VACATION DETAILS

Even in the best of times, Kigali, Rwanda's capital city, didn't have much for visitors to do, other than visiting its food market in the town center, enjoying the views (the city is built on a series of steep hills) or taking a walk.

These days, the market again bustles with activity. However, prices of imported goods are very high in this landlocked capital, where almost everything, apart from local produce, must be flown in or shipped from the distant coast. Visitors can buy local arts and crafts in Caplaki, a tourist market.

The city's most compelling and disturbing landmark is the Gisozi Genocide Museum situated on a site where at least 250,000 residents of Kigali were killed during the 1994 genocide. Another site is the Natural History Museum, housed in the former residence of the German explorer and zoologist Dr. Richard Kandt.

Kigali was established in 1907 as a small colonial outpost.

The star attractions of Uganda's Kibale National Park are the 13 species of primates, including some 1,500 chimpanzees, the most recorded in any African forest. Kibale contains varied tropical forest with patches of grassland and swamp, containing over 375 species of birds and 351 tree species. Kibale National Park adjoins Queen Elizabeth National Park and is one of the most wildlife-filled and rewarding destinations to visit.

This pleasant town in western Uganda lies near the Rwenzori Mountains. It has a colorful market, and there are some scenic crater lakes in the surrounding hills. Drives through the Rwenzori foothills can be made to the nearby Semliki National Park and Wildlife Reserve, whose attractions include Pygmy tribes, the Sempaya Hot Springs, boat trips on Lake Albert and a rich variety of Congolese bird species found nowhere else in East Africa. In the other direction, Kibale Forest National Park is part of the great equatorial rain forest that once spread across the whole of Africa before deforestation took its toll. Today, it is still home to a population of around 500 chimpanzees that can be tracked from the Tourist Centre in the middle of the park. Some of the chimps have been habituated to humans, but unlike the gorillas, there is no guarantee of seeing them—when you do, they are likely to hightail it off across the canopy of trees. 160 mi/260 km west of Kampala.

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a national park located in southwestern Uganda, at the junction of the plain and mountain forests. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is a biodiversity hotspot that is believed to hold the greatest number of tree species for its altitude in East Africa as well as almost half of the world’s mountain gorilla population. It is also home to many types of butterflies and birds, as well as endangered species.

Explore the dramatic backdrop of Queen Elizabeth National Park's famous volcanic cones and deep craters, tropical forests and grassy plains. The park is known for one of the highest biodiversity ratings in the world, and visitors can spot tree-climbing lions, elephants, buffalo and antelopes on safari game drives.

Set just a few miles/kilometers north of Lake Victoria in the heart of Buganda, Kampala is the capital of Uganda and the country's largest city.

It's a hilly, congested town, and the scars of war that dominated in the early 1990s have long since been repaired or replaced by bright malls and high-rises. Traffic can come to a honking standstill in the city center with bikes balancing bunk beds, boda bodas loaded with 400-lb Nile perch and pedestrians all jockeying for position.

Also, take an excursion to Lake Victoria and visit Namugongo Martyrs' Shrine and the massive, thatch-domed Kasubi Tombs, burial place of several kabakas of Buganda. Although their works are not intended for tourists (and may not be for sale), students at the Makerere University's School of Industrial and Fine Arts create fascinating pieces of art, many of which reflect the challenging conditions of Ugandan life.

In the middle of city at the bottom of Nakasero Hill, look for the market with its colorful display of fresh produce and the matatu (minibus) park stuffed to the gills with vehicles.