Extraordinary Namibia tour

Day by day

The itinerary

1. Day 1 · Windhoek

   Arrive Windhoek

   Upon your arrival at Windhoek international airport, clear customs and immigration, then you will be met by a Camelthorn transfer representative and transferred to the Safari Court hotel for check-in. Spend the rest of the day at leisure.

   Safari Court hotel or similar

2. Day 2 · Namib-Naukluft Park

   Windhoek – Namib Naukluft Park

   Check out of the hotel after breakfast. At about 12:30pm you will be met at your hotel. Depart from Windhoek and travel to the Kupferberg Pass. We drive through cattle farm land and hilly landscapes with splendid views of fertile valleys. Our journey continues via the scenic and steep Spreetshoogte Pass. Enjoy an undisturbed view from the top of one of the steepest passes in Namibia! A comfort stop will be made at the small settlement of Solitaire, before continuing to the beautifully set private nature reserve, NamNau Habitat, which hosts a variety of desert adapted game like Springbok, ostrich, earth wolf, bat-eared fox and many more.

   Namib Naukluft Lodge or similar
   Breakfast, Dinner

3. Day 3 · Sossusvlei

   Sossusvlei & Deadvlei (NamNau Habitat)

   Enjoy early morning coffee and tea before departing for Sossusvlei, a fascinating world of ecology and unearthly geography. The route travels along the Tsauchab dry riverbed, which has found a way through the dunes until it reaches the vivid white clay saltpan, called Sossusvlei. After a good rainy season, approximately every 7-10 years, the Tsauchab River runs in full flood and fills the Vlei with water, offering sensational scenery with prolific birdlife. The early morning sun offers spectacular pastel colours in the star-shaped dunes. The first stop will be at Dune 45 before continuing to Sossusvlei. Climb one of the dunes – there are plenty – and you might be overwhelmed by the sight of the dynamic and living desert! Breakfast will be served as a picnic under one of the shady camelthorn trees. Afterwards, walk over patches of dunes until you reach the base of the ‘Dead Vlei’, another pan where water once flowed, but all that remains today are the skeletons of trees. Visit the rugged Sesriem Canyon before returning to the lodge for lunch. In the afternoon join a guided nature drive to the ‘marble mountain’ (drinks for own account) or relax on your verandah and enjoy a spectacular sunset.

   Namib Naukluft Lodge or similar
   Breakfast, lunch, dinner

4. Day 4 · Swakopmund

   NamNau Habitat - Swakopmund

   After a healthy breakfast, depart to Swakopmund, travelling via the Gaub & Kuiseb Passes. You will pass Namibia’s largest Nature Reserve, the Namib Naukluft Park, and an internationally renowned desert research station at Gobabeb (not accessible to the public). We travel past the Vogelfederberg and will drive through Walvis Bay, Namibia’s largest commercial port, before arriving in Swakopmund at around 12:30.

   Swakopmund - Sandfields Guesthouse or similar
   Breakfast

5. Day 5 · Swakopmund

   Swakopmund

   Explore the quaint town of Swakopmund. You may wish to book an optional day tour (for own account) in Swakopmund (guided tour through the Mondesa township, quad-biking, sand-boarding; a scenic flight over the Skeleton coast or a catamaran cruise in Walvis Bay). Many optional activities are on offer (for own account): visit the aquarium, various museums or the crystal gallery. There is a possibility of meeting fellow travellers at dinner that will be joining the tour in Swakopmund.

   Swakopmund - Sandfields Guesthouse or similar
   Breakfast, Dinner

6. Day 6 · Damaraland

   Swakopmund - Damaraland

   Depart early morning and travel on the salt road towards Henties Bay, past salt pans and an array of bird life, to Damaraland, one of the most scenic areas in Namibia. Visit Twyfelfontein, a site of ancient rock engravings and the Organ Pipes, a distinctive series of dolerite pillars that have been exposed by erosion. Arrive at your lodge during the late afternoon.

   Damaraland – Twyfelfontein Lodge or similar
   Breakfast, lunch, dinner

7. Day 7 · Damaraland

   Damaraland

   The morning is at leisure, to relax at the lodge until lunchtime. In the afternoon, join a sun downer drive in the Aba Huab River and possibly encounter the desert dwelling elephants (seasonal). These elephants are not a distinct species but are African bush elephants that have made their homes in the Namib and Sahara deserts. They were once more widespread in Africa, but are currently found only in Namibia and Mali.

   Damaraland – Twyfelfontein Lodge or similar
   Breakfast, lunch, dinner

8. Day 8 · Etosha National Park

   Damaraland - Etosha National Park

   After breakfast, depart Damaraland and journey to the Etosha National Park. Visit a Damara village near Twyfelfontein and learn more about the culture and the tradition of this half-nomadic people. Continue via the little town of Outjo. Lunch stop (for own account) - possibly meet fellow guests joining the Etosha tour. From there continue to Etosha National Park. Arrive in the early afternoon and undertake your first game drive, in your closed touring vehicle, into the park.

   near Etosha National Park – Etosha Safari Camp or similar
   Breakfast, Dinner

9. Day 9 · Etosha National Park

   Etosha National Park

   The entire day will be spent in the Etosha National Park, exploring the waterholes along this enormous saltpan, in your closed touring vehicle. Enjoy a lunch stop at one of the rest camps (lunch for own account). There are close to 114 species of mammal in Etosha, including the black faced impala and the threatened black and white rhino. The Etosha Pan (a flat calcrete depression), contains water only after very good rains and sometimes only for a few days each year, but is enough to stimulate the growth of a blue green algae which lures thousands of flamingos.

   near Etosha National Park – Etosha Safari Camp
   Breakfast, Dinner

10. Day 10 · Etosha National Park

    Etosha National Park

    Enjoy another full day exploring this world famous National Park, in your closed touring vehicle. Your guide will introduce you to the complex subject of managing such an enormous reserve, that’s considered to be one of the world’s great wildlife sanctuaries. Lunch stop en route at one of the rest camps (lunch for own account).

    near Etosha National Park – Mokuti Etosha Lodge or similar
    Breakfast, Dinner

11. Day 11 · Windhoek

    Etosha National Park – Windhoek

    After breakfast, travel south towards Otjiwarongo. Continue towards Windhoek via Okahandja where we will visit a local handicraft market. Tour ends on arrival in Windhoek late afternoon at your hotel.

    Safari Court hotel or similar
    Breakfast

12. Day 12 · Windhoek

    Depart Windhoek

    Check out of the hotel and you are transferred to Windhoek airport to start your homebound journey.

    Breakfast