Villas for Daily Rental at Pink Lake
No villas listed in Pink Lake yet
The page exists, the properties are on their way. In the meantime, here are other options for your stay — and if you own a property in the area, now's the time to list it.
At Lake Retba (Pink Lake), a day rental is not a family outing: it is an event venue. Naming ceremonies, birthdays, reunions, farewells, corporate retreats, film shoots — you do not come with thirty or fifty people to relax, you come to put something on. And a villa that hosts fifty guests for eight hours is not chosen the way you choose a vacation home.
What matters then has nothing to do with the decor or the number of bedrooms. It comes down to six very concrete points: the capacity actually allowed, restrooms accessible from the garden, parking, shade, what the owner accepts in terms of caterers and sound systems, and the time by which everything has to wrap up. This page is organized around those six points.
Why the Pink Lake has become an event venue
Three reasons explain why half of Dakar's large family celebrations are held here. First, distance: about thirty kilometers, roughly an hour's drive depending on how you leave the city — far enough to feel like somewhere else, close enough for sixty guests to agree to make the trip.
Next, land. Plots are large and enclosed, which no longer exists in Dakar: you can set up tables for fifty people, a kids' area, a catering corner and parking on the same property, without disturbing anyone around. That is simply impossible to find in the city.
Finally, the setting. The dunes, the lake, the salt carts: the photos look like nothing else, and for a family ceremony that counts. A word of warning, though, if photos matter: the color does not show up every day, and it depends on the season, the time of day and the wind. Schedule your photo session around midday and accept that the lake may look pale.
Six points to settle before you book
Allowed capacity. It is set by the owner, almost never written in the listing, and it is the first point of friction on the day. Give your actual headcount — guests, children, service providers — before confirming, not after.
Restrooms. Fifty people for eight hours is not the same as six people for a week. Ask how many restrooms and water points can be reached from the garden without going through the bedrooms, and whether the owner allows portable toilets above a certain number of guests.
Parking. How many vehicles fit on the property, and where do the others park? On a sandy track, a city car stuck in the sand in front of the gate blocks everyone. Set a meeting point further up the road for your guests.
Shade. The site is dune country with very few trees: there is no natural shade. It comes from what the house has put up — straw hut (paillote), shade sail, pergola, tent. Ask for the actual covered area, and whether you can set up an extra tent.
Caterer and kitchen. Does the owner accept an outside caterer? Is there a backup kitchen, a water point and electricity usable on the garden side? Some houses require their own provider, others do not: that changes the entire budget.
Sound system and end time. Until what time is music allowed, and at what volume? This is the question that most often causes trouble. Settle it in writing before booking, with the owner, whose contact details you receive as soon as the booking is confirmed.
Available setups
The "ceremony" format — an enclosed plot of several thousand square meters, a covered area for tables, a pool sized for a group and, in the best setups, restrooms that do not go through the bedrooms. This is what to aim for from forty guests upward.
The "family lunch" format — a house with a garden for twenty to thirty people. Less logistics, lower cost, and more than enough for a child's birthday or a get-together with cousins.
The "company day" format — a secluded house, off the beaten path, where you can work in the morning and have lunch outdoors with no one watching. Quiet and connectivity then matter more than the pool; ask about both.
The "set" format — for a film shoot, a recording or a photo shoot, what you are renting is first and foremost the landscape, with an enclosed base next to it. Filming permission and the number of people allowed are agreed in advance, never on the day.
Access: the thing that ruins an event
The site is about thirty kilometers northeast of Dakar, but the distance is not the problem: the last kilometer is. Some houses are reached over sand, and a sedan carrying six people gets stuck in ten seconds. When that happens in front of the gate, the whole line of cars stops.
Three precautions take care of it. Ask exactly what the last kilometer is like — asphalt, laterite, sand — rather than the driving time from Dakar. Set a meeting point that is easy to spot on the main road, and put it on your invitation instead of a map pin, which is often wrong in this area. And check how many vehicles actually fit on the property, as well as where the others park.
For an event, houses served by a paved road to nearby are a much safer choice than the most beautiful plots at the end of a dirt track. For a fifty-person event, access logistics matter more than the view.
When to go
From November to February, the weather is dry and mild: it is the season for big year-end get-togethers and the most sought-after period. On these dates, an event villa is booked one to two months ahead, more around the holidays.
From March to June, it is genuinely hot and nothing naturally shields you from the sun. An event works perfectly well, but it takes planning: a covered area big enough for all guests seated, plenty of water, and a fairly late lunch slot to avoid the midday peak.
From July to October, the rainy season (hivernage) turns the landscape green and visitor numbers drop: this is when you can get the best houses without booking months ahead. Have a covered fallback plan in case of a squall, which is usually brief.
Good to know & booking
Bring everything with you: on site, there are not enough shops to bail a group out. Plan plenty of ice, far more water than you estimate, and an extension cord — the power supply on the garden side is rarely where you set up the sound system.
If you are adding entertainment, horse or camel rides work very well with children and can be booked the day before. Just tell the provider when the lull in your program will be: between lunch and the cake, there is always a gap to fill.
This page only lists houses that accept day rentals; the full selection, with overnight stays, is on the page for villas for rent at the Pink Lake, houses with a pool are on the page for villas with a pool, and lighter accommodation on the page for chalets at the Pink Lake.
You book by paying 20% of the total online, which secures the date, with the balance paid to the owner on the day, usually in cash. For an event whose cost is shared among several family members, this is particularly convenient: one person books, and the money is collected afterward. No tourist tax either: it is charged per person per night, and there is none here.
Cancellation is free up to 7 days before the chosen date in low season (June 1 – October 31) and 14 days in high season (November 1 – May 31); after that the booking is final and the 20% is non-refundable. A booking canceled within 24 hours of confirmation is fully refunded as long as the date is more than seven days away — the typical case when you reserve a venue well in advance and then the ceremony date changes. Last-minute bookings are final upon confirmation, with one change of date allowed up to 48 hours before. If the owner cancels, we offer you an equivalent venue around the lake or on the north coast, or refund all fees in full. The resident rate is shown on every house for residents of Senegal and the Senegalese diaspora, on an account verified after a phone call.
Who is it for?
Families organizing a ceremony — naming ceremony, milestone birthday, reunion, farewell — who are looking for an enclosed venue, with the landscape as decor, an hour from Dakar.
Companies and associations putting together a team day: the site lets you combine a morning meeting, lunch and afternoon activities on the same property.
Productions — film shoots, photo shoots, music videos — for which the dunes and the lake make an instantly recognizable backdrop, with an enclosed logistics base next door.
Groups of friends doing quad bikes, horseback riding and lunch in a row, for whom the house is a base camp rather than a destination.
Frequently asked questions
How many people can you host in a day-rental villa at the Pink Lake?
Capacity is set by the owner and rarely appears in the listing. Give your actual headcount — guests, children and service providers included — before confirming the booking. It is the first point of friction on the day of the event, and it can be settled in one conversation.
Can you bring in an outside caterer?
It depends on the house: some accept it freely, others require their own provider. Also check whether there is a backup kitchen, a water point and a power supply usable on the garden side. The answer changes the entire budget for the day.
Until what time can you play music?
This is to be agreed with the owner, and it varies widely from one house to another depending on the neighbors. Settle it in writing before booking — direct contact is open to you as soon as the booking is confirmed. It is the question that causes the most disagreements on the day.
Are there enough restrooms for a large event?
Check this explicitly: ask how many restrooms and water points can be reached from the garden without going through the bedrooms, and whether the owner allows portable toilets above a certain number of guests. Fifty people over eight hours do not have the same needs as six people over a week.
Can you put up a tent or a marquee?
It is often necessary, and the answer varies from one house to another: some owners allow it without reservation, others refuse ground anchoring in the garden. Ask at the same time as you ask about the area already covered, because the site offers no natural protection from the sun and all guests must be able to sit in the shade.
What happens if it rains on the day of the event?
During the rainy season, from July to October, showers are usually brief but they can come at the wrong time. Have a covered fallback plan and check that the sheltered area can hold all your guests standing for the length of a squall. It is the only real weather risk of the low season, and it is handled in advance.
How does payment work, and is there a tourist tax?
You pay 20% online to secure the date, then the balance to the owner on the day, usually in cash. So one person can book and then collect from the participants. There is no tourist tax: it is charged per person per night, and a day rental involves none.