Reviews of Olakira Camp
Wildlife sightings and reviews
73 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Olakira Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Comfortable and friendly camp"
"Olakira Camp review"
Accommodation was wonderful - plenty of water for the basics (sink and toilet) and bucket showers inside the tent were more than adequate. An intimate setting (only 10 guest tents) in the middle of great game viewing (including regular lions roaring, hyenas calling, elephants, giraffe, impala and zebras feeding all within sight and hearing of the tent and event sometimes right in the camp).
Food was plentiful and consistently delicious - excellent variety, fresh, tasty and great service. Common dining table for all guests meant that every evening was a chance to talk to fellow travellers and share the day's experiences. You'd be hard pressed to find higher quality meals in any restaurant anywhere in the world, and the fact that it was all prepared in a temporary camp in the middle of the bush was truly amazing.
Hot coffee, tea and biscuits delivered to the tent at wake-up call, hot water bottles in the bed at bed-time, highly experienced and skilled guides, lots of game (we saw many lions, cheetah, leopard, buffalo, zebra, giraffe, elephant, crocodile, hippo, and even rhino, plus tons of others too numerous to list). Saw a couple of wildebeest river crossings (one right down the road from the camp!).
An amazing experience, great friendly genuine staff, and something that we'll remember for the rest of our lives. Four nights felt very comfortable, we saw a little bit of everything in terms of game. Any less though and you'd probably miss out on something." See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania
"Olakira Camp review"
Baracka our guide was excellent and I very much enjoyed his excellent and illuminating talks from Termites to family structures of different animal groups and we were lucky enough to see two amazing Wildebeest crossings as well as Black Rhino, Hippos, Big fat crocs etc etc etc Very different country again wonderful open plains and ancient Landscapes. Some amazing weather with Thunderstorms and lightening.
Great company again around the table." See all these reviews: 13n in Tanzania
"What an experience! Absolutely unforgettable"
The location was excellent, and our view of the Mara River from our tent was memorable. The tents exceeded our expectations, the staff was attentive and gracious and the food was very good. Pascal was an excellent host and helped make our experience at Olakira Camp truly memorable. We especially liked the change in the way we took our safaris. One in the morning, return to camp for lunch and rest, and then one in the afternoon made a pleasurable day for us.
The Serengeti is truly the park to visit. We could have skipped the other parks and spent our time in the Serengeti. After seeing the Serengeti, I wonder why we even visited the other parks." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania
"Olakira Camp review"
Would recommend this camp to anyone wishing to visit northern Tanzania." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania
"A fabulous location and excellent guiding"
We did find that taking breakfast and lunch boxes with us and going out all day was the best way to do it - it meant that you didn't have to go back to camp for lunch and you could see more. We had flown to the camp specifically because we wanted to use the camp vehicles and guides and were really glad we did. It meant that we were in an open-sided vehicle (a Toyota Landcruiser which had been specially adapted) which had a shade over the top. There was space for 6 people so everyone got a 'window' seat, but we only shared with one other couple on one of the days - apart from that we were on our own with the guide. This was the same as our experience at Oliver's.
One thing to note - we would have liked to do a walk here but you can only do it if you arrange it in advance as they have to get a ranger over from the sister camp (and I think you have to pay extra for that). Not sure if I had just misunderstood about this as I thought we could arrange it once we were there.
The camp was very comfortable - the tents were not quite as plush as those at Oliver's but still very good, and we did appreciate the en-suite bathroom. The bucket shower worked well - you just told them when you wanted a shower and the tent attendants would bring the water for you and tell you it was ready. Food was good - fairly standard but amazing really when you consider how far you are from anywhere. One night there were only 4 of us staying and so they set up individual tables for us near the campfire. The other two nights there were more people so we all ate sitting round a big table in the dining tent." See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar
"Olakira Camp review"
The food here was exceptionally good-compliments to the chef.
Pascal the manager and Future, the tent manager, were well organized and most attentive to our every need." See all these reviews: 13n in Tanzania
"All the big five and much more"
We did see literally tens of thousands of wildebeest, including a small group crossing the Mara. But arguably as big a selling point for Olakira is that, expertly guided by Jeremiah, we also saw all the "big five" in the four days we were there - a rare treat in our experience of safari. Add to this cheetah, side-stripped jackal, hyaena and around 20 other mammal species and one can only conclude that this is a top safari spot by any standards.
The camp itself is comfortable and well run - indeed we were impressed generally by our dealings with Asilia (the parent company of Olakira and Oliver's where we had stayed immediately prior) and its staff." See all these reviews: 15n in Tanzania
"Outback camping in comfort"
We flew from the Serenera airstrip to Kogatende and were met by our guide Chagamba, who served us coffee and tea before going to deal with the never ending National Park paperwork (new rules seem to have made this process even slower and more complicated for entry into the parks). We game watched on our way to the camp and were lucky enough on that first drive to see wildebeest crossing the river.
Future game drives with Chagamba (treated here as "Activities from this camp") were wonderful. He was a man of few words, but certainly knew where the game was to be found. We had very close sightings of lion, leopard and cheetah, but the rhino, though she had been seen several days previously, was elusive.
The camp was as comfortable as Dunia, with the added sophistication of washbasin water coming out of taps instead of a jug. The shower water arrived promptly as before at Dunia." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania
"Great people , great camp."
The camp was ideal to see the vast herds of wilderbeest and zebra stretching across the horizon during the migration . Olakira is situated close to quite a number of other camps and consequently at predator sightings there were always a large number of vehicles . The bush telegraph cackled into operation and although there were good sightings of lion , leopard and cheetah, we were never the only vehicle at the sighting. One big plus is that in the conservation area you are allowed off road and consequently this enhanced the sightings . Just up the road in the Serengeti national park, there is a strict on road rule" See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania
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