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Where to Go in 2026: My Picks
My 2026 picks: Uganda, Kenya, Australia and Zambia, plus Guyana and Northern Albania. Places that cap visitor numbers and still feel wild if you plan them well.
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A guide to luxury travel in Uganda's wildest places.
Uganda gets overlooked, which is part of its appeal. Its misty mountains shelter mountain gorillas, the Nile begins here and forces its way through narrow gorges, and its lakes and rainforests reward travelers who slow down.
If you want wildlife and wilderness without the crowds, Uganda delivers trips that feel small and personal. Below are the regions, experiences, and seasons worth knowing.
Uganda offers a combination that's hard to find elsewhere:
Uganda is known for one thing, mountain gorillas, and the gorillas deserve their reputation. But it has hidden the rest of the country, which is why its parks stay uncrowded. No single park makes Uganda special; the contrast between them does. Few African countries let you move so easily from rainforest to savannah in one itinerary.
There's no single headline experience. Instead, a good trip strings several together:
Bwindi is the center of Uganda's gorilla country, an old rainforest spread over steep green hills. Small groups trek through the jungle to spend an hour with wild mountain gorillas.
Why go:
Best season:
June–September and December–February for drier trails and more predictable conditions.
Where to stay:
Don't miss:
Queen Elizabeth is Uganda's best-known savannah park, set among volcanic crater lakes, open plains, and the Kazinga Channel. It's also home to the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha.
Why go:
Best season:
June–September, when animals gather around shrinking water sources and the vegetation is lower.
Where to stay:
Don't miss:
Kibale is called the primate capital of East Africa. Its dense, bird-filled forest offers some of the best chimpanzee trekking and habituation on the continent.
Why go:
Best season:
December–February and June–September for drier, easier forest trails.
Where to stay:
Don't miss:
Murchison Falls is where the Nile squeezes through a 7-meter-wide gap, then spreads out into a broad river full of wildlife.
Why go:
Best season:
December–February and June–September for dry, clear weather and strong game viewing.
Where to stay:
Don't miss:
In Uganda, the wildlife and the conservation system are hard to separate, and it is unusually easy to see how tourism money pays for protection on the ground.
For travelers who care about where their money goes, that is a large part of the appeal. With good planning, the gorilla trek is less about the physical challenge and more about the encounter itself.
You can visit Uganda year-round, but rainfall and trail conditions matter, especially for gorilla and chimp trekking.
Timing your trip around these seasons helps you avoid crowds and get the conditions that suit what you most want to do. My month-by-month guide to safari weather covers the rest of the region.
You get one hour with a gorilla family: juveniles playing, mothers with infants, a silverback keeping order. Few wildlife encounters anywhere compare. If budget and availability allow, a gorilla habituation experience gives you up to four hours with a group, and it's more physically demanding.
Follow chimps as they call, feed, and move through the canopy. Habituation experiences give you extended time with them.
On the Nile you drift past elephants on the banks and pods of hippos, with the roar of Murchison Falls ahead. In Queen Elizabeth, boats run through the highest density of hippos in East Africa.
Lions draped over fig branches are a rare sight, found in only a few places in Africa.
Meet the guides, porters, rangers, and community leaders shaping conservation and tourism in Uganda.
Gorilla permits and park names are the easy part. What makes a Uganda trip work is how it's put together:
I plan Uganda the way I like to travel it: small lodges, strong guides, responsible operators, and fewer stops with more time at each. That works for a first silverback encounter or a full circuit of primates, savannah, river, and lake.
Uganda is a good fit if you want:
It works especially well for conservation-minded travelers, adventurous travelers who still want comfort, and confident first-time safari travelers ready for more than the classics.
Is Uganda safe for safari travel?
Yes. With good planning, Uganda is a safe safari destination, with professional guiding and strong oversight of its parks.
Is Uganda only about gorilla trekking?
No. There are also savannah safaris, boat safaris on the Kazinga Channel and the Nile, chimpanzee tracking and very good birding.
How physically demanding is gorilla trekking?
Treks vary. Routes and gorilla families can be matched to fitness, and porters are available. My Uganda vs Rwanda guide compares the trekking in more detail.
How far ahead should I plan?
Ideally 6–12 months, particularly for gorilla permits and the peak seasons.
Tell me your dates, pace, and how much trekking you want, and I'll build the itinerary around the right season.
Every itinerary begins with a 20-minute planning call. From there, a $250 planning fee, credited in full toward your booked trip and non-refundable if you don’t book. I brief the property before you arrive — that's what the fee funds.
Plan your trip
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