Lemala Mara Tented Camp
Seasonal mobile camp · Northern Serengeti near the Mara River (site varies yearly) · Lemala Camps & Lodges
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Mid-range
Inside the park
Ownership unconfirmed
Lemala's Mara camp is a 12-tent mobile camp in the northern Serengeti from June to October, when the herds reach the Mara River. Lemala says "the exact location varies from year to year", so ask where it stands for your dates. It is the northern half of Lemala's Mara and Ndutu camp; from December to March the same company runs its Ndutu camp in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, listed separately here because it pays different fees. The rate is full board, and like every Lemala camp it expects you to bring an operator's vehicle and guide. At $330 in June and $825 in peak crossing months, it is one of the cheaper ways to sleep near the river. Choose it for the crossings on a mid-range budget; skip it if you want the camp to drive you.
Pros and cons
Pros
- From $330 in June, low for the river-crossing area
- Moves to stay near the herds each season
- Two-bedroom family tents
- Kogatende airstrip 40 minutes away
Cons
- Game drives and transfers are not included
- $825 from July to September, before TANAPA fees
- The exact site changes every year
- Open only June to October
What's here
- Family rooms
- En-suite bathrooms
Arranged from the lodge:
- Game drives
Read from Lemala Mara Tented Camp's own website in July 2026. Anything not listed we could not confirm, which is not the same as it being absent.
What the park charges on top
The rate above buys you a bed. Serengeti National Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entry$70 plus 18% VAT, so $82.60, per 24 hours from 16 May to 14 March; $70.80 from 15 March to 15 May.
- $83per person, per day
- Vehicle$40 plus VAT, so $47.20, for a foreign-registered vehicle up to 2,000 kg; a Tanzanian-registered safari vehicle pays TSh 20,000, about $8 at TANAPA's TSh 2,555 to the dollar.
- $47per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $639 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
A lodge or camp inside the park adds TANAPA's concession fee on top: $70.80 per adult per night from July to September and $59 from October to June, VAT included. Arriving by road from Arusha adds the Ngorongoro permit of $70.80 per adult each way.
The full fee schedule for Serengeti National ParkRates at Lemala Mara Tented Camp
From $330 pppn. June 2026 rate per person sharing; $560 in October 2026 and $825 from July to September 2026, on Lemala's rate page valid 6 January 2026 to 31 May 2027. Full board; game drives, airstrip transfers and TANAPA conservation and concession fees ($82.60 plus $70.80 or $59.00 per adult per night with VAT) are extra. Lemala does not say whether VAT is in its own rate.
Full board. Meals are included; drinks, activities and park fees are not.
Every figure on this page is in US dollars.
Rates checked on 6 October 2026 against each operator's own website or rate sheet, in US dollars per person per night sharing unless the entry says otherwise. Two figures are per room, not per person: Serengeti Serena's $728 and Serengeti Explorer's $750 (a January 2025 opening offer). One figure is a reseller's, not the owner's: Africa Safari Serengeti Ikoma's $154 a night on Priceline (6 Oct 2026, basis not stated). Ndutu Safari Lodge's figures come from a rate sheet that ran to 15 December 2025, the newest on its site. Unless the entry says otherwise, TANAPA fees come on top of every rate inside the park: the conservation fee of $70 plus 18% VAT ($82.60) per adult per 24 hours from 16 May to 14 March, $70.80 from 15 March to 15 May, and the hotel concession fee of $70.80 per adult per night from July to September or $59.00 from October to June, VAT included. Camps at Ndutu and Lake Masek pay the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority instead: $70.80 entry per 24 hours and $59.00 concession per adult per night. Wilderness Usawa is the one rate we found that includes park fees.
Questions about Lemala Mara Tented Camp
Where is Lemala Mara Tented Camp?
In the northern Serengeti National Park from June to October, near the Mara River. Lemala says the exact location varies from year to year, so confirm the site when you book.
How much does Lemala Mara cost in the crossing season?
$825 per person sharing from July to September 2026, $330 in June and $560 in October, full board. Game drives, transfers and TANAPA fees are extra.
Can children stay at Lemala Mara?
Lemala says children are welcome and the camp has two-bedroom family tents. We found no published age limits.