Sayari Camp, Northern Serengeti, Tanzania

Sayari Camp is an upscale permanent tented camp near the Mara River. As such it makes a great base from which to experience the wildebeest crossings and explore the Northern Serengeti. Part of the Asilia Group, as is Dunia in Central Serengeti, Sayari is more luxurious with larger rooms and more sophisticated grounds. It also is a larger compound with 15 guest tents to Dunia’s 8.

The grounds include – 2 dining areas, a classy open-air lounge area decorated in African chic, a bar with outdoor seating, a pool, lounge area and spa.

The spacious rooms have twin beds that can be pushed together to make a king. Bedding is plush and inviting. There is also a desk, plenty of storage and coffee and tea service. The luxurious bathroom includes a giant indoor shower and separate bathtub as well as an outdoor shower.

Service is friendly and generally efficient. They make a great effort to accommodate guests’ requests.

As with other camps in the park you are not allowed to walk alone to and from your tent after dark. With longer distances to guests’ tents they use a golf cart to ferry guests back and forth, but they will walk with you if you prefer.

If you want a safari bush experience but still want to enjoy finer accommodations Sayari Camp is a good choice.

Meals

Like at Dunia Camp the food is well-prepared, both in-house dining and bush picnics.

Breakfast

We opted for the bush picnic breakfast – eggs in chipati, baked goods including muffins and chocolate covered donuts, crispy bacon and cut fruit – papaya, watermelon and pineapple.

Lunch

Both lunches were served on a tower with similar sides. The first included chicken skewers; garlic bread; pasta salad; peas, beets and oranges; and salad fixings with lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, cheese and olives. The second tower included fish and chips with bread, Greek salad and salad fixings. For dessert, passion fruit sorbet.

Dinner

Dinner is served semi-family style with individual starters and desserts but mains served family style.

The first night’s starter was a choice of a halloumi (grilled cheese) salad or lentil vegetable soup. The main, a sort of surf and turf, was beef medallions and Nile perch with sides of couscous, cheesy cauliflower, roasted vegetables and smashed new potatoes. Everything was well-prepared, but the beef was a tad overcooked and tough by American standards. For dessert a mint chocolate tart or fruit. The tart was disappointing mostly because of the hard rather than creamy consistency.

For our second dinner starters were a choice of a roasted camembert and tomato tart or a potato and corn soup garnished with crispy bacon bits. For the main pork roast with a pork crackling crispy exterior and a moist interior and a luscious lamby leg of lamb served with red cabbage, green beans, polenta, roasted sweet potatoes and sauces for the pork and lamb. Dessert was a choice of orange cheese cake or fruit. The cheese cake was nicely done with a lovely creamy consistency.

Drive from Central to Northern Serengeti

Central to Northern Serengeti is a long bumpy ride. The shorter route leaves the park at Ikoma Gate traveling on better roads through local villagers’ land and towns and reentering at Tabora B Gate. We stopped for game on the way out of the park and after we entered again so it is difficult to say how long the drive is without stopping, maybe 5 hours or so. We left the Central Serengeti at 9:30 and arrived at Sayari Camp at 3:30p.m.

September 10-13, 2021

For links to all the posts in this series see the East Africa Safari page.

For a review of the tour company we used see Roy Safaris, Tanzania – Review.