$11,495 pp (USD)
2 travelers on Start dateArrival
Arrival
Day 1
Arrival- Windhoek
Arrival- Windhoek
Welcome to Namibia! You will be transferred from the airport to the capital city of Namibia, Windhoek. Your hotel is in the city center. Take a stroll in the city at your own pace or a city tour with your guide. We will host you for dinner at one of the renowned restaurants. Your guide will brief you on what the tour entails on the next days.
- Main Destination:
- Windhoek (City)
- Accommodation:
- Hilton Garden Inn Windhoek
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 2
Quiver Tree Forest and Giant's Playgrounds
Quiver Tree Forest and Giant's Playgrounds
We will drive to the deep south of Namibia to the Quiver Tree Forest and the Giants Playgrounds. A late afternoon photography is worth it at the Quiver Forest. The Quiver Forest is a dense stand of Aloe dichotoma trees. These trees occur in southern Namibia and northern Cape, but a few places are so many together. After dinner, night photography at the Quiver Tree is possible. The sky can be quite beautiful with the quiver trees.
- Main Destination:
- Quiver Tree Forest (Highlight)
- Accommodation:
-
Quiver Tree Forest Rest Camp
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 3-4
Fish River Canyon
Fish River Canyon
An early morning will see us going to the Giant's Playgrounds. The Giant’s Playground consists of marvelous balancing dolerite (black granite) rocks. One would think they were put there by humans! Let us take advantage of the early morning light shining on these sites. After breakfast we will make our way to Gondwana Canyon Park around the Fish River Canyon area. We will embark on an afternoon nature drive around this 112 100-hectare private reserve. Besides various game found here, the scenery if magnificent for photography. On the second day we will visit the Fish River Canyon. Its dimensions are enormous: 161 km long, up to 26 km wide and 505 meters deep. The Fish River Canyon is seen as the most significant canyon in Africa and second-largest canyon on earth - after the Grand Canyon in the US. It was formed 342 million years ago. The ancient continent of Gondwana disintegrated 121 million years ago, the Fish River started to dig deep into the ground and create its system of gorges.
- Main Destination:
- Fish River Canyon (|Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld TP)
- Accommodation:
- Canyon Lodge
Wildlife in |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld TP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 5-6
Lüderitz and Ghost Town of Kolmanskop
Lüderitz and Ghost Town of Kolmanskop
After breakfast, we will make our way to Luderitz. This a scenic drive along the Orange River, which borders South Africa and Namibia. On the second day we have a full day special permit to the Ghost Town of Kolmanskop. After becoming one of the richest towns in Africa during a diamond boom in 1910, hordes of diamond seekers and adventurers settled in the area. Within two years at a rapid speed an unparalleled town development took place; within a few years Kolmanskop became the richest town of Africa and one of the richest towns worldwide. The thereby developed infrastructure was unmatched at the time; as from 1911 the town had electric power, luxurious stone houses, a casino, a school, a hospital, an ice factory to produce ice for fridges, a theatre, a ballroom, a sport-hall, a bowling alley, a salt-water swimming pool and much more although less than 400 people lived here.
- Main Destination:
- Lüderitz (Town)
- Accommodation:
- Luderitz Nest Hotel
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 7-8
Sossusvlei
Sossusvlei
After breakfast, we will make our way to Sossusvlei past Aus where we have chances of encountering Wild Horses. The origin of the Namib Desert horse is unclear, though several theories have been put forward. Genetic tests have been performed, although none to date have completely verified their origin. This is a driving day as we explore almost empty gravel roads of Namibia going past private nature reserves and farms. On the second day, we will explore the red sand dunes of Sossusvlei, the Dead Vlei and the Sesriem Canyon. This area is characterized by high sand dunes in different shades of orange - the color an indication of a high concentration of iron, after being exposed to the process of oxidation over many years. These dunes are among the highest in the world; many of them higher than 200 meters, the highest being the one nicknamed Big Daddy, about 325 meters high. The highest dune in the Namib Desert however, Dune 7, is about 388 meters high.
- Main Destination:
- Sossusvlei (Sand Dunes)
- Accommodation:
- Desert Quiver Camp
Wildlife in Namib-Naukluft NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 9-10
The Namibian Atlantic Coast
The Namibian Atlantic Coast
Before leaving for the coast, you will embark on a hot air balloon safari. The views are simply incredible, and the sand
dunes seem to go on forever. This excursion starts very early in the morning and ends between 10 and 11 am with a champagne breakfast in the midst of sand dunes in Sossusvlei. We go past Kuiseb Bird Sanctuary for waterbirds photography. On the second day we will do the catamaran tour in the morning and the living desert tour in the afternoon. During the Catamaran tour, you might get entertained by Cape Fur Seals and Pelicans on the cruise. Depending on the time of the year and luck one might encounter Whales, Dolphins, Leatherback turtle and Seals. During the Living Desert Tour, if lucky you might see the desert “Little Five”; Shovel-nosed Lizard, Namib Sand Gecko, Namaqua Chameleon, Namib Desert Sidewinding Adder and the Cartwheeling Spider (“Dancing White Lady”).
- Main Destination:
- Swakopmund (City)
- Accommodation:
- Swakopmund Plaza Hotel
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 11-12
Palmwag via Skeleton Coast National Park
Palmwag via Skeleton Coast National Park
We will drive along the coast; visit the cape fur seals at Cape Cross before entering the Skeleton Coast National Park. The is a 16,845 km2 (6,504 sq mi) park located in northwest Namibia, and has the most inaccessible shores, dotted with shipwrecks. Wildlife here includes Oryx, Springbok, Black-backed Jackal, Ostrich, Brown Hyaena, Desert Adapted Elephant, Black Rhino and Lion. Because of the harshness of the area, these animals do not occur in huge numbers and not very easily spotted. On the second day at Palmwag Concession, we will embark on a Desert Adapted Black Rhino on foot. This activity involves 4 x 4 driving in a rugged terrain, and walking safari to get to the rhinos if lucky. These mammals are not in a fenced area but in an open ecosystem. This activity might take the whole day, however there is still a possibility of a late afternoon sundowner drive in our own vehicle.
- Main Destination:
- Palmwag Concession (Damaraland)
- Accommodation:
- Palmwag Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 13-14
Desert Adapted Lions- Hoanib River
Desert Adapted Lions- Hoanib River
After breakfast, we will drive towards the desert into one of the most important conservation ephemeral rivers in Namibia, the Hoanib River. Being 270 km in length, the Hoanib River goes all the way to the sea and borders northern Damaraland and Kaokoland. There are thriving populations of desert Adapted Elephants, Oryx, Steenbok, Springbok, Black-backed Jackals, Small spotted Genets, Southern Giraffe subs angolensis among others. On the second day, we will do a full day game drive in search of desert-adapted wildlife. As far as conservation is concerned, we will learn more about Desert Adapted Lion Conservation. With approximately 120 of their kind left, Desert Adapted Lions are a rare group of carnivores that have adapted to survive in one of the harshest, most unforgiving landscapes on earth. However, with luck, one might see them.
- Main Destination:
- Sesfontein (Town)
- Accommodation:
- Fort Sesfontein Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 15
Windhoek
Windhoek
This marks the end of your tour as we drive back to Windhoek.
- Main Destination:
- Windhoek (City)
- Accommodation:
- No accommodation (End of tour)
- Meals & Drinks:
