Hello Namibia

Arrival at Hosea Kutako International Airport in Windhoek, where your guide will escort you on your trip to your accommodation in Mariental.  

Kalahari Red Dunes Lodge will be your home for the night.  An unusual feature of the Kalahari Red Dunes Lodge is, that it is situated in a nature reserve characterized by 2 deserts.  The Kalahari Desert, with its infinite red sand dunes, and the Great Karoo, home to an enormous prairie, dry rivers and lakes and tree savannah.

The Kalahari Desert is not a desert in the strictest sense of the word.  The Kalahari sand dunes, some of which stretch west to the Namib Desert, compose the largest continuous expanse of sand on earth. Derived from the Tswana word Kgala, meaning "the great thirst", or Kgalagadi, meaning "a waterless place", the Kalahari has vast areas covered by red sand without any permanent surface water. Drainage is by dry valleys, seasonally inundated pans, and the large salt pans of the Makgadikgadi Pan in Botswana and Etosha Pan in Namibia.

Your journey will take you to the heart of the world's oldest desert, the Namib where you can enjoy the peace and beauty of untouched nature. In the afternoon you will enjoy a sundowner drive with the lodge.  

Early morning departure to Sossusvlei and sightseeing at the Sessriem Canyom and Deadvlei. Be sure to pack your hat and camera.

Today you proceed to Swakopmund, a resort located between the Atlantic Ocean and Namib Dunes.

Enjoy the afternoon at leisure.

For today, we recommend a dolphin cruise which is not included in the travel price.

You will be picked up at your accommodation and driven to the nearby town of Walvis Bay, from where your boat cruise with Laramon Tours departs. Please ensure that you have had breakfast and are ready to leave Swakopmund by approximately 08h00, as you are requested to be at the check-in at the Walvis Bay Waterfront by approximately 08h45.

The scenic drive from Swakopmund to Walvis Bay takes about 45 minutes. Don’t forget to take a hat, sunscreen and a warm jacket along. After 3 exciting hours the catamaran will dock and your guide will return you to the hotel.

Malansrus Tented Camp is located on the banks of a sidearm of the Aba Huab River, offering easy access to the main sites and highlights of the Twyfelfontein area and is accessible by all kinds of vehicles.

In the afternoon you will participate in a sundowner drive with the lodge.

You will have an early morning drive for sightseeing of Twyfelfontein, the Burnt Mountains and the Organ Pipes. 

The Twyfelfontein valley is recognised as a national monument aswell as a UNESCO World Heritage site due to the  galleries of rock engravings . The petroglyphs  are one of the most extensive galleries in the world and are found on a number of smooth rock surfaces which most of them depict animals and their tracks.  Scientists have estimated their ages to vary between 1000 and 10 000 years.

Another worthy pit stop to make is at the Organ Pipes located near Twyfelfontein.  This fascinating geological formation is thought to be the result of the Gondwanaland breakup, fractures and cracks were formed as the dolomite columns cooled through the process of columnar jointing approximately 120 million years ago. Strikingly rich rusty colors are portrayed in long columns resembling those of a church organ, some rising up to 5m high. 

The Burnt Mountain, a small inselberg, was also proclaimed a national monument on 15 September 1956.  The reason for its name is best evident in the early mornings and late evenings when the rays of the sun seem to set the mountain ablaze.  Rich red colors mixed with shades of black and purple are quite strikingly caused by Manganese coated clay molecules.

Near Khorixas lies the well-known Petrified Forest, a collection of fossil tree trunks declared a National Monument in the early 1950s.  The fossil trees are between 240 and 300 million years old and were once driven as driftwood from westward flowing streams and deposited on sand banks. Today, the remains of at least 50 trees can be seen, which are so well preserved that they are often considered to be normal tree trunk. 

If that's not enough, this area is home to desert elephants. These gentle giants have adapted to their dry, semi-desert environment by having a smaller body mass with proportionally longer legs and seemingly larger feet than other elephants.  Their physical attributes allow them to cross miles of sand dunes to reach water.  They have even been filmed sliding down a dune face to drink at a pool in a desert oasis.  They survive by eating moisture-laden vegetation growing in ephemeral riverbeds and with their ability to go several days without drinking water they are able to travel long distances to reach a water source. 

During a self-drive you can explore the area and visit the recommended sites and if you are lucky, you could spot a herd of elephants too. 

The highlight for today will be a rhino tracking excursion. This activity takes guests on an unforgettable exploration on foot amidst the cliffs of the Klip River Valley and rising plateau of volcanic basalt ridges, by dedicated guides and local trackers. The tracking is managed, and the number of guests participating is restricted to a maximum of 10 people per day, to ensure that it is both natural and non-obtrusive for the animals.

Your journey takes you to the Etosha Mountain Lodge. The lodge being set in its own Reserve, it is designed in the typical Namibian style with beautiful far-reaching views from the dolomite hill on which it stands. The design is characterised by wood and stone interiors with relaxed soft furnishings. In the afternoon you will enjoy a sundowner drive with the lodge.

Today you will travel to the Ongava Reserve. Upon arrival you will be spoilt to a sundowner drive on the Reserve.

Enjoy a full day in the Etosha National Park today, exploring the area with your guide. 

Etosha is Namibia's flagship national park.  The park’s main characteristic is a salt pan so large and can be seen from space.  Yet there is abundant wildlife that congregates around the waterholes so we would recommend a self-drive to one of the many, giving you almost guaranteed game sightings.  At the same time Etosha National Park is one of the most accessible game reserves in Namibia and Southern Africa. 

During the dry season, staking out a position at a waterhole viewpoint is a rewarding way to watch game without moving from one spot.  A veritable 'Noah's Arc' of species queue up to take a drink, with elephants hogging the lion's share. Game such as zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, springbok, impala and eland abound in great numbers on the grasslands and congregate at waterholes in the dry season.  Herds of fifty elephants are not unusual and often walk right down the middle of the road giving people in cars an incredibly close and thrilling encounter.  Lions and hyenas must be searched for, but silver-backed jackals trot around almost oblivious to you.  The desert dwelling oryx, upon which the mythical unicorn must surely be based, will certainly be seen here along with the impressive curly horned kudu.  Etosha also contains endangered black rhino and unusual species like the black faced impala - a larger and darker subspecies found only in southwestern Angola and northwestern Namibia.

Etosha boasts a wonderfully diverse birdlife with every kind of feathered friend.

You have come to the end of your safari. Today you will be transported back to Windhoek by your guide in time for check-in on your outbound flight.

Take care of all formalities and bid farewell to Namibia; we wish you a safe journey home.