Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

You leave Kampala or Entebbe early in the morning with your driver-guide and head south-west. The outskirts of the capital give way to the farmland of the central plateau, then to the terraced hillsides of Kigezi, where the road narrows and the air cools. Your guide explains the communities, crops and geography on the way.

You stop at the Equator crossing at Kayabwe for the classic photograph, and have lunch at a comfortable stop on the way. You reach your forest lodge near Bwindi in the late afternoon, with time to check in and walk the grounds. In the evening your guide briefs you on what to expect: how hard the trek is, the rules for the encounter and how to behave around the gorillas. An early night is a good idea.

• Early drive south-west with a stop at the Equator
• Lunch on the way
• Evening trek briefing at the lodge

Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi

After an early breakfast you transfer to Bwindi park headquarters, where your trekking group registers and Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers give a briefing. They cover the rules: how far to stay from the gorillas, photography guidelines and how to behave when you find them. Trackers who have been out since dawn radio in the family's approximate position.

The trek goes through dense forest, over roots and ridges, under a canopy that filters the light into green columns. Finding the family can take from under an hour to five hours, depending on where they have moved, and the rangers carry extra food and water for longer treks. You spend one regulated hour with the family before walking back to the park boundary.

After lunch and a rest at the lodge, you can join an optional visit to a nearby Batwa village. The Batwa are the forest's original inhabitants, hunter-gatherers whose connection to Bwindi goes back thousands of years. They were moved out when the park was created, and today's cultural programmes of storytelling, hunting demonstrations and music help sustain their identity and income.

• Ranger briefing at park headquarters
• Forest trek and one hour with the gorillas
• Optional Batwa village visit

Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi and Community Walk

After breakfast you drive two to three hours through highland scenery to Lake Bunyonyi. The lake has 29 islands and very still water, and sits at about 1,960 metres, so it is cooler and clearer than the forest you left. You check in at the lakeside eco-lodge, and the afternoon is on the water.

Local boatmen paddle you in traditional wooden dugouts to island communities that can only be reached by water. The pace is slow. A visit to a women's weaving group or youth cooperative, supported by responsible-tourism income, is a real exchange with working organisations, not a performance. The evening ends with a bonfire, storytelling and conversation with local hosts.

• Drive to Lake Bunyonyi and lodge check-in
• Canoe trip to island communities
• Weaving group or cooperative visit, then evening bonfire

Morning at Leisure and Return to Kampala

The last morning has no fixed programme. The lake at first light, before the mist lifts and the fishing boats come in, is a good time for photographs. You have breakfast at leisure before check-out, and can choose from three options.

• Swim: The lake is said to be free of bilharzia, so open-water swimming is safe.
• Canoe: A last paddle on the still morning water, past hillside terraces and island reed beds.
• Guided nature walk: Lakeshore and hill paths with good birdlife and wider views of the lake.

After breakfast and check-out you drive back to Kampala or Entebbe, about eight hours, with lunch on the way. The trip ends when you arrive, as arranged at booking.