Tipping on a Desert Safari: How Much, and to Whom
Short answer: AED 20 to 50 in cash to the driver if he has been good, and nothing at all if you would rather not. It is not built into the price and nobody will ask you for it.
- 5 min read
- AED 20–50 is normal
- Cash only
Visitors ask this quietly, usually on the drive home, and then guess. Guessing produces either an awkward moment or a fifty-dirham note pressed on somebody who was not expecting it.
So here is the plain version: who to tip, roughly how much, why it has to be cash, and the several situations where the right answer is nothing.
The short answer
| Who | How much | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Your driver | AED 20–50, cash | The person who makes or breaks the evening. He reads the dunes, sets how hard the drive is, and is with you for six hours |
| Private car over a full day | Towards the upper end | Longer day, one vehicle, one person looking after you throughout |
| Camp staff | Not individually | Hand it to your driver and say it is for the camp, and it reaches them |
| Everyone else | Nothing expected | The camel handler, the quad marshal, the servers — none of them will ask and none will mind |
That is the whole thing. There is no service charge on the bill, no tip line to fill in, and no percentage to calculate.
Why cash, and how much to carry
Card works at the camp for the safari itself and for anything you added in advance. It does not work for a tip, and there is no cash machine an hour into the desert.
Bring AED 100 to 200 in cash per group. That covers the tip and anything you decide on once you are out there — henna, a souvenir photograph, sheesha at the table. Most people spend less than they brought, which is the right way round.
Small notes are more useful than one large one. A fifty and a few twenties beat a two hundred you then need change for.
The full picture on paying — no deposit, nothing taken until you are at the camp — is on the pay on arrival page.
When not to tip
Tipping here is a gesture, not an obligation, and there are several perfectly normal reasons to skip it.
The drive was not what you wanted. If you asked for gentle and got thrown around, or asked to skip the dunes and did not, that is a service failure. Tell us instead — we would rather know.
You are on a tight budget. A large part of why people book the AED 35 self-drive is that every dirham counts. Nobody at this camp thinks less of a guest who does not tip.
You have no cash. It happens. Nobody will follow you to the car.
What we would ask instead, in any of those cases, is a sentence on WhatsApp about how it went. That is worth more to us than fifty dirhams.
What a tip is not for
It does not buy you anything. The dune route, the seating, the food and the timings are the same whether you tip or not. Nobody is holding back on the drive waiting to see what you do at the end.
It is not a substitute for a price. Every number is agreed before you travel and does not move at the camp. If anyone out there ever asks you for money for something that was supposed to be included, that is not a tip and you should tell us.
There is no pressure to upgrade. Add-ons are priced in advance on the activities page and nobody comes round the carpets selling between courses.
Tipping questions
How much should I tip on a desert safari in Abu Dhabi?
AED 20 to 50 in cash to your driver if he has been good, and towards the upper end for a private car over a full day. Nothing is expected and nobody will ask you for it.
Is a tip included in the desert safari price?
No. There is no service charge and no tip line on any bill. The price you agree on WhatsApp before you travel is the price you pay at the camp, and a tip is entirely separate and entirely optional.
Do I tip the camp staff separately?
No, they are not tipped individually. If you would like to leave something for the kitchen or the camp, hand it to your driver and say so, and it reaches them.
Can I tip by card?
No. Card works at the camp for the safari and for add-ons agreed in advance, but a tip needs cash, and there is no cash machine an hour out in the desert. Bring AED 100 to 200 per group.
Is it rude not to tip in Abu Dhabi?
Not on a desert safari. It is a gesture rather than an obligation here, nobody will ask, and nobody will treat you differently. If the evening was not what you wanted, we would far rather have a message about it than a tip.
Read next
How payment works, what to carry and how to spot a fake booking are all on pay on arrival. Optional extras and their prices are on desert activities. If this is your first trip, the first-timer’s guide walks the evening hour by hour, and everything else worth knowing first is on before you book.
The price we agree is the price you pay
No deposit, no service charge, no tip line, nothing added at the camp. Send us your date and how many of you there are and you get one number back, in writing, before you travel.