RedChicky

I've read the normal tip is $10 to $18 dollars per day per guide and $8 to 12 dollars per day for cooks.

The question is, is this per guest or per car? We are going on a private safari, so my husband and I will be the only guests. Also, I'm not sure if it matters but we are doing a combination of camping and staying in lodges. Does the tipping differ? Finally, how often do you tip? Since we are using the same operator throughout our trip, I would assume we tip at the end. Is this correct or should you tip every day?

Thanks for your help

Patty

For your driver/guide and cook, you would tip at the end of your safari. If you're staying at a lodge one or two nights, then you could leave a pooled tip for the lodge staff upon checkout (usually there's a box at reception to deposit this).

I haven't gone on a camping safari with a cook so don't know what's appropriate. For a driver/guide, I would tip around $10 per person per day. However, on a camping safari (especially the semi-luxury type) it seems to me that there would be a lot more work involved for your guide, such as setting up/taking down camp, versus a lodge safari, so I'd probably increase the amount as I see fit.

Leely

RedChicky,
Gol, tipping confuses me too. We tipped our cook $15/day (we were only withhim for 3 days) and our guide $20/day plus a biggish bonus at the end when he drove us to the JRO airport. Tip over the guideline, for sure. These guys will be doing A LOT of work for you.

By the way, I scanned your itinerary below: it looks good to me, and the price seems fair. I've never heard anything bad about Roy camping, so I'm sure you'll enjoy yourselves.

Have fun!

Leely

Oh, meant to say that we did camping/lodge combo, too.

We tipped our cook when we parted ways with him. Tipped our guide at the end, and tipped as we went along in lodges (in the staff tip boxes).

Patty

Leely,
Where did you part ways with your cook? How did he get back to Arusha? I guess I just assumed that the cook would travel with you the whole time on a combined camping/lodge safari.

Are your tipping figures per day or per person?

Patty

I meant was that per day for the 3 of you or did you each tip that amount per day? Sorry if that sounded confusing.

Leely

Patty,
Per day not per person; I think we felt like we were giving our cook short shrift, so we paid him for an extra day. Seems like a tiny little bit of money considering what he was whipping up over an open fire!

It was interesting how they arranged the camping/lodge combo. We had our cook for our first 3 days/2 nights (Manyara and Tarangire). Then in the Serengeti he was meeting up with other clients who were returning east from Lake Victoria, where, I gather, they had been staying in lodges or tented camps. They had a driver/guide but no cook. They were then going to camp in the Seronera valley and head up to Lobo for more camping.

Perfect timing. I got the impression that it happens that way all the time, but of course I'm not sure.

Leely

Oh, also there were only 2 of us on that trip, so the tips were for a party of 2.

Patty

Thanks for clarifying that. That's pretty interesting how they were able to time it so that the two parties made the cook switch mid trip.

I must have gotten the number of people confused with your next trip