Queen Elizabeth National Park

Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda's most popular safari destination — and for good reason. This 1,978-square-kilometre park in western Uganda packs an astonishing diversity of habitats into a single reserve: open savannah, dense forest, crater lakes, wetlands, and the Kazinga Channel — a 36-kilometre natural waterway connecting Lakes Edward and George that supports one of the highest concentrations of hippos in Africa.

The park's most famous attraction is the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha, in the southern sector. These lions — one of only two populations known to regularly climb trees — drape themselves across the horizontal branches of massive fig trees, sleeping away the heat of the day ten metres above the ground. The behaviour is thought to be a response to tsetse flies or simply a cool vantage point.

The Kazinga Channel boat cruise is one of Uganda's unmissable experiences. Gliding along the waterway as elephants drink on the banks, hippos surface alongside the boat, and fish eagles wheel overhead is safari from a perspective no game drive can match.