere Cultural Centre, Kampala, Uganda

Since this is the first time we are visiting Ugnada, we are determined to learn as much as possible about Ugandan culture, music and dances.

Woven baskets decorate the wall of the Ndere Cultural Centre

One of the best places to do so is at the Ndere Centre.  Before our arrival to Uganda, Valerie has already booked tickets for us. We were all excited, eagerly looking forward to the dinner and cultural show at this Ugandan Cultural Centre.

Painting and drawings lining the wall of the cultural cdentre

Though not a long distance, but the drive going there took more than an hour in Kampala due to traffic congestion. We have learned that we could not plan more than one or two activities in this city due to traffic delays. We left at 5pm but didn't arrive until about 6:30pm .

The Ndere Cultural Centre sits on 9 acres of well-maintained green. We walked through the beautifully flowered walk ways and reached the vast amphitheater.

The upper level of the amphitheater was lined with long rows of tables covered in white table clothes with white chairs while the lower level was for performances.

Tables and chairs for eating were placed on the upper level of amphitheater.

Our tour guided had purchased our tickets and reserved us a table.

We could hardly wait to taste the delicious Uganda food at the buffet!

After finding our reserved table, we lined up for the buffet table with a good spread of fresh and cooked vegetables and BBQ cooked meat.

I loved all the vegetables cooked in Uganda style & served with different sauces

Having eaten out numerous times in the past few days, I really enjoyed the abundant fresh vegetables cooked in various ways served with delicious sauces.

Drummers  carrying drums on their heads entered the  amphitheater.

As we were eating, a group of drummers started marching in from behind us. The centre has its own resident troupe Ndere.

This was the first time all of us, except Valerie,  were at an all African cultural music and dance performance.

We were captivated by the colourful costumes, amazing tribal songs, dances and unique instruments from the 56 tribes.

We were captivated by the performers' songs and dances at the Ndere Cultural Centre, Kampala, Uganda.

Besides the upbeat songs and dances,  there were humorous jokes and stories about Ugandan culture and lives throughout the two hour colourful show.


There must have been about sixty singers and dancers at this dinner show.

It was well received by the audiences who roared with hearty laughter at the Uganda's sense of humor in describing their ways of dealing with everyday life.

My most favorite part was when the comedian dancer introduced the multi uses of one of Uganda's musical instruments - a big yellow vegetable shell.

The performers demonstrated how this big yellow shell is used by Ugandans for eating, drumming, sleeping, sitting as well as for many other purposes.


What a fantastic useful piece of tool used by Ugandans!

Dancers  incorporated acrobatic skills into their dance performances.

The Ndere Centre put on shows every Wednesday and Friday at 7pm, and Sundays at 6pm.

We were there for the Wednesday evening show.

It was incredible watching the dancers balancing numerous pots on their heads while dancing at the same time!

I was glad that we did not miss this great cultural experience while visiting Kampala.

We enjoyed this energetic artistic creativity of Uganda and African music and performances.










 At the end of the show,  the cast invited the audience onto the stage and danced with them at the end of the show. Many people did participate and we all had a blast!

The Ndere Cultural Centre and its dinner show is not to be missed when one is visiting Kampala. It was  one of the highlights of our trip to  Uganda, Africa!



R.T.
Ndere Cultural Centre
Kampala, Uganda