Namibian Explorer

You start the day full of excitement for the adventure that lies ahead. Your guide greets you with a warm smile and soon you are on the road, driving through the hilly landscape south of Windhoek. Time permitting, you will navigate one of the beautiful passes leading to the Namib-Naukluft region. A lunch stop is can be taken at the tiny settlement of Solitaire, where you can taste the delicious, local apple pie (both optional). From here, it is not far to your accommodation for the next two nights, the Elegant Desert Camp. Feel free to explore the area on foot or go on the camp’s sundowner drive in the late afternoon (optional). In the evening, a three-course dinner awaits you.

Namibia is a country that rewards those who rise early: Once you arrive in the Namib-Naukluft Park in the early morning, your guide will take you to a secluded dune where you can revel in the beautiful morning sun lighting up the desert around you. It is a sight you are not likely to forget anytime soon. After a breakfast picnic in the dunes, you continue on to the Deadvlei/Sossusvlei region. Only 4×4 vehicles can manage the last section of the track, but this challenge is confidently met by your vehicle and guide. Once inside the Deadvlei, you will be awed by its surreal beauty. The white clay pan, with its long-ago dried camelthorn trees and dune backdrop is a sight to behold. You also visit the Sesriem canyon and can wonder through the gorge created by the Tsauchab River millions of years ago. After this eventful day, you return to your accommodation, where you can leisurely enjoy the rest of the afternoon. Dinner can be savoured under the Namibian night sky.

A wholesome breakfast awaits you, before you drive through the Gaub and the Kuiseb canyons. The rivers you cross usually run dry, but if you are lucky you might witness them flowing due to recent rains in the inland. After winding your way through the canyons, you eventually see a welcome sight on the horizon. Before you lies the Atlantic Ocean. Along the way you make a stop at the Walvis Bay lagoon to spot some flamingos up close. Next the road leads to Swakopmund, flanked by the ocean to your left, and the desert to your right. The town of Swakopmund is your end destination for today and the rest of the afternoon can be spent as you please. Speak to your guide, as there is plenty that can be seen and done here. The town also offers a number of good restaurants, so hopefully the fresh ocean air has given you a healthy appetite (optional). You spend the night at the Organic Stay Guesthouse.

You begin your day by driving up the ominously named Skeleton Coast. Along the way, you can view one of the many shipwrecks run aground near the coast. Soon thereafter you arrive at Cape Cross, home to an enormous seal colony and the Cão Cross. You continue along the Skeleton Coast and soon realise why the San/Bushman called this stretch of coastline “The Land God Made in Anger”. It is a desolate, hostile and yet strangely beautiful land. As you near the settlement of Torra Bay, you leave the coastal road and make your way inland, towards the Damaraland and your camp for the night, the Malansrus Tented Camp.

The Damaraland offers you many sights and experiences and you get to decide which you most would like to see. A visit of Twyfelfontein, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is possible. Here you can observe rock-engravings made by hunter-gatherers who inhabited the area between 6000 and 2000 years ago. Your guide can show them to you, away from the main tourist masses. If it is geology which interests you more, then a visit to the Petrified Forest would be recommendable. Here you will find approximately 260 million-year-old fossilised tree trunks and learn how they got there to begin with. Also at the Petrified Forest, you can even see the Welwitschia mirabilis, a truly unique and fascinating plant that can live well over one thousand years. Your next accommodation is the Etosha Safari Camp, just south of the Etosha entrance gate – the wildlife highlight on your 7 day Namibia tour. Soon after arrival, you enter the park and start your safari game drive. You spend the afternoon, exploring the park and observing the wildlife around you. As the sun starts getting low, you return to your camp for a relaxing supper.

You can look forward to an exciting day, so you will want to get up early to begin your safari in the Etosha National Park. The Etosha is huge and you will have the whole day to get to know it and its many inhabitants. Elephants, lions, wildebeest, giraffe, hyena, many different antelope are just some of the animals you may encounter. If you are lucky, you may even see a cheetah or a leopard. They can be difficult to find, but your guide has well trained eyes and will help you spot animals you did not even know were there. You might also want to make a stop at the Etosha Pan, meaning ‘Great White Place’ in Oshiwambo. One can easily see why, as the pan stretches out into the horizon. The silence is deafening. After plenty of game viewing and many new impressions, you return to the Etosha Safari Camp for another delicious dinner and a good night’s rest.

A relaxed start to the day awaits you and after a hearty breakfast, you begin your return journey to Windhoek. Enjoy the wide-open spaces of Namibia once more, as you drive through the changing landscapes. Along the way, you can stop for lunch at Otjiwarongo or perhaps you want to snack on some ‘biltong’, a local favourite (both optional). At Okahandja you can get some last souvenirs from the local woodcarvers’ market. As you enter Windhoek your 7 day Namibia tour comes to an end; your guide will bring you to either your next lodge or the Windhoek airport for the end of your tour. Namibia will be sure to remain fondly in your thoughts for many years to come.