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Spotless, prime location, extraordinary service/staff, luxury in the middle of the Serengeti.
SERVICE The thing that made our stay the most pleasant was the friendly staff and extraordinary service. Amani greeted us warmly as soon as we got there. John and the rest of the service team were so kind, helpful, and attentive. John always went above and beyond. They accommodated our needs (e.g. bringing hot water to the cabin at 6am so that I can make my morning coffee). Housekeeping was excellent and they assembled the bedding and mosquito nets around the bed while guests are at dinner so that by the time we got to the cabin, our bed is prepped for sleep. Then they take the mosquito netting down and make the bed when we're out for our game drives. It's these little things that made us feel cared for, and we really appreciated it!
FACILITIES Amazed at how spotless the lodge and rooms are, despite being in the middle of the dusty Serengeti. The staff do a fantastic job of cleaning and also keeping bugs out of the cabins. The camp is truly immersed in the Serengeti so elephants (and even lions!) came through the camp during our stay. At night, you can see the Milky Way and truly feel one with nature. The bed was huge and comfortable, we slept very well. The cabin bathrooms have double sinks, flushable toilets, and a proper shower. You have your own private porch attached to your cabin, and there also plenty of places to lounge at the main lodge. No one swam in the pool while we were there, and as some reviewers note, the water did look murky. But apparently animals sometimes come to drink from the pool. Everything is solar powered.
FOOD Excellent food served buffet style. No limit on drinking water (unlike other lodges which charge extra for bottled water). We were impressed with how many dishes the cooks can produce in their kitchen considering how far they are from any towns to get food ingredients and supplies. We also appreciated how Sametu Camp gave our safari guide the same food they gave us. We learned that some lodges don't feed the guides well (the guides stay at the same camp as you do when on multi-day safaris).
WIFI Other reviewers' complaints of wifi are really silly; it seems they forget that they are in the middle of the vast Serengeti National Park. Even still, the wifi worked fine for us when we needed it (we FaceTimed and used social media).
LOCATION Prime location. We saw many lions and elephants close to the camp, and leopards were not too far either. The biggest perk of this camp is having animals come so close, they just walked through the camp! This is also why they'll drive you to/from your cabin to the main...
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We had an three night stay at Karibu Serengeti Sametu Camp that exceeded our expections! From the moment we arrived, we were warmly welcomed by the staff, whose attention to detail and genuine hospitality made us feel right at home. The camp itself strikes the perfect balance between comfort and immersion in nature. The tent/cabins are large, spotless, and nicely decorated. They have lovely bathrooms, high quality towels and sheets, and were separated by enough space that we didn't hear our neighbors. The large sliding doors extend to a deck that faces out towards the savannah and we could watch the birds and resident dikdiks. At night we could hear the lions roar! We took a dip in the pool which was refreshing and clean. ||The game drives were very good. Our guide, Patrick, is fairly new to guiding but he has a good base of knowledge of wildlife that enriched every outing, and a knack for getting in the best position for wildlife viewing and photography. Thanks to Patrick, we were fortunate to see an incredible 18 lions and 6 cheetahs in one day! The Central-Eastern Serengeti is known as big cat country and it really delivered!||Back at camp, meals were excellent, beautifully prepared, plated and served. We enjoyed our bush dinner with delicious grilled meats, a roaring fire and a song from the camp staff for our group. The sundowner included tasty appetizers and beverages. | |What made our stay at Karibu Sametu truly exceptional was the personal touch. We felt especially fortunate to have Johnson as our butler—his warmth, patience, and dedication added so much to our experience. Thanks to his thoughtful care and hard work, every detail of our safari was seamless, memorable, and truly unforgettable. ||Also, we would like to thank Andrew for sorting out some minor issues with our room assignment and helping us to plan our days. ||We highly recommend Karibu...
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Where do I begin?
The location - Amazing! Not only can you see herds of zebras, elephants and buffaloes grazing out in the open while sitting on your deck having coffee, but we actually saw a lioness right outside our tent on two nights. We woke up when we heard grunting and rustling close by and went to the french windows. We drew teh curtains back and there she was looking right at us. She stared for a few seconds and turned around and walked away. There is night patrol on the property and they flash their lights periodically to warn predators away.
The property is not fenced and basically built right in the middle of what would otherwise be a game drive area. So apparently animals wonder in all the time. Truly thrilling!
The tents - So luxurious. The bathrooms are fantastic. It is an experience in itself to take a shower with the shower area having half transparent glass walls and looking right out at the buffaloes. The housekeeping was excellent with the comfy beds made each night with mosquito nets enclosing them.
The staff - 10/10 stars. The managers - Scott and Jonas, and our server - Johnson, and everyone else was super sweet and warm and welcoming. We had a fantastic time chatting with them as we came back from our game drives each evening. The chef was Indian and we got to bond with him over our shared roots.
The best part - They gave us a surprise with a veritable feast for Diwali complete with our Indian cuisine and delicacies, and topped it off with a cake and a local dance celebration. It felt like we were celebrating Diwali at home in India. Truly touched!
Another highlight - The bush dinner! Amazing stories shared over delicious food with the ever-present anticipation of a lioness walking by.
If you are in central Serengeti, THIS is the...
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