Chogela Safari Camp
Budget tents + campsite · Tungamalenga area, ±10 km from the park · Local owner-run (camp & tours)
Website offline Budget
Outside the gate
Locally owned
Ruaha's backpacker institution: pitch your tent or rent one, cook or eat in, and hire a vehicle with driver for the park. The cheapest honest route to one of Africa's greatest parks.
Pros and cons
Pros
- True budget gateway to Ruaha, from $10 a person
- Game-drive vehicle hire available to visit the park
- Big kitchen, lounge, dining area and bar on site
- Flushing toilets and showers, clean by the operator's account
- Cultural tours to Maasai bomas or local craftsmen
Cons
- The newest independent guest review we found dates from 2023
- We found no published child policy; ask what applies when you enquire
- Meals cost extra, on top of the tent or camping fee
- No wifi or power mentioned on the camp's own page
What the park charges on top
The rate above buys you a bed. Ruaha National Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entry$30 plus 18% VAT, charged per 24 hours.
- $35.4per person, per day
- Vehicle$40 plus VAT for a foreign-registered vehicle up to 2,000 kg; most safari 4x4s sit above that and pay $150 plus VAT. A Tanzanian-registered one is about $9.
- $47.2per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $354 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
The full fee schedule for Ruaha National ParkRates at Chogela Safari Camp
From $10–20 pp/night. $20 permanent tent, $10 own tent; meals extra. Game-drive vehicle hire available.
What the rate covers is not confirmed. We do not know yet whether meals, drinks and activities are included, so read this as the bed only.
Every figure on this page is in US dollars.
Indicative rates gathered from operators and agents, July 2026. Rates change by season and year. Always confirm with the lodge. Park fees (conservation + concession, roughly $75 pp/day combined for in-park camps) are usually excluded.
Questions about Chogela Safari Camp
How much does it cost to stay at Chogela Safari Camp?
A permanent tent costs $20 a person a night, or $10 if you pitch your own tent; meals are charged extra. Game-drive vehicle hire is available for visiting the park. The camp's current booking site lists these prices, though the newest independent guest review we found dates from 2023.
Is Chogela Safari Camp good for families?
We found no published child policy on the camp's current page, so ask what applies when you enquire. Facilities are basic but clean, with flushing toilets, showers, a big kitchen and a dining area, which suits a family on a tight overlanding budget rather than one wanting resort comfort.
How far is Chogela Safari Camp from Ruaha?
About 10 kilometres, on the outskirts of Tungamalenga village on the park access road. The camp hires out a game-drive vehicle so you can visit the park without your own 4x4, which is the main reason backpackers and overlanders base themselves here.
Can you book a game drive from Chogela Safari Camp?
Yes, game-drive vehicle hire into the park is one of the camp's core offerings, alongside cultural tours to nearby Maasai bomas or local craftsmen. The camp's current page does not list an exact vehicle-hire price, so confirm the cost when you book.
Is Chogela Safari Camp still open?
Its original domain, chogelasafaricamp.com, is gone, but the same camp now runs a live booking site on a Wix address with current per-person prices, and its business listing has a working phone number. The newest independent guest review we found dates from 2023, so a live website is not quite the same as a recent guest account.