Aminata Rutta

  Mpingo Lodge in Selous..this was the true and authentic Tanzanian experience we came here for.
We could not have been happier with the warm welcome provided to us by Aminata,... read more Rose and their staff.

They all go above and beyond to make our stay comfortable.

The accommodations were great, and the food is excellent. Rose as the cook bring soul to the recipe (let’s see if I will be able to do the same with potato soup recipe I got from her;).

Aminata, I do admire her for a certain relationship with the natural world. The brain feels before it thinks, so maitaining the feeling of wonder in nature is important. Aminata took us for a journey where we sensed and appreciated nature’s everyday beauty.

Best of all Mpingo Lodge has a great view over the Rufiji River and is located not far from the main gate into Nyerere National Park. This makes the perfect place for before and after a safari in Selous!

Rose, Aminata..you made our stay unforgettable!
Asante sana More

  A serene eco- experience. During the boat trip with expert guide Aminata identified 26 bird species from a giant fish eagle to the smallest swallow tailed bee-eater, tens of crocodiles... read more and hundred hippo's. Peace, excellent food and exceptional hospitality of Rose and Aminata

  This lodge was the nicest surprise on our trip. From the first moment we arrived and had the view of the river and Rose and Aminata welcomed us, we felt... read more comfortable and at home. Rose and Aminata are probably the warmest (biggest power) women we met on our trip. They personally took care of us and made our stay unforgettable. We all took them into our hearts in the three too short days we were there. The whole lodge is beautiful and located directly on the river. Although it is about 30 minutes outside the park, but you drive through a village and get so culturally and otherwise something of the environment. The tents, as well as the cabins, are beautifully made and have a comfortable bed. They also have the nicest bathrooms we have had on our safari in the lodges. There is even hot water. Security in the camp is taken care of at all times (at night by a security guard). Rose provided us with great food at all times of the day and we always looked forward to eating. Aminata was our perfect tour guide and taught us a lot and brought us very close to the animals. A river safari is also possible directly from the lodge. In addition, both surprised us (by the fact that we booked directly through their website) with special attentions. We did not want to leave at all. So we... This lodge was the nicest surprise on our trip. From the first moment we arrived and had the view of the river and Rose and Aminata welcomed us, we felt comfortable and at home. Rose and Aminata are probably the warmest (biggest power) women we met on our trip. They personally took care of us and made our stay unforgettable. We all took them into our hearts in the three too short days we were there.
The whole lodge is beautiful and located directly on the river. Although it is about 30 minutes outside the park, but you drive through a village and get so culturally and otherwise something of the environment. The tents, as well as the cabins, are beautifully made and have a comfortable bed. They also have the nicest bathrooms we have had on our safari in the lodges. There is even hot water.
Security in the camp is taken care of at all times (at night by a security guard).
Rose provided us with great food at all times of the day and we always looked forward to eating. Aminata was our perfect tour guide and taught us a lot and brought us very close to the animals. A river safari is also possible directly from the lodge. In addition, both surprised us (by the fact that we booked directly through their website) with special attentions. We did not want to leave at all.
So we can highly recommend the lodge to everyone. I am very proud of the two women and very happy for them that they have built such a great lodge. Keep it up ladies!!!
Big hugs
Viviane, Melanie, Mike and Jonas More

  I can highly recommend this place Rose og Aminata is wonderful host in so many ways. It is women with good heart. Heart for everything around them We... read more will never forget this experience. We have a great boat-safari at Rufiji River We also visiting the local village The food was wonderful. The view to the river was magnificent. The dinner at the river was so wonderful and special ‍️We love the room/camp. +++ Everything was perfect

Thanks you so much Rose and Aminata for giving us this wonderful time. I’m hopefully coming back to you
Lots of love from Gitte

  We were received by friendly Rose who had prepared a warn lunch with Red Snapper fish. Excellent prepared and with no doubt the best meal we had during our stay... read more in Tanzania and Zanzibar. The lodge has a great view over the river Rufiji and is not far from the main gate into Selous National park. The fact that this place is build up be five women is very impressing. The best of all is the staff. They do whatever they can to make you comfortable. If you are planning a safai in Tanzania, this is the place to stay. More

  4 friends, on our first safari trip in Africa - and it won't be the last! The stay at Mpingo was a very positive experience, thanks to the wonderful hosts... read more with Aminata and Rose in the lead. Dinner and lunch with plentiful portions of tasty home-cooked food and South African wine made the meals a good time.

  My family and I did a safari in the south of Tanzania and had our first stop at the lodge from Rose and Emmi. They are both incredible hosts and... read more made us feel like home. The lodge is situated on the Rufiji River with an amazing view and you can even spot some hippos. They arranged for us a boat tour on the Rufiji River and a local walking tour which was very interesting and fun. I also have to mention that the food was amazing at the lodge!! Rose is an incredible cook :) The tents we slept in was very comfortable and a great experience.
I wish we could have stayed longer at your beautiful Lodge.
Hope to come back some day :)

best wishes from Melanie, Jasmin, Christine and Franz

  We - a family of six (2 adults, 4 children aged 7 to 16 yrs) - spent two nights in Mpingo Lodge while being on a safari tour through Southern... read more Tanzania. Our tour organizer Chabo Africa brought their own tents which was absolutely fine for us, but we also were invited by Rose and her team to have a look at the newly built lodges: They are really nice and well equipped - and offer a superb view over Rufiji River. This view simply is amazing!
The hall and the bar werde great, Rose was always at hand to offer drinks etc. Wash rooms and facilites were also of perfect standard for us.
Directly afer arriving at the lodge we went for a 2 hrs boating safari with Amy (Aminata) and had a first look at the water animals - just a perfect start. The next day was spent in Selous Game Reserve, which is just a some handsome 20 mins drive away.
On the second morning, Amy took us on a short walking safari and astonished us with her knowledge of plants and animal tracks and droppings. We even ended up cooking on a little open fire to have a typical African meal before returning to the lodge via the Rufiji River banks.
We can only recommend Mpingo Lodge to all who are looking for a perfect starting point to explore Selous and Rufiji River!

  Congratulations to Rose, Aminata (Amy), and all the staff, who made us feel right at home; pure kindness, very professional and well organized. The tents were clean, spacious and had... read more a private bathroom. From the tent and the open dining room, you have magnificent views of the Rufiji River and the sounds of hippos and birds. Food was also excellent. Amy took us on a boat ride before sunset and had our first impressive contact with hippos and crocodiles a few meters away from the boat. The next day, we walked early in the morning with Amy on the riverbank. Flora, fauna, people’s way of life and religious rites were at the menu of Amy’s captivating stories. Amy is one of the few women graduating as a Safari guide in a country where women’s condition is not comparable to that of European standards. She and her brother took us on game driving at the Selous Game Reserve. They made every effort to make the most of our first Safari experience in Tanzania, including an amazing encounter with mating lions, but also the sighting of many giraffes, birds, zebras, antelopes buffaloes, etc. We booked the lodge as part of a 2-week safari package with a specialized Safari agency, but Mpingo also runs safaris at rather competitive prices. The last night, we shared with all the staff a great moment of traditional Tanzanian songs and dances. Good vibrations! Our only regret is... Congratulations to Rose, Aminata (Amy), and all the staff, who made us feel right at home; pure kindness, very professional and well organized. The tents were clean, spacious and had a private bathroom. From the tent and the open dining room, you have magnificent views of the Rufiji River and the sounds of hippos and birds. Food was also excellent.
Amy took us on a boat ride before sunset and had our first impressive contact with hippos and crocodiles a few meters away from the boat. The next day, we walked early in the morning with Amy on the riverbank. Flora, fauna, people’s way of life and religious rites were at the menu of Amy’s captivating stories. Amy is one of the few women graduating as a Safari guide in a country where women’s condition is not comparable to that of European standards. She and her brother took us on game driving at the Selous Game Reserve. They made every effort to make the most of our first Safari experience in Tanzania, including an amazing encounter with mating lions, but also the sighting of many giraffes, birds, zebras, antelopes buffaloes, etc.
We booked the lodge as part of a 2-week safari package with a specialized Safari agency, but Mpingo also runs safaris at rather competitive prices.
The last night, we shared with all the staff a great moment of traditional Tanzanian songs and dances. Good vibrations!
Our only regret is not having booked longer. Without a doubt, Mpingo is the best lodge we had on our two-week safari in southern Tanzania.
More

  Congratulations to Rose, Aminata (Amy), and all the staff, who made us feel right at home; pure kindness, very professional and well organized. The tents were clean, spacious and had... read more a private bathroom. From the tent and the open dining room, you have magnificent views of the Rufiji River and the sounds of hippos and birds. Food was also excellent.
Amy took us on a boat ride before sunset and had our first impressive contact with hippos and crocodiles a few meters away from the boat. The next day, we walked early in the morning with Amy on the riverbank. Flora, fauna, people’s way of life and religious rites were at the menu of Amy’s captivating stories. Amy is one of the few women graduating as a Safari guide in a country where women’s condition is not comparable to that of European standards. She and her brother took us on game driving at the Selous Game Reserve. They made every effort to make the most of our first Safari experience in Tanzania, including an amazing encounter with mating lions, but also the sighting of many giraffes, birds, zebras, antelopes buffaloes, etc.
We booked the lodge as part of a 2-week safari package with a specialized Safari agency, but Mpingo also runs safaris at rather competitive prices.
The last night, we shared with all the staff a great moment of traditional Tanzanian songs and dances. Good vibrations!
Our only regret is not having booked longer. Without a doubt, Mpingo is the best lodge we had on our two-week safari in southern Tanzania.

  Beautiful surroundings, beautiful location, wonderful people & service and the best food we've had in Tanzania (we're now here for a fortnight). That's it in short. We highly recommend Mpingo... read more Lodge in Selous and suggest that, if you consider a Selous safari trip to contact them (Rose is the name of the manager) first for a package -- they offer more tours than the average tour operator, and it could be cheaper too.

  It has been a great experience! The place is marvellous, the activities are really well organized and the service is excellent. I stayed there for 5 days with my... read more family and the peace we found there is incredible .

  My family and I spent 2 amazing nights at the Mpingo lodge where we were hosted by a professional team of Rose, Kaku and Aminata. They ensured that we enjoyed... read more the wonderful boat ride of the Rufiji river and witnessed a spectacular sunset on the river banks. The tented camp experience, which was new to us was very good, comfortable and relaxing. The food just delicious, thanks to Rose's skilful hands. We enjoyed Aminata's tour of the game park, where she expressed knowledge about Selous game reserve and lots of intimate knowledge on wild animals, flora and fauna.

We can only highly recommend Mpingo Lodge for anyone wanting to experience the Selous game reserve in a friendly and family atmosphere.

  I had a wonderful experience at Mpingo lodge in Selous. The environment was breathtaking and the staff were amazing. I felt at home during my stay without forgetting the food was to die... read more for..I recommend you spend more than two nights to enjoy the activities offered by Mpingo Lodge.. Keep it up!

  Great welcome to a wonderful place. Animata and Rose have created a unique place - location by the river, cozy tented camp and great food and service. The tents have... read more all facilities and fully equipped bathroom. We were 6 adults and stayed 2 nights during our safari in Selous. We were looking for a tented camp and this made our dream come true. Read other reviews here - I promise it is all true. Good luck to both of you and your staff - you are doing a great job!

  Amazing place - This is a really friendly Lodge, just outside of the selous park, but next to the river. The food is super delicious and the tent lodges really beautiful decorated. I... read more definitely come back. Of course you need to love the sound of the hippos during the night.

  Super cozy bungalows - We visited Selous game reserve in dec 2017 and stayed at the Mpingo Lodge for 3 days. The hotel was booked through Kanut's Selous safari tour guied. We landed in... read more Dar Es Salam at 5 AM on Christmas Day, no suitcases because of course they got lost during our flight from Sweden via Frankfurt and Istanbul (why we changed flights in Istanbul and not Addis Abeba is a horror story in it of itself). We were met by our head guide Kanut, a mild mannered and pleasant man. Poor guy took us on the circa four hour drive from Dar to Selous in a safari jeep. It was a hell of a bumpy but beautiful ride, on "rough roades" as they say. The staff at the lodge were sweet and welcoming. We had most contact with a young lady namned Aminati (apologies for any misspellings) who was a tour guide herself. The dining room and the front desk were in the main building. At the time we were the only guests so we felt pampered. The hotel consisted of 3-4 bungalows on one side of the main building. A couple of them were under construction on the other side. Each bungalows was a huge tent, there was a porch, outside lightning. Inside there was one double bed and an extra single bed, a cupboard, a mirror. The bathroom was at the back end of the tent, separated from the bedroom by a "tent door" with ziper (worked perfectly). The bathroom consisted of a toilet, a sink and a shower. The water pressure was a little weak and sometimes the toilet wouldn't flush but it was nothing that Aminati didn't fix in a jiffy! New soaps and towels every day. The beds were made and the room cleaned every day as well. It was an humble abode, not luxurious but ten times better for it. We were basically in the middle of the jungle, all kinds of birds and monkeys making noices around us day and night. Our surroundings were viberating with life. The view over the Rufiji river (which was in ebb at the time) was wonderful. Come evening we could see fishermen using lights to catch whatever fish that was in the water.

And the food and fruit... My Lord. Have never eaten mango so juicy. The food from the kitchen was excellent. My favorites were the potato soup and mac n' cheese to die for. Felt home made and done with love. We were totally spoiled the whole time we stayed at the lodge.

The safari itself was split into three parts over the course of three days. First day we went on a boat safari along the Rufiji. The angry hippos stole the show. Second day was the main part of the safari, jeep ride inside Selous game reserve. Our guide was provided to us through Kanut and Co. His Anglo-Saxon name was Clarence (sorry to say I have forgotten his Tanzanian name). A sweet and humble man, excellent guide. Third day we went on an walking safari through the nearby forrest and on the river bank with Aminati.

All in all, best trip ever, even without our stupid luggage (which we btw got back on our third day, when we went back to Dar).

  Pure kindness - We spent a night at Mpingo while doing a safari and it was the perfect place to relax and recharge our bateries. The accomodation was very confortable and the kindness... read more of the manager Rose did the rest of the trick. She served us great food and was very attentive to all our needs. Oh, and the safari at the selous reserve was an unforgetable experience.

  A little piece of paradise  - At the end of the road to mpingolodge waites a big surprise when you arrive at the camping. A beautiful view over rufiji river and a campsite what feels a... read more bit like paradise after camping in the wild in selous park. Glamping, glamorous camping when you use the safaritents but also with your own tent it is the most welcome place. Very good sanitary! For us a warm shower after days without.Two women started this campsite Roos and Aminita, 'women power '. They are very friendly hosts who want their guests having the best time. We can recommend this place absolutely!!

  Pure kindness - We spent a night at Mpingo while doing a safari and it was the perfect place to relax and recharge our bateries. The accomodation was very confortable and the kindness... read more of the manager Rose did the rest of the trick. She served us great food and was very attentive to all our needs. Oh, and the safari at the selous reserve was an unforgetable experience.