An hour and a half east of Bwindi, a lake fills a maze of drowned valleys between terraced hills, with twenty-nine islands in it. There is no bilharzia and there are no crocodiles or hippo, which makes it one of the few lakes in the region where you can simply swim.
- Altitude
- ~1,960 m
- Islands
- 29
- Swimming
- Safe — no bilharzia, crocodiles or hippo
- From Bwindi
- 1.5–2 hrs
- From Kigali
- 2.5–3 hrs
- Best for
- Doing nothing, deliberately
Why it belongs on your itinerary
Gorilla trekking is a compressed, intense, muddy morning at the end of a lot of driving. Bunyonyi is the antidote: a boat, a book, a swim, and hills that turn violet at dusk. Almost everyone we send here for one night wishes they had booked two.
It also sits neatly between Bwindi and Kigali or Kampala, so it costs you very little in travel time.
What to do, if you must
- Dugout canoe between the islands — hire one with a paddler unless you want to learn the hard way that they spin.
- Swim. The water is cold, clear and genuinely safe.
- Walk the terraces with a local guide; the hillside agriculture here is centuries old and extraordinary.
- Visit the islands, including Punishment Island, where unmarried pregnant girls were once abandoned — a short, sobering stop that local guides tell properly.
- Birding — the name means 'place of many little birds', and it earns it.
Where to stay
Birdnest and Arcadia Cottages sit on the shore with the wide views. Several island lodges, including the long-running Byoona Amagara, are reached by canoe and are cheap, simple and lovely. Nights are cold at nearly 2,000 metres — ask for a hot water bottle, and most places will already have thought of it.
Questions
Frequently asked
Can you swim in Lake Bunyonyi?
Yes. It is one of the few lakes in the region free of bilharzia, and there are no crocodiles or hippo. The water is cold and clean.
How far is Lake Bunyonyi from Bwindi?
One and a half to two hours from the Ruhija side, a little more from Rushaga. It is the standard post-trek stop and adds almost nothing to your total travel time.
Next
Keep planning
- 6-day double gorilla trek — finishes at Bunyonyi
- Bwindi Impenetrable Forest — 90 minutes west
- Uganda gorilla safaris — fitting it into a route
- Best time to trek — when the lake is at its best