Karibuni Lounge Review: EBB Entebbe International Airport – Uganda

I visited the Karibuni Lounge in the Entebbe International Airport prior to my flight to return to the United States (via AMS on KLM) from a 3.5 week trip to East Africa. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much, being that I had been in the nasty Aspire lounge in the NBO Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport’s Terminal 1B a few days prior. (And the fact that in general, I haven’t been impressed with Priority Pass lounges overall). Hell, I was happy they even had a lounge here! Being that we were coming off a 8.5 hour drive from our lodge in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, it was a rough journey just getting to the airport and we were in need of showers. In this post, I’ll review the Karibuni lounge in the Entebbe International Airport and give you everything you need to know.

How to Access the Karibuni Lounge

I accessed the lounge via Priority Pass (obtained with my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card), and took my sister in as my free guest. If you are not a Priority Pass member, you can access the lounge for $35 per person.

The lounge is airside in the International Terminal, so once you’re through security and customs, you’ll just follow the signs for the Karibuni Lounge which is located at the end of the hall. You can’t miss it — it has a giant neon sign.

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The Lounge

The decor in this lounge isn’t my taste but it works here — it resembles the colors of the Ugandan flag. The seating is made up of all leather chairs and couches and is rather comfortable, though some of the chairs are showing their age. Our flight was at 11:50pm, a common departure time for international flights, and I didn’t think the lounge was very crowded.

There are plenty of boards showing gates and flight departure times, plus lots of TVs. Wifi was decent and we had enough electrical outlets to charge our devices.

We used the showers — this was an amazing benefit of this lounge! We had just came from a rough 8.5 hour drive across Uganda to the airport, and we were about to embark on a nearly 2-day journey back to the United States. We were smelly, dusty, and gross. The showers were a godsend!

To take a shower, just visit the check in desk and they will hand over a few towels.

There is only one shower per gender bathroom and it’s all out in the open — so if other people come to use the restroom, well, they’re probably going to get a peek.

I’m not a fan of showering in front of others, but fuck it. I didn’t care this time. It was so, so needed. Unfortunately, there was no hot water, but again, didn’t care. Had to take a shower!

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Karibuni Lounge Entebbe Airport Uganda – Food and Beverages

Hot food selection was pretty decent — they had veg and non-veg appetizers, including samosas (which were delicious), sausage rolls and other meat-stuffed pastries, all displayed ib of cabinets with heat lamps. It wasn’t the freshest food, and granted, it was all fried, but it tasted pretty decent and we were hungry!

There’s a selection of desserts here too — cookies and cakes — and those were just fine too. Again, not the freshest food, but it works.

As for drinks, you’ll find bottled water and your standard Coca-Cola products available in self-serve refrigerators. At the bar, you can probably get whatever kind of alcoholic drink you want, though I didn’t get any myself. They’ll also make you a cappuccino or mocha coffee drink if you wish.

Karibuni Lounge at EBB – Final Thoughts, Pros and Cons

Overall, the Karibuni Lounge at the Entebbe (EBB) airport in Uganda is pretty decent. It has essentially everything you want — edible food, drinks, plentiful seating, electrical outlets and showers. While it’s not the nicest, most aesthetic lounge out there, it gets the job done and is better than sitting in the departure area. You can access this lounge with a Priority Pass membership or you can pay cash. I definitely recommend if you’ll be traveling internationally through EBB.

Pros
Decent food selection.
Lots of comfy leather seating
Showers available

Cons
Showers didn’t have hot water

Have you visited the Karibuni Lounge at EBB? Thoughts?