The platform was co-founded by Sarah Morris, general manager of luxury travel company Ker & Downey Africa, and technology entrepreneur Fabio Longano. It was developed in response to challenges including guests carrying insufficient cash or the wrong currency, uncertainty over who to tip, and the administrative work lodges face when allocating gratuities.
SafariTip allows guests to scan a QR code, choose a tipping amount and select who they want to reward. Options include the entire lodge team, a particular department or their guiding team.
For lodges and operators, tips are allocated to individual staff digital wallets according to the lodge’s agreed distribution structure. The platform is intended to give employees greater visibility over their earnings and help businesses manage gratuities more transparently.
SafariTip works alongside existing cash and card tipping options, giving guests additional ways to show their appreciation while reducing the administrative burden on lodge teams.
“After more than 20 years in luxury travel, I've seen just how much our guides and lodge teams put into creating extraordinary experiences. But I've also watched guests arrive at the end of their safari wanting to show their appreciation, only to realise they don't have enough cash or the right currency,” says Morris. “It's such a simple problem, but one that happens all the time. SafariTip was born from wanting to make that final moment of gratitude as effortless as the rest of the journey.”
The platform also allows staff to see the tips allocated to them, while guests can review their tipping history and provide feedback about their experience. Lodges can use the system to collect internal feedback or encourage public reviews.
Morris co-founded SafariTip with Longano, a technology executive with two decades of experience and more than 100 digital products to his name.
“When you're building technology for the safari industry, you have to consider the environments in which it will actually be used,” says Longano. “We wanted SafariTip to feel effortless for guests and lodge teams alike, with an intuitive experience that works across devices and is optimised for the low-bandwidth conditions often found in remote destinations. Good technology should make life easier, not add another layer of complexity.”
SafariTip also offers guests the option of supporting conservation initiatives, linking contributions to the wildlife and natural environments that attract visitors to Africa.
The platform is available to safari lodges, tour operators and hospitality businesses across Africa. More information is available at safaritip.africa.
