Budongo Eco Lodge

Budongo Lodge's modest public areas and guest rooms are wooden structures with tin roofs, kitted out with just the basics – simple but very comfortable. The main area has a large lounge with seating that encourages you to relax and share your sightings, a well-stocked bar (the beer is gloriously cold!), and a terrace dining room where you'll be served very good food. There's a small library, and free wi-fi.

From the main area, paths snake through the forest to the six cosy, wooden eco-cabins, each secluded for maximum privacy. The interiors are simple but more than adequate, with two double or one king-sized netted bed, a sitting area with a day bed, an en-suite bathroom with hot and cold shower, an ash-based eco-loo and a private veranda overlooking the forest. Travelling with close friends? Four dormitory rooms sleep four each in two bunk beds, with shared bathroom facilities outside.

Budongo is a birder's paradise, so birding tours are as popular as chimp tracking. Spend a day with habituated chimps to study the behaviour of these appealing primates – our close cousins (available October to June). Take a nature walk with an armed guide into the forest to examine the vegetation and the smaller creatures. You may even see wildlife licking salt in in the forest clearings. Large mammals that wander into the area include elephant, lion, buffalo and leopard.