The paper looks at the relationship between the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the tourism sector of Uganda and firm characteristics and business environment. Data were gathered after administering questionnaires to 1690 SMEs located around tourist attractions throughout the country in 2018. The study uses quantile regression to analyze the determinants of firm performance. The findings indicate that entrepreneur/managers education, business experience, initial capital, business registration and age of the owner are important in explaining enterprise performance. We also find that male managed enterprises outperform those managed by female. The study suggests that providing easy access to credit for initial capital and easing the business registration process and training entrepreneurs/managers will increase performance of SMEs in the tourism industry.