Oliver’s Camp
CEDARBERG RATING
Premier
Overview
Oliver's Camp is an intimate camp located in the south-east part of Tarangire National Park in Tanzania, far away from most other camps in the northern area. The nearby Silale marsh attracts plenty of wildlife during the dry season with large herds of wildebeest, zebra and buffalo.
The hallmark of Oliver's Camp is its authentic friendly bush atmosphere and experience. (This ethos is shared with its sister camps, Dunia, Olakira and Sayari Mara camps in the Serengeti.) The open sided mess tent offers solid 'campaign-style' furniture, comfortable leather armchairs and a library with books on nature & wildlife.
Tented accommodation
The ten tents at Oliver's Camp are comfortably furnished with solar-powered lighting. (You can charge camera batteries at the office). The en suite (open plan) bathroom has flush toilets, and outside are fully plumbed bucket showers (ie they just resemble bucket showers but with plenty of hot water on tap) looking out over the floodplains. Two sun loungers on your veranda area offer a perfect place to read, sleep or check out the bush for wildlife...
After your safari activities by vehicle or on foot, you can relax on your private veranda, in the lounge/library tent, dining tent or around the stone fire pit chatting over the day's activities. Dinners are a festive affair served in the dining tent or under the Tarangire night sky.
Activities at Oliver's Camp
Game drives, picnics, star gazing, walking safaris and fly camping are all on the menu at Oliver's Camp, though age restrictions apply to walking and fly-camping. Walking safaris are a speciality at Oliver's Camp, with guides who can explain the complexity and fragility of this unique eco-system. No other camp in the Tarangire is currently allowed to offer walking safaris.
Walking safaris at Oliver's Camp are guided by experienced walking guides and an armed ranger accompanies the group. You learn about nature, wildlife behaviour and animal tracks. The goal is not to get as close as possible to the wildlife, but rather to observe their undisturbed behaviour. Walking is normally undertaken in the cool of the morning however longer walks are available upon request.
Oliver's Camp also offers the adventure of fly-camping. Fly-camping offers you a superb opportunity to get close to nature, sleeping under the stars with the noises of the bush all around. Fly-camping tents are made of thick mosquito mesh so that the magic of the night sky is undiminished. (A fly sheet is available for inclement weather). This is the perfect complement to a stay at Oliver's camp. Hot showers, comfortable beds, great food and cold drinks - what more could you ask for? There's a shared short-drop toilet and safari shower with hot water.
At A Glance
Off the beaten track
Rural location
Walking safaris
Star gazing
In Pictures
Oliver’s Camp on the map
Rooms
Guest Tent - 2 pax
There are ten luxury tents at Oliver's Camp in total. The tents have the option of being twins or doubles. There are two triple tents available on request. The tents all feature king-sized beds, en-suite bathrooms with a lovely outdoor shower, with views of the surrounding area. Fully plumbed running water and flush loos. Hot water is always available and provided by solar heaters. The tents at Oliver's have thatched roofs and private wooden decks with day beds.
Family Tent - 4 pax
Oliver's Camp features one family tent specifically designed to accommodate two adults and two children. Larger than the usual tents, the emphasis here is on creating enough space to accommodate a family without it feeling cramped. These tents have king-sized, double or single beds available for individual guest needs. There is a bathroom with flushable toilets and an outdoor shower looking onto the surrounding views.
Review of Olivers Camp in Tarangire
I was slightly disappointed in Olivers Camp. I expected the lodge to be more luxurious but it is quite rustic and yet lacked the charm and intimacy of Little Olivers. The camp costs more but it is not much smarter in my opinion. The rooms are slightly larger but roughly the same in standard. The only extra is sun loungers on your private deck.
There are views from the rooms and they all have an en suite bathroom with flush loos, indoor and outdoor showers. Large gauze windows allow for the passage of cooling breezes, and there are electrical sockets to charge your camera batteries and other gadgets.
This uncrowded sector of the park has habitats ranging from open grassland to forests of ancient baobabs, and is home to large herds of buffalo and elephant as well as a substantial population of big cats.
