We spent 3 nights at Acacia Central Camp and what a wonderful experience. Myself, husband and two adult sons were very warmly greeted by several staff and welcomed to the comfortable lounge tent for drinks and a chat with William the manager. He was very friendly and attentive and spoke with all the guests throughout the evenings.
Our tent was very spacious with a comfortable four poster bed and mosquito netting that was made ready for us each night. If it hadn’t been rather cold we might have slept with the blinds open. The bathroom was kitted out in a dark wood with plenty of room for all our toiletries, and two bottles of water. Beware of letting the boys bring too hot water for the shower as there are no mixer taps but we laughed about it and they soon got the idea. Also the shower heads could be replaced as they were clogged up with limescale.
The food was plentiful and delicious, all served by the cheerful chef. Also our daily hot lunches that our tour company requested were very good.
Our sons enjoyed the sundowner drinks by the fire and one evening after dinner by the fire chatting to some of the staff until William said they must go back to their tent just before a Lion came strolling through.
Every night we went to sleep with the sounds of Zebra, Hyenas and Lions very close by, it was fantastic. In fact one night the Lions made a kill of a Zebra between our tents and the Guides accommodation. A male Lion was guarding the kill the next day which we we only permitted to see from our safari vehicle. William had to move the carcass away from the camp because it was a danger to staff and guests.
The Central Serengeti is very different from anywhere else within its huge open plains as far as the eye can see which is awesome. The ribbons of rivers are where you see big herds of Elephants and Hyppo. We also saw all the big 5 apart from the elusive Rhinos.
A big thank you to William and all his staff for looking after us and making our stay with you so enjoyable.
Asante Sana,
Babu said Bebe
Read less
Date of stay: July 2023
Trip type: Traveled with family
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Share
Joel wrote a review Aug 5
11 contributions2 helpful votes
+1
A Disappointing Experience at Acacia Central Camp
Our stay at Acacia Central Camp was nothing short of terrible. The manager displayed an appalling level of unfriendliness, arrogance, and insincerity. The food provided was far from satisfactory, with only pork or lamb as meat options and meager servings of vegetables and soup. There were no soda drinks available and they just give one small bottle of water to brush the teeth which was not enough.
The daily lunchboxes were a far cry from what they should have been. The absence of a small water bottle, the provision of only a plastic spoon without any napkins, and the so-called “sandwich” were a complete letdown. The sandwich, which was labeled as a vegetable sandwich, consisted of a tiny round bun filled with a few grated carrots and a single slice of cucumber. When we politely suggested the possibility of a simple cheese and ham sandwich or even just a cheese sandwich, the manager’s response was snippy and unaccommodating. He seemed to have no understanding that cheese is not a sweet dessert.
Not only were we appalled by the manager’s rudeness towards guests, but we also witnessed him treating his employees poorly. The entire dining experience left a sour taste in our mouths, as we had never encountered such unfriendly and terrible service throughout our month-long journey in Africa.
Moving on to the accommodation, the rooms were equally disappointing. The bed linens were dirty and had holes in them, giving the impression that they were never changed. We were left to set up the mosquito nets and tent windows ourselves. The “shower” lacked warm water, and the employees had to fetch water from some distant tank to fill up our bucket. The showerhead was clogged with limescale, resulting in a feeble water flow.
Overall, this was a dreadful experience at a poorly managed and subpar accommodation. The potential for improvement was evident, but the current state of affairs left much to be desired. While some guests who only experience this accommodation may mistakenly believe it to be acceptable, we can confidently say that we have stayed in far superior lodgings for the same price during our travels.
In summary, we do not recommend Acacia Central Camp and sincerely hope that the management takes steps to rectify the numerous issues that marred our stay.