Namibia

Accommodations in Namibia

Damaraland Camp Damaraland

Little Kulala Namib

Ongava Lodge Etosha

Serra Cafema Camp Kunene

Namibia is a large country even by African standards. About twice the size of California, its population is just 2 over million, one of the lowest densities in the world. There’s a lot of open space.

Its Namib Desert is the world’s oldest desert and indeed the country feels like an ‘ageless land’. This quality is reflected in rock art created by stone-age artists at sites like the world-famous Twyfelfontein and in its geological attractions like a petrified forest of fossilized tree trunks over 280 million years old. Combined with vast open spaces, dunes and silence, there’s a feeling of antiquity, solitude and wilderness.

The climate is typical of a semi-desert country. Days are warm to hot and nights are generally cool. Temperatures are modified by the high plateau in the interior and by the cold Benguela Current that creates cooling fogs along the Atlantic coastline. Except for the first few months of the year, the country is generally dry with very little rain.
Namibia is a well-known safari destination famed for its remote and intimate lodges, interaction with indigenous people as well as splendid wildlife and spectacular desert landscapes.

WINDHOEK

Windhoek, the charming capital of Namibia, is found in the central highlands. The city is tranquil and scenic. Its atmosphere blends the flavors of German, English and Dutch colonists with the native African cultures. Windhoek’s streets are alive with the color of Namibia’s people and cultures. Its sights include the three Windhoek castles, built between 1913 and 1918, and the State Museum at the Alte Feste. The government seat is the beautiful and historic “Ink Palace”. Windhoek’s city center also has the sprawling gardens of Zoo Park.

ETOSHA

Etosha National Park is one of Africa’s premier reserves. This large park covers over 8500 sq. mi. of the northern landscape that contains dry woodland, mixed scrub and mopane savanna around the central feature, the Etosha Pan. This pan is a silvery depression, remnants of an ancient lake, with the full effect of mirages and dust devils. The edges have springs that attract animals during the dry season. The eastern region experiences more rainfall, and has denser brush than the northeastern grasslands. The park has a concentrated and diverse wildlife population. Etosha’s center is known for a huge elephant population. Zebra, blue wildebeest, springbok and gemsbok roam the plains. Lion are also common. The Black-faced impala and Damara dikdik are distinctive to the area. Black rhino can be found in the western regions of the park.

DAMARALAND

Damaraland is the large region east of Skeleton Coast named for the Damara herders who inhabit the region. The Damaraland Wilderness Reserve is a privately operated area full of beautiful, arid and mountainous scenery. Wildlife can be sparse, but is uniquely adapted to the arid landscape. Desert elephant, black rhino, lion, desert-dwelling giraffe and Hartmann’s mountain zebra inhabit some of the reserve.

FISH RIVER CANYON

Fish River Canyon is a huge landmark whose size and grandeur is exceeded only by the Grand Canyon. The canyon follows the Fish River to the Orange River, which flows to the Atlantic. Varied and unusual wildlife and vegetation complement the spectacular scenery. An abundance of red aloe gives an otherworldly feel to the landscape. Rock dwellers like mountain zebra, rock rabbits, baboon, klipspringer and ground squirrels inhabit the area. Kudu and leopard are also present, but are more elusive.

There is a main hiking trail that is relatively strenuous, taking about four days and covering 53 miles. It covers rocky, desert terrain and passes pools and sulfur springs.

NORTHEASTERN RESERVES

The Caprivi Strip is the region of Namibia bordered by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zimbabwe in the north. The area has three reserves: Mudumu, Caprivi and Mamili. Mudumu and Mamili reserves are very similar to Botswana’s Okavango Delta. Unlike many other Namibian parks, these allow open vehicles and walking safaris.

Mahango Game Reserve is a scenic landscape of floodplain and savanna with lush vegetation, dotted with striking, majestic baobob trees. The park surrounds the Kavango River and is adjacent to the Caprivi Reserve. The wildlife has adapted to the relatively moist surroundings and includes elephant, bushbuck, reedbuck, impala, tsessebe, kudu and the rare sitatunga. There are also spectacular birds like the fish eagle, and wattled and crowned cranes. The Caprivi Game Reserve features lechwe, sable antelope, hippo, roan antelope, buffalo and crocodile, as well as a variety of waterfowl. Mudumu National Park contains floodplains, bush and islands similar to the Okavango. Wildlife includes a variety of the species also seen in the other northeastern parks. Mamili has similar terrain and animals.

NAMIB-NAUKLUFT

Southern Namibia has a beautiful region that combines the former Namib Desert and Naukluft Mountain Zebra parks. This is one of the world’s largest parks, and is also known for diamonds. The Namib-Naukluft National Park contains a diverse landscape including desert savanna grassland, mountains, lagoons and sand dunes. The park surrounds the Kuiseb River, which naturally separates the lower gravel plains from the southern deserts. Mountain Zebra, gemsbok, springbok and ostrich roam the region. The dunes house unique creatures like the shovel-nosed lizard, the golden mole and the translucent Palmato gecko.

The Namib is one of the world’s oldest and most spectacular deserts. The hostile environment still has the prehistoric Welwitschia mirabilis plant, which can be two thousand years old. The Sandavis area includes the coastline and bays where fresh water seeps under the dunes and runs into a saltwater lagoon. The mountainous landscape of the Naukluft region has many picturesque rock formations and a variety of beautiful hiking trails. Mountain zebra, rock rabbits, klipspringer, black eagles, baboon, cheetah and many other creatures inhabit the area.

SWAKOPMUND

Swakopmund is the resort town that is in the center of Namibia’s coastal region. The town is located between the Skeleton Coast and Namib-Naukluft parks and surrounded by the spectacular Namib Desert. It has some beautiful German colonial architecture, and is lined with greenery and colorful flowerbeds.

SKELETON COAST

This spectacular and treacherous coastline is dotted with the skeletons of shipwrecks and beached whales. The Skeleton Coast Park covers the seashore as well as the wind-sculpted sand dunes and canyons of the Namib. The icy Benguela Current flows from the Antarctic and encounters the dry desert air off this coast, creating a thick fog bank that penetrates inland.

CUSTOM SAFARIS

Camps and lodges throughout Namibia are easily linked with scheduled or charter flights. Namibia is large so overland road transfers between locations may involve long drives. Highlights include Sossusvlei, Etosha National Park and the adjacent Ongava Reserve, the Skeleton Coast and Damaraland to mention a few. The slideshow itinerary below is just one example of a custom safari in Namibia. Click through to get some ideas and inspiration for your next safari.

The slideshow itinerary below is just one example of a custom safari in Namibia. Click through to get some ideas and inspiration for your next safari.

Namibia- 10-Day Luxury Fly-in/Guided Overland Safari- Sossusvlei, Damaraland, Etosha, AfriCat

Scheduled Safaris

The following scheduled safaris have pre-determined accommodations, routing and departure dates.