Etosha National Park

The Lion King scene ... without the lion

Have you seen the Lion King animated movie?
Well, in Etosha you have a feeling you are in that movie, right on the scene.
The sheer vastness of the place and number of animals is amazing. Meaning also that after a few days, a simple oryx is not enough for you to pause, now you are only for the lion. But (fortunately) he did not know that and decided to stay in distance ...

Self-drive makes Etosha not just another (giant) zoo, but rather a self-organized adventure.
'Chasing' animals in a car around the park and waterholes is one thing. However, standing still and observing animals from the camp is entirely different (and much more rewarding) experience.
I would recommend anyone to take the time and spend the night in one of the camps in Etosha. I was not the only one amazed. At sunset and sundown, you could see 50+ people gathered at the fence, watching a couple of animals doing their daily routine. All this without any noise, except for the clicking of cameras (some with 600 mm zoom).

I stayed in Etosha for 3 nights (2 in Okaukuejo, 1 in Namutoni) and can say the following:
o Okaukuejo - a definite must, always full of all sorts of animals and with great position to see the sunset; very busy, so staff did not really try to be friendly
o Halali (did not stayed for the night) looked more pristine, but smaller and without the big animals (when I was there)
o Nakamutoni - friendly staff, but otherwise a dissapointment due to facilities not maintained and pratically no animals (no real waterhole).
Apparently there are now 2 camps also in the western part of Etosha (previously closed for tourists), but have not tried those.

In order to explore Etosha, you do not need a local guide, GPS or a map (available at camps) is enough.
However, there are organized safari trips at night that might be worth trying (you are not allowed to go outside the camp at night on your own).

Once in a lifetime

So there you are, one day watching David Attenborough on your TV, the other day getting into the wild yourself, and what an experience it is. I traveled with my girlfriend around Namibia with the help of an accommodated tour, and of course that the main stop would be Etosha. I think winter is the high season, but we did not feel the crowd, the over touristic scene, everything was just good scenery, good weather and a good time. In two days of safari we easily spotted all the must see animals, expect the illusive leopard. Our guide just had an eye for it, he actually told us that when he was young he would hunt with his family riding the pick up in the dark, so pretty much nothing would escape his boosted eyesight, he would always be the first to spot everything! We didn't opt for the camping, instead we stayed in lodges, both would be a great option I think. Facilities often had swimming pools, great food, everything. I can only recommend Namibia as a country to visit. Although I've never done any other safari, I got the impression by researching and discussing with friends that this is the place to go nowadays, every condition for your wild trip with one of the best prices, in one of the safest places on Africa.

Incredible Animal Encounters In A Wild and Wonderful Country

In April of this year my 76 year old mother and I vacationed in Namibia for three weeks. I chose Namibia because I am a hobbyist photographer and wanted to visit the Namib desert and the Himba tribal lands. Mom came along because she wanted to see African wildlife in their natural habitat.

April was a wonderful time to visit Etosha, because there were many baby animals out and about (we saw baby lion, zebra, giraffe, elephant, warthog, wildebeest, kudu, hartebeest, springbok, impala). The grasses and vegetation were still green, but just turning into gold (the "blonde" season for Namibia) so the beauty of the landscape and the vistas was truly breathtaking at every turn. If you'd like to see some of the photographs, please feel free to visit this site: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jillscoby/

This is one of the greatest and largest national parks in Africa.

At the waterholes in particular we had some great animal viewing.

We very much enjoyed our time in Etosha National Park. The park was easy to get around in, and the people we met were kind and courteous. Animal viewing was terrific. Although we didn't see the numbers of animals we've seen elsewhere in Africa, the dry climate and associated waterholes made for some great, concentrated sightings, with some unique poses. We highly recommend this park as an animal viewing destination.

Always a pleasure to visit

Etosha National Park is one of Southern Africa’s best wildlife reserves. As with many such parks, what you see depends on patience and luck. However, in Etosha you will always see something interesting regardless of the season. There are many accessible waterholes where animals congregate in the dry winter season, although there is still plenty to see at other times of the year. We have visited Etosha twice, in late April/early May, and during our visit this year (2016) we were rewarded with the sight of eight elephants who walked right past us and a few minutes later we saw three cheetahs out in the open. All of this was a short drive from Namutoni Camp. The other good point about Etosha is that it is very large so it doesn’t feel crowded. The only downside, and it’s not a major issue, is that the camps inside the park are a bit tired and need an injection of money and better management. Despite that it is still a highly recommended place to visit.

there are many many animals and always unpredictable

Etosha National Park is fantastic - we spent 13 hours driving ourselves through the park from sunrise to sundown, saw all kinds of amazing animals, at a total price of roughly $10 US.

Magical - so many animals!

We did a 4-day self-driving safari in a VW Polo rental car in Etosha and loved it. So many animals!! We felt so far away from our usual European life, in such a different, magical world.

The lodges are nice and give you quite some space inside and outside, the food there is pretty good, and the waterholes directly at the camps are amazing, especially at Halali and Okaukuejo. So many animals at almost all times of day at Okaukuejo and Klein-Namutoni (1 km from the camp), and great lion and rhino action at Halali's Moringa water hole at sunset. Most roads in Etosha are easy to navigate even in a Polo.

Very much worth the 5 h drive north from Windhoek on excellent roads!

Amazing wildlife, great lodges and beautiful landscape

We had a self drive from Windhoek and our main reason for visiting was the prolific wildlife. Our first stop was an overnight stay in 'Olive Grove'. A really small boutique hotel, with lovely attention to detail and great food. Our next stop was Hoodia Desert Lodge in Sesriem to visit the world famous dunes. The lodge was beautiful and each chalet has air-con - a blessing in the scorching heat. The main lodge area was beautifully furnished and the manager and staff were extremely helpful and friendly. The food was also very good. We took an early morning trip to the dunes and our guide spotted and showed us stuff we never would've noticed. The walk to the top of Big Mama dune was hard work (for me), especially in 100 + degree heat. The highlight of this trip for me was seeing Dead Vlei - with black burnt trees against an orange background and a cloudless blue sky. This was a photographers dream. We then drove to Erindi private reserve and stayed in Traders Lodge. This is quite a large busy lodge, but the views from the lounge overlooking the waterhole was amazing. We were greeted on arrival by Wild dogs in camp. The evening viewing from camp was non stop from elephants, hippos, zebra, giraffes, wildebeest and Eland, all visiting the waterhole over the course of the evening. Our room overlooked the small waterhole at the rear of the lodge and lions and rhino came in the dead of night (caught with a remote camera). The game drives although good, are in my opinion a bit too organised. We were also unfortunate to have a vehicle that broke down twice! Unfortunately, they hadn't fixed the problem from the previous drive, and so we broke down again the next day. It was disappointing as this meant we missed most of our sundowner, as we were waiting for another vehicle to come and pick us up. The animals are tracked by GPS, and so you are nearly guaranteed of seeing what you want, it felt more like a safari park than an african safari. From here we went on to Etosha for 6 nights. Our first stop was Okaukeujo where we had booked a premier waterside chalet (definitely worth the extra), as you are right next to the waterhole and can sit out all night watching the game come and go. We had an amazing experience with elephants staying from early evening to sunset and beyond, just during themselves and bathing and playing. The trumpeting was an experience never to be forgotten. The chalet was clean and modern. The restaurant is average but the food could be better - however, you go to Okaukeujo for wildlife not a gourmet meal. Our second stop was Onguma Reserve, just out side Etosha. A nice camp which felt like an oasis compared to the dry dusty plains of Etosha. We had one evening game drive in the Onguma reserve which was a little quiet compared to Etosha. The guides are excellent and vehicles comfortable. The waterhole within the reserve was quiet when we visited. We saw a few giraffe and some waterbuck. Our next stay was in Anderssons Camp, again just outside the park. A nice old camp with a vibrant evening waterhole, where Rhino seem to visit every night - Their camp side is great, you are literally within feet of the many animals that go to drink there. We had one game drive within Onguma and saw the resident lions and rhino. We opted to self drive in Etosha and the waterholes are vibrant and teeming with animals. This was our second visit to Etosha and we were concerned we would be disappointed after having a great safari previously - but we were not disappointed and will visit again.