Hello,
I am still trying to think of some things I can take to give away in adtiono to tips. space is a real issue as I am travelling alone and limited to 22lbs once there. what does anyone think? and what does anyone thing of: I Love Oakland buttons (around t6he size of a quarter) for the men and maybe kids...and what about little sample sizes of skin stuff and mini nail ploishes for the women. I am going to try to stuff myt pockets full of as mucha s I can (and still walk) so any and all ideas will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Because of the space issue, I don't worry about gifts but try to tip generously. Some camps have many staff and if you're going to more than one camp, a large number of even small items can cause problems. On a couple of occasions, I've taken things like soft sporting caps with team logos on them just for the tracker and/or guide and for the small number of staff on a mobile safari. Caps crush easily into luggage and are something you know will probably be appreciated. Before giving the staff their caps, I asked the owner & chief guide just as a matter of courtesy if it was OK with him. Where tips are concerned, some camps prefer that except for the guides, all staff tips are pooled so everybody gets an even share at the end of a season. There may well be staff who you won't see or even hear of during a safari, so you might miss them if you try to give something to every individual.

I concur with John. Due to space constraints......i just tip extra. For the common staff, they usual hv a tip box. Put the amount in an envelope with your name on the outside, so that they know where it came from.

For ur guide/tracker, the tips are seperate and you can do so directly to them.

I guess, buttons or pins or whatever......you can just throw them in your duffel bag.....can't hurt.

Hari

I agree, tip generously! Pins, buttons are o.k. but nail polish isn't part of the culture there, so why put that on them....and you know how women are when they chip a nail, then what?

13moons, cash is king. But I wanted to tell you that I love Oakland, too.

Safari njema!

On some trips I've brought nailpolish, but no longer. The reason, and though it has nothing to do with a chipped nail (Dennis you're too funny) or whether local women use this (many really appreciated this gift)... but my own recent experience.

I packed my own color for my own nail touchups while on safari. The cap was tight and packed in the zip-lock bag... safe enough, yes? NOT! When I arrived at the first hotel and unpacked cosmetic case, the smell of nailpolish almost knocked me over. Not only did the bottle open, but ooozed into/out of the zip-lock that the inside case was a beautiful "Passion Coral."

Once the polish hardened it was easy enough to peel off of everything, but the smell remained. I can only assume it was the altitude that caused the problem. Regardless... no more nailpolish for me or as gifts.