Best hotels in Uganda

Located in Entebbe, directly on the shore of Lake Victoria, Protea Hotel lies just six kilometres from the airport, so it's the ideal place to start or end your visit to this lovely country. Once the scene of great drama, Entebbe is now a pretty and peaceful contrast to the surge and heave of humanity in the capital, Kampala. The tranquil atmosphere extends to the hotel, where the service is streamlined, the accommodation is modern and comfortable and the food is very good.

Tucked deep within the mist-shrouded canopy of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, this newly reimagined lodge sits at the epicentre of one of conservation's greatest success stories. With barely 1,000 mountain gorillas left on Earth, and more than half calling this ancient forest home, you're essentially bedding down in the world's most exclusive wildlife neighbourhood. Freshly reopened after a complete transformation, the 10-villa hideaway has shed any pretence of roughing it in favour of eco-conscious luxury that would make David Attenborough weep with joy. The location is so primo that gorillas occasionally pop by for impromptu garden visits – though the brilliant rangers guarantee you'll meet them on their own turf during every trek.

Perched 941 metres-above-sea-level on the Albertine Rift's western escarpment, Elephant Plains Lodge claims one of Uganda's most spectacular viewpoints. Set on 80 acres of pristine wilderness within Queen Elizabeth National Park, the lodge sits so close to the equator that the monument is visible from every angle. With Lake Kikorongo on its doorstep where elephants gather each evening to drink, and panoramic views stretching across the Kasenyi Plains to Lake George, this is what being in the wilderness is all about. The lodge's grass-thatched cottages blend seamlessly into the landscape, while solar power and locally-sourced materials keep the environmental footprint to a minimum.

Named after Ava Gardner's sassy character in the classic film 'Mogambo', this chic safari camp embodies sophistication in the wild. Perched on the southern bank of the Kazinga Channel within Kyambura Game Reserve, Honey Bear is the sole camp inside this exclusive corner of Queen Elizabeth National Park. With just five beautifully appointed tents overlooking the water, you'll wake to hippos grunting and elephants coming down to drink mere metres from your bed. The camp serves as a perfect base for chimpanzee tracking in the mysterious Kyambura Gorge, boat safaris along the channel, and game drives through Uganda's most popular park.

Named after Ernest 'Papa' Hemingway – who famously survived not one but two plane crashes in this very stretch of wilderness – this intimate tented camp channels the romance of golden-age safaris. Tucked beneath towering fig trees on the south bank of the Nile, it sits within a 350-square-kilometre low-use zone of Murchison Falls National Park, shared with no other camp. Lions are prolific here (a recent census counted over 45), and a habituated hyena den near camp offers extraordinary viewing. The roar of the rapids drifts through at night, elephants and buffalo roam the riverbanks, and the thundering falls themselves are an easy game drive away. With only five tents, exclusivity is guaranteed.