Luxury Safari Tents – Everything you should know!
Have you ever imagined falling asleep to the sounds of lions roaring and elephants trumpeting as you relax in your cozy tent – its thin, canvas wall the only barrier between you and the vast stretches of the famous and wild Serengeti plains. Or are you just planning your first African Safari and are you thinking these tents can’t possiblebe safe. Then this article is for you!
Expert Tip: Absolutely DO stay in a tented camp
My number one tip for an unforgettable Safari: Spend at least one night in a tented camp during your trip. There is nothing so uniquely African as spending the night in a luxury safari tent. It is a memory that will certainly stay with you. Unlike in a brick and mortar lodge – you get to smell, hear, and feel the wilderness: there is simply nothing quite like it!
One thing to understand and keep in mind is that there are no fences around the camps. So yes, the animals actually wander straight into camp and if you are lucky even straight up to your tent. This of course requires some basic safety measurements. After dark, you will be walked to your tent by an askari/watchman. If you need to leave your tent after dark there will be a walkie talkie or whistle provided by the tent so you can call the staff. When you plan to travel with kids – you need to be aware that kids cannot wander the campsite alone and should be watched at all times. Upon arrival, the camp team will always give you a safety briefing. Having said all this: serious incidents are extremely rare. So if you follow the basic safety instructions it is perfectly safe to stay in a tented camp/lodge.
Roughing it or Luxury?
Some people imagen a very basic tent, cold showers, and a true back to basic experience. Others envision outdoor showers, lush surroundings, and a once-in-a-lifetime cushy experience. The funny thing is: it could be either or all of the above! One thing all of these accommodations types have in common is that they offer a true once-in-a-lifetime experience.
To make things confusing there are three types of “tented” accommodation possible during your safari in Tanzania. When organizing your safari it is important to understand the lingo so you know what you are in for. Something else to keep in mind is that it is NOT all in a name. There are many distinct mid-range camps using the term luxury. Whereas the uber-luxury properties like to call themselves things like barefoot and rustic.
Types of Safari Tents
Luxury Safari Tented Camp
The best way to look at these is basically to see them as hotel rooms – but with canvas walls. You will find a full comfortable bed, a shower, and flush toilet all within canvas walls. These tented camps come in basic/budget versions and in uber luxury versions – with everything in between. The main difference will be in the quality of amenities, furnishing, and location. The more basic camps will have hot water bucket showers, perhaps limited or no WIFI, and simple yet tasty menus. The luxury versions will have spacious showers with running water, serve eggs benedict for breakfast, and beat out any hotel room for comfort.
A lot of the tented camps in the Serengeti are migration camps. This means the camps move depending on the location of the migration. For most camps this means they move twice a year. From December till March – you can find the camp in the South/Ndutu area of the Serengeti. From July till November you can find the same tents & team in the Mara/Kogatende area in North Serengeti. The luxury camps sometimes move up to 5 times – to give their guest the best possible opportunity to see the migration.
One of my favorite tented camps in the budget range is Tukaone Camp – the photographs on the website really do not do justice to the camp. On the luxury end, I love Nyumbani – on the eastern plains of the Serengeti.
Luxury Safari Tented Lodge
The difference between a luxury tented camp and a luxury tented lodge is mainly in the flooring. Whereas the tented camps are more mobile – the tented lodges are of a more permanent nature. They usually have flooring or are raised on stilts. The walls are still canvas – but this is where you will find the more plushy luxury experiences.
There are some really unique experiences to be had in this category. The outside bathtub in Mpingo Ridge is unforgettable for example. And although often more luxurious: you are still only separated by thin canvas walls from all the wildlife action. You are -like in a classic tented camp- still right in the middle of nature.
A great tented lodge in the Serengeti is Kubu Kubu .
Basic Camping
This option is great for budget-conscious travelers and adventures. Basic camping is what in Europe and America is meant by “camping”. You sleep in a small dome tent with a maximum of two people. If you book this with a tour operator the tent will be set-up for you. Most companies provide field beds. It is very common for a cook to accompany you and prepare tasty fresh meals for you.
With basic camping, there are two options of campsites in Tanzania: inside and outside the parks. The campsites inside the National Parks are managed by Tanapa. They offer shared showers – cold water only – and shared bathrooms. If you are lucky you have a private or almost private stay. But these campsites are meant to be shared and cannot be reserved privately. So if you are traveling in high-season in the popular parks like Serengeti you are almost sure that you will find other travelers. Sometimes even big groups of 20 to 30 people in overlanders. The campsites are not fenced so just like in tented camps you will get wildlife right up to your tent.
Tanzania also offers a limited but often quite nice range of campsites outside the National Parks. My favorite being Migombani Camp. With a pool, hot showers, and views that are better than those from the luxury properties down the road: this place is a steal.
Pricing
Safari Tented Camps in the Serengeti start at around $100 to $120 per person full board and go up all the way to $1200 per person per night. A nice midrange camp will be between $150 and $200 per person per night.
Tented Lodges in the Serengeti range from around $300 to $1500 per person full board.
In general accommodation in Africa does not offer the value of money you will find in for example Asia. A big part of this is the park fees. Most of the tented camps you will find inside a National Park. This means that besides paying the actual accommodation you will also need to pay concession fees. This is a fee that is on top of the entrance fee. For the Serengeti, the current price is $59 per person per night.
Pricing Example
So to get the cost of a day + night on safari in a National Park you should count as follows:
- Accommodation fee
- 24 hour Park entrance fee
- Concession fee
If you would be looking at a budget Tented camp at $150 pppn the sum would look like this:
- $120 pp accommodation fee
- $71 entrance fee Serengeti
- $59 concession fee
Total: $280 per person per night.
This does not include a guide and car – or your transit fees in Ngorongoro, necessary to reach the Serengeti.
This is where & how you can save quite a bit when opting for public camping. The fee for camping is $30 per person per night and you are exempt from concession fees. Most people will book this through a tour company. The tour company will charge for the camping gear and meals/chef. The exact amount varies per company but you should be looking at around The sum then looks like this:
- $60 Meals/Gear
- $71 entrance fee Serengeti
- $30 camping fee Serengeti
Total: $161 per person per night.
A tent for everyone!
So in short: there is a tented camp out there for everyone! With a wide range of different options, there is a fit for everyone’s taste and budget.
Want to see more accommodation options in Tanzania? Have a look at what we have written before.