Review: Singita Mara River Tented Camp, Tanzania

Singita Mara River Tented Camp is like the awkward cousin at a family reunion—trying hard but not quite fitting in.  It’s the ugly ducking to the beautiful swan that is Singita Grumeti, home to Sasakwa, Sabora and Faru Faru.  As Singita’s only property outside Grumeti in Tanzania, it feels a bit like it’s wandered off and gotten a little lost.  Having already experienced Singita Lebombo and Sweni in South Africa, I felt a bit lost out here.  The contrast between those impeccable properties and this one was hard to ignore – like going from a five-star hotel to camping in your backyard and pretending it’s the same thing.

Setting

Located in the northern part of the Serengeti in Tanzania, near the Mara River, offering a front-row seat to the Great Migration, one of the most extraordinary wildlife events on the planet, and a prime location for wildlife viewing.  Thousands of wildebeest, zebras, and gazelles migrate annually through the area, crossing the Mara River, where dramatic predator-prey interactions occur.  This makes it an exceptional place to witness river crossings, often featuring crocodiles waiting in the water.

Getting there

If you enjoy being envious of others, then this is the place for you.  We stood by like sad tourists watching &Beyond guests breeze through immigration with all the assistance they could dream of while we were left to puzzle out the process ourselves.  It was almost like a safari before the safari – hunting for the elusive, signless counter at departures.

Don’t expect the toilet situation at the Lenai airstrip to elevate the experience.  No running water, uncleaned toilets and some rather “earthy” smells greeted us there.

Grumeti Air was a rare bright spot—nice planes!  But after a 1-hour 15-minute flight, followed by a 45-minute drive, you start to wonder if they’re actually taking you to the Mara River or just seeing how long you’ll last.  At least we caught a glimpse of a leopard, so the journey wasn’t a total wash.

Room

The camp has six tented suites, including one family tent.  Each suite is elevated on wooden platforms and provides views of the Mara River.  The tents are spacious, with open-plan designs featuring large beds, en-suite bathrooms with rain showers, and private outdoor seating areas.  Let’s just say “minimalist” is putting it kindly.  The room is probably the most basic I’ve encountered on safari.  Forget air conditioning—prepare to battle the elements with a humble fan and a whole lot of optimism.  No heating either, so brace yourself for a chilly night.  Oh, and the bathroom?  It’s separated from the bedroom by a zip door.  Very… rustic.  If you came here after Singita Grumeti, I think your organs may just shut down and stop operating.  And you know what?  They’d be doing you a favour.

At least there’s Wi-Fi.  And if you love nature, you’ll be thrilled by the cacophony of sounds that will ensure you don’t sleep.  Ever.

Facilities

Meals are served in the dining tent or al fresco, with views of the wilderness to distract you from looking up pictures of Singita Grumeti and pining.  The lounge and bar offer comfy seating for those needing a break from game drives, paired perfectly with a selection of premium wines and spirits to help you recover from the day’s safari drama.  The outdoor deck is where you can unwind with a view of the river, spotting hippos and crocodiles below, and thankfully, there’s a fire to keep you warm during cooler evenings.

There’s no gym or spa (unless you count a massage in your tent with zippered walls).  There is a pool, though, so you can float and reflect on how much you’re missing the usual luxuries.

Service

I’ll give it to them—there are some genuinely thoughtful moments.  The staff offered a blanket just before it got cold.  And there was a hot water bottle in bed after dinner, which felt like a hug from the universe.  Shout out to Joyce, the GM, who is an absolute gem, and to the waiter who remembered my sore foot and brought out a footrest.  Can I take him home?

Food

Breakfast here is a full meal served first thing, unlike other camps that offer just a small snack before a larger meal later in the day.  It stood out with a simple selection and a chef-prepared station for sausages, bacon, and eggs.

On the first day, lunch was disappointing, with bland spaghetti as the only option, but dinner was much improved, with the lamb and chips standing out.  Lunch, which was eaten on the road, was quite basic, consisting of a chicken wrap and couscous—tasty but not sufficient.  Dinner that evening featured a great steak, but they gave me four tiny pieces like I was at a Michelin-star restaurant in the middle of the savannah.  Basically, if it was lousy, they gave you as much as you wanted; when they dolled out the good stuff, they were rationing it like it was a prisoner of war camp.

Drives

Imagine 22 vehicles jostling for a view of the migration.  It’s like a rush-hour traffic jam, but with zebras.  Even so, the sightings were phenomenal, and the river crossing is a sight to behold.

The guide was… well, let’s just say not exactly David Attenborough.  There was little information being passed on.  Often guides are in love with their job, whereas this guy seemed like he was on vacation with us.  Plus, good luck trying to get preferences on food and drink during the drives.  You get the basics, and that’s being generous.  Snacks?  Never heard of them.

At night, two guys with shotguns walk you to your tent.  It makes you wonder what horrific accident happened before, but thankful they’re not in hazmat suits, so it can’t have been that bad.

The Good

• Service
• Setting

The Bad

• Not at the same standard as other Singita properties
• Basic facilities

The Luxurious

• Wildlife sightings

Conclusion

Unlike Singita Grumeti, where you could easily spend a week, Mara River Tented Camp is more of a “come for a few days, see a river crossing and leave” type of place.  It’s not at the same standard as their other properties.  If you get lucky and get to see a crossing on their land, you are in for a treat, but like us, if you have to go onto shared land, it is, ironically, like a zoo.  So you will see a crossing and then want to quickly escape the shits madness of it the event – that is awesome.  I am glad to have seen it and hope you get the opportunity too – just not with the surrounding vehicles and queues and queues of people.  The lodge needs work, too; it’s quite pretty to look at but not the most pleasant to spend much time in.  For the best river crossing experience, you are looking at between here and Mara Plains in Kenya.  Just if that’s your focus, look at it like a bank job, get in, get out, go enjoy yourself elsewhere.

It’s not a terrible property, it’s just not a great one when you compare it to the rest of their portfolio.  It’s an outlier, but not in a good way.