Fig Tree Lodge and Camp — Hotel in Arusha

The rooms at fig are good value for the price compared to other places I've stayed in Tanzania - large with a comfortable bed. The staff are very helpful and it's great to have a pool after getting back from safari. The food was nice so we found ourselves eating at the lodge even though there are lots of restaurants in the town.

We organised a safari directly through this lodge, renting one of their reasonably priced vehicles with a great driver/guide for a day trips to tarangire and lake manyara, then a longer overnight stay in the serengeti and ngorogoro crater. Desderia the manager was happy to arrange park permits for us and suggested some helpful improvements to the plan that I wasn't aware of, like a guesthouse in the Serengeti which cost the same as the camping fee. I would definitely recommend this approach over organising through a travel agent in Arusha. It gives you control over the itinerary so you can ensure you're at the park for opening time when animals are most active, it's more comfortable to stay at fig than camp and it's cheaper than an equivalent safari organised through an agent because you're not paying middlemen.

Desderia is quick to respond to questions...

Overpriced and the staff were indifferent. The only time they spoke to me was to kick me off the table I was sitting at because another group was coming in. This happened multiple times. I had to beg them at the counter to sell me a small beer for 5.000TZS. The room was okay for a budget hotel. It was very clean. There was a mosquito net over the bed. We even had hot water in the morning - but not in the evening. Looks like the lodge gets bulk bookings from tour agencies so customer service is not a priority. But they do take care of the rooms well enough.

EDIT: After I posted this review, the lodge manager spoke to me and demanded I take down my comments. Apparently the lodge doesn't run the restaurant. It is instead manned by third party contractors selected by tour agencies. This does not in any way change the disorganised and disjointed customer experience guests can expect as they wait hours to be allocated a table. I will give the manager an extra star for his willingness to hear out complaints and hopefully...

My friend and me stayed here as part of our safari package. Our room was big with a huge toilet. There was hot water with good water pressure, and the electrical sockets in the room worked well. However, my bed doesn’t have a headboard, which makes sitting up in bed inconvenient. We also couldn’t connect to the hotel WiFi from our room. Some furnishings like the towel rack and windowpanes were faulty but overall, the room was functional. ||There was a blackout that lasted for awhile so I went out to sit at one of the lounge chairs near the pool. To my surprise, my pants immediately got wet from some water that seeps through the mattress!||The people here are friendly and helpful when you need assistance. A special shout out to Na Mei, who is one of the cooking prodigies of our safari chef Sulle. She makes our delicious dinner when we were there and works hard to introduce the food to...