| D1: Windhoek - Okahandja |
| Meet and Greet |
| | - | Be met at Windhoek Airport by one of our experienced guides, who will explain your itinerary and give you valuable advice, as well as information to make your trip run smoothly and be utterly unforgettable. Our guide will answer any questions you may have, hand over all the travel documents that you may need such as maps and vouchers, and escort you to your designated transportation. |
| | - | Pick up your vehicle Europcar NA Classic Max Category P b:7-13 days at Windhoek - Drop Off Windhoek (Day 10) - 10 days  |
| | - | Overnight: African Dreams Guesthouse (Standard room - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D2: Okahandja - Etosha |
| Cheetah Conservation Fund's Education Centre(o) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Travel to Otjiwarongo |
| | - | Get your feline fix with a visit to the Cheetah Conservation Fund's International Research and Education Centre. Situated 44 km outside Otjiwarango, the CCF Centre was founded by Dr Laurie Marker and is the world's leading organisation dedicated to saving the cheetah from extinction. Loss of habitat, poaching and prosecution by farmers has led to the cheetah being the most endangered cat in Africa. The CCF Centre provides in-depth information about the cheetah, and what CCF is doing to ensure the survival of this species for future generations. Cheetah that cannot be released into the wild for various reasons are protected in this peaceful sanctuary and visitors can observe these big cats on a drive through one of the cheetah camps. (Optional rates: D2:Cheetah Conservation Center) |
| | - | Travel to Etosha |
| | - | Overnight at the Rest Camp: Okaukuejo Rest Camp (Double Room (A) - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D3: Etosha |
| Etosha Discover(n) • Guided Night Drive(o) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Full day game drive through the vast wilderness at the Etosha National Park. This spectacular wildlife park is dominated by a massive mineral pan, part of the Kalahari Basin, the floor of which was formed over 1 000 million years ago and fills up only for a short period of time when rains are heavy. Most of the year it is a shimmering mirage against which the long shadows of passing herds of game can be seen, providing a unique and stunningly stark landscape. Despite its aridness, the park is rich in wildlife and boasts the Big Five and over 100 other mammal species as well as thousands of birds that flock to the pan. During your game drive, stop at some of the waterholes to watch animals slake their thirst in the water. (n) (n) |
| | - | Guided Night Drive (Optional rates: D3:Guided Night Drive) |
| | - | Overnight at the Rest Camp: Okaukuejo Rest Camp (Double Room (A) - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D4: Etosha - Twyfelfontein |
| Petrified Forest(n) • Visit the Living Museum of the Damara. (n) • Stargazing (o) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Travel to Khorixas |
| | - | Touch trees of stone with a visit to the Petrified Forest, a remarkable site of fossilised tree trunks dating back to the paleontological era. Geological research has revealed that these trees belong to the pine family, and were washed down the continent in a massive flood to their current site, buried beneath hundreds of metres of sediment. Over millions of years, the pressure caused the organic material to be replaced by silica and completely transformed the trees into stone. The effects of erosion have exposed these tree relics, including two trees measuring up to 45 metres. (n) (n) |
| | - | Travel to Damaraland |
| | - | Engage with the enigmatic Damara people with a visit to the Damara Living Museum near Twyfelfontein. The Damara are one of the oldest nations in Namibia with no clear lineage attachment to any other tribe in Africa, making their origins somewhat mysterious and unique. During your visit you will gain insight into the daily routine of the Damara tribe as you watch blacksmiths making traditional tools and weapons and women producing pretty jewellery and crafts. Test your skills of traditional fire making while the tribe explains to you the importance of the Holy Fire – on object of reverence that is believed to bring good fortune in hunting and can be started only by the village headman as he rubs together sticks and murmurs a ‘magical formula’. Leather tanning to make traditional clothing, dancing, singing and traditional games will round off a memorable experience. (n) (n) |
| | - | Travel to Twyfelfontein |
| | - | Stargazing (Optional rates: D4:Stargazing) |
| | - | Dinner: Twyfelfontein Country Lodge |
| | - | Overnight: Twyfelfontein Country Lodge (Standard Room - Dinner, Bed and Breakfast (FIT)) |
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| D5: Twyfelfontein - Walvis Bay |
| Twyfelfontein World Heritage Site(n) • Cape Cross Seal Reserve(n) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Read the pictures that paint a thousand words at the site of Twyvelfontein in the heart of Damaraland. With over 2 500 rock engravings dating back 6 000 years to the hunter-gatherers of the Stone Age, as well as numerous Khoikhoi rock painting sites estimated to be 2 000 years old, Twyfelfontein has one of the largest concentrations of rock petroglyphs in Africa, and was declared Namibia's first World Heritage Site in 2007. The ancient engravings and paintings depict the lives of lost communities and the animals with whom they shared the landscape. Twyfelfontein is translated to 'doubtful spring' in Afrikaans, referring to the /Ui-//aes spring that that lies within the valley along the slopes of the sandstone plateau. (n) (n) |
| | - | Travel to Cape Cross |
| | - | Watch as seals frolic on the shores of the Cape Cross Seal Reserve. Located approximately 60 km north of the coastal city of Henties Bay on the Skeleton Coast, this reserve holds the largest breeding colony of the Cape fur seals in the world. Cape Cross is also where Portuguese explorer Diego Câo erected a stone pillar and cross to establish his claim on the territory in 1486. The original cross was removed in 1893 and taken to Berlin after the German possession of the land, and a replica made of Namibian dolomite was erected in its place. The reserve is open daily from 10am to 7pm. (n) (n) |
| | - | Travel to Walvis Bay |
| | - | Overnight: Oyster Box Guesthouse (Standard Room - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D6: Walvis Bay |
| Suggestion Swakopmund and Walvis Bay(n) • Dolphin Cruise(o) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Discover the Swakopmund and Walvis Bay area. The Namib Desert offers a life rich in amazing plants, insects and animals, completely adapted to this sand environment. From Swakopmund, activities such as a parachute jump, a camel ride, a tour of historic city or township buildings, or scenic flights in a small bush plane complete a wide range of activities. The Atlantic Ocean offers from Walvis Bay very interesting marine excursions such as boat cruises, kayaking, surfing, kiting and fishing. (n) |
| | - | Inhale the fresh, salty air as you prepare for a marine dolphin motorboat cruise to Pelican Point. The calm waters of Walvis Bay's lagoon are teeming with marine life. The cruise traverses the oyster lines, Walvis Bay Harbour and Pelican Point with its iconic lighthouse, where Cape fur seals play in the waves and come right up to the boat. Further out bottlenose and heaviside dolphins swim alongside the boat, and whales can be spotted between July and November. Flamingos, pelicans and even jackass penguins are common sightings during the cruise. Light lunch with oysters served on board. (Optional rates: D6:Marine Dolphin Cruise) |
| | - | Overnight: Oyster Box Guesthouse (Standard Room - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D7: Walvis Bay - Namib-Naukluft |
| Moon Landscape and Welwitschia Mirabilis(n) • Kuiseb Canyon(n) • Namib-Naukluft Introduction(n) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Travel to Namib-Naukluft |
| | - | Walk on the moon Namibian-style at the Namib Moon Landscape, a name given to a part of the valley of the Swakop River near Swakopmund. The lunar-type landscape, eroded by thousands of years of wind and rain, is awe-inspiring. The river that flows from time to time at the bottom of the valley brings a short-lived period of fertility to the region and the water allows some plants to survive in this hostile environment. Man tried to cultivate parts of this valley for agriculture at the beginning of the previous century, with little success due to the harshness of the environment. Discover the Welwitschia mirabilis, a botanical curiosity that is found almost exclusively in areas of fog of the Namib Desert. Some specimens are older than 1500 years. (n) (n) |
| | - | Capture hypnotic scenic images at the Kuiseb Canyon. The ephemeral Kuiseb River has carved an impressive nine kilometre long canyon which can be seen from the C14 road close to the town of Solitaire. This river is the dividing line between the endless rocky plains of the north and the sand dunes that end near the Orange River. After the rainy season in the summer, the Kuiseb River mostly dries up but some water remains at the canyon. Klipspringer, leopard, hyena, jackal and springbok can sometimes be spotted. (n) (n) |
| | - | Prepare to be mesmerised as you explore the enormous Namib-Naukluft National Park. The park covers an area of just under 50 000 km2, and is the largest nature conservation area in Namibia, and the fourth largest in the world. This is a vast, remote area encompassing dramatic landscapes, from an impressive mountain massif to desert plains and high dunes, to deep gorges and an estuarine lagoon. The Naukluft area is situated north-west of Maltahöhe on the road to the coastal town of Swakopmund at the edge of the Namib Desert. Amid the semi-desert landscape and mountainous escarpment, mountain zebra and other species of game can be found. Sesriem, the main entrance gate to the park, lies west of the Naukluft mountains, where the Tsauchab River disappears dramatically down a steep gorge at a huge, dried-up pan, called Sossusvlei. Here, the towering dunes, reaching up to 300 m high - among the tallest dunes in the world - extend as far as the eye can see, and their multi-coloured hues vary from pale apricot to vivid reds and oranges. Sandwich Harbour, 42 km south of the port of Walvis Bay, is a large, reed-lined marine lagoon home to many coastal and freshwater birds and only accessibly by 4x4 vehicles. (n) (n) |
| | - | Overnight: Sossusvlei Desert Camp (Standard Room - Accommodation only) |
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| D8: Namib-Naukluft |
| Sossusvlei and Deadvlei(n) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Spend a full day in the desert to see Sossusvlei and Deadvlei. Drive to the entrance of the national park at Sesriem. From the entrance, continue along a paved road for 50 kilometres and be mesmerised by the transition between the magnificent landscapes of the Naukluft mountains and those of the dunes. If you’re up to the challenge, you can climb Dune 45, the real star of the show, and probably the most photographed dune of all. Arriving at the car park signalling the end of the asphalt road, you can continue your way on the sand for 5 km provided you have a 4x4, or take the shuttle to the car parks serving the sites of Deadvlei and Sossusvlei. A few hundred metres’ walk in the dunes from the parking of the site you will discover Deadvlei, a clay bowl sheltering a dry, cracked lake. The contrast between the blackened trees, the white of the lake, the ochre of the dunes and the deep-blue sky is dazzling. Finally, discover the incredible site of Sossusvlei. All the splendour of the Namib is concentrated here. From the top of one of the dunes, a breathtaking sea of sand awaits you, filled with giant dunes, the highest in the world, some reaching 300 metres in height. (n) (n) |
| | - | Overnight: Sossusvlei Desert Camp (Standard Room - Accommodation only) |
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| D9: Namib-Naukluft - Windhoek |
| Spreetshoogte Pass(n) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Hold on as you ascend skywards in the Spreetshoogte Pass. This gravel road lies between the Khomas Highland and the Namib Desert and, at an elevation of nearly 1 800 metres, stands as the highest pass in Namibia. It was built almost entirely by hand and forms part of the district road D1275 between Rehoboth and Solitaire. Its sharp bends and steep gradients make it tricky to drive but those intrepid explorers who take up the challenge are rewarded with spectacular and unsurpassed aerial views of the dramatic landscape lying below. There is a viewpoint at the peak of the pass offering panoramic vistas of the Namib Desert, best enjoyed in the late afternoon when the sinking sun casts a shimmering glow over the desert terrain. The pass is only accessible by vehicles without trailers and trucks and caravans are forbidden to use it. (n) (n) |
| | - | Travel to Windhoek |
| | - | Overnight: Londiningi Guest House (Standard Room - Bed and Breakfast) |
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| D10: Windhoek |
| Windhoek tour(n) |
| | - | Breakfast |
| | - | Saunter the sidewalks on a city tour of Windhoek. The capital of Namibia lies at an altitude of 1 654 metres within the Khomashochland, a hilly plateau in the centre of the country. With its unique blend of European and African architecture, history and culture, the tranquil city has a slightly vintage feel. Its first inhabitants named the city as a "place of vapour, water or fire" due to the numerous hot water springs in the area. Following the arrival of the Germans in 1890 the city grew around a fortress, or the Alte Feste, and the Tintenpalast (Ink Palace), Namibia's parliament building. The Christuskirche, built in neo-Gothic / Art Nouveau style, rises above the city showcasing the German architectural influence of the time. (n) (n) |
