Selous River Camp
Mud-hut cottages, bandas and riverfront tents · Rufiji bank at Mloka, near Mtemere gate · The Slow Leopard
Budget
Outside the gate
Owner/family-run
A small owner-run camp on the Rufiji at Mloka just outside the gate, where the rooms are hand-built mud cottages and bandas instead of safari tents. It costs a fraction of the in-park camps, and its position outside the boundary lets it trade through the long rains. Remember that park entry and activity fees are added here, which is the usual source of confusion when comparing against all-inclusive rates.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Hand-built mud cottages instead of standard safari canvas
- Family banda has two rooms and sleeps five
- Pool on site with hippos visible from the deck
- Outside the boundary, so it can trade through the rains
- One of the cheapest riverfront beds near the gate
Cons
- Park entry, boat and walking fees are all extra
- No wifi; rooms run on solar lighting and a fan only
- We found no published child policy on the camp's own site
- Opening season is not published; ask the camp directly
What's here
- Swimming pool
Arranged from the lodge:
- Game drives
- Boat trips
- Guided walks
- Night drives
Read from Selous River 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. Nyerere 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, charged per 24 hours.
- $82.6per person, per day
- Vehicle$40 plus VAT for a foreign-registered vehicle up to 2,000 kg; above that, where most safari 4x4s sit, it is $150 plus VAT.
- $47.2per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $637.2 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
The full fee schedule for Nyerere National ParkRates at Selous River Camp
From about $80 pppn. Roughly $80 to $150 full board depending on whether you take a tent, a banda or a cottage. Park entry, boat and walking fees are charged on top, unlike at the all-inclusive camps inside the park.
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 2026 rates gathered in July 2026 from operators' own rate cards, and from the best third-party sources where an operator publishes nothing at all. No published rate means 'on request'. Always confirm with the property. Two things shift the real comparison in this park. First, park fees are extra almost everywhere: a camp inside the boundary carries the $82.60 conservation fee plus a $59.00 to $70.80 concession fee per adult per night, both including VAT, and most in-park camps bundle these into an all-inclusive rate while the camps outside the gate charge entry, boat and walking fees separately on the days you go in. Second, ignore any camp still advertising night game drives: they are not permitted inside the national park since the 2019 regazettement. Names you may still find in older guides but that we do not list: Azura Selous, which appears permanently closed, plus Selous Kulinda, Ol Moran, Jimbiza Lodge, Selous Great Water, Selous Mbuyu, Selous Mapumziko, The Retreat Selous and Amara Selous, none of which we could verify as currently trading.
Questions about Selous River Camp
Is Selous River Camp good for families?
We found no published child policy. The camp's own site does describe a family banda with two rooms sleeping five, which the park record confirms, so there is a unit built for a family even though no age guidance is given. Ask when you enquire.
Can you self-drive to Selous River Camp?
This is not clearly stated. The record notes Mtemere as the nearest airstrip followed by a short road transfer, and the camp's own site mentions guests flying in from Zanzibar, but no page confirms a self-drive option. Ask the camp directly before you plan your route.
What does the rate at Selous River Camp include?
Full board runs roughly $80 to $150 a night depending on whether you book a tent, banda or cottage, according to the park record. Park entry, boat and walking fees are all charged separately, unlike at the all-inclusive camps inside the park boundary, so budget for those on top.
Does Selous River Camp have wifi?
No. The camp's own pages describe rooms running on solar power for lighting and a fan, with no mention of wifi anywhere on the site. If staying connected matters, treat this as a camp without internet and plan accordingly.