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We are quite experienced Africa travellers and after a year of travel restrictions, we decided to use the remainder of our vacation days from 2020 to travel to Namibia for a second time. The north of Namibia had been unknown to us, so we asked the operations manager Sven, to create a wide-ranging tour for us into this more unknown region of Namibia.
Before the tour, Sven modified a vehicle specifically for the special requirements of our tour. We started on Monday morning and drove directly to Sesriem. The superbly located Dead Valley Lodge was the starting point for our trip to the canyon, the still water holding Sossusvlei and the Deadvlei. We were almost completely alone here and at the lodge we were looked after very well too.
We continued northwards, towards the Spitzkoppe and on to the Brandberg Mountain. Also here, were we almost alone at the camps.
Via Palmwag, we then travelled to Warmquelle und further through the dry riverbeds of the Hoanib and the Hoarusib to Purros. On the way, we encountered the famous desert elephants, giraffes and many other large and small animals alike. We spent some nights on beautiful campsites and some nights camping wild in nature.
Via Opuwo we continued to Epupa and to the waterfalls of the same name. We also visited a traditional Himba village with Maria. Sven knows the family for a long time and we learnt many a thing about the lives of the Himba here.
We enjoyed relaxing for a couple of hours at the Kunene River Lodge before we continued our travels in a southernly direction. At the Otjitotongwe Cheetah Guest Farm, we discovered that a leopard had killed three of the wild cheetahs. At the Waterberg Guest Farm, we went on another small hike up the Small Waterberg Mountain, before we returned to Windhoek.
A big praise goes to Sven, who has now for the second time brought us closer to his adopted country. He has been living in Namibia since 2008, together with his Namibian wife and knows the country like no other guide. He visibly enjoyed travelling off the beaten path, as well as preparing food every evening on the fire.
Even the required Corona test, necessary for departure, was organised and the conducting of the test and the notification of the results was handled professionally. It certainly felt like we spent 17 days far away from the Corona topic. Namibia is safe and we can recommend visiting it to anyone. There is no “reduced working hours compensation” as in some other countries, many people are reliant on tourism and they currently do not have an income.