15 Day: Namib Desert to Victoria Falls

15 Days | 14 Nights
Min: 2pax
Standard Tour

Sossusvlei, Namib Desert, Swakopmund, Etosha National Park, Damaraland, San people, Mahango National Park, Zambezi, Chobe National Park (Botswana), Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe)

This tour takes you through some contrasting, beautiful landscapes from the towering dunes of Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert to the cold Benguela Current of the Atlantic. You will experience the stunning beauty of Damaraland and the wildlife heaven of the Etosha National Park, before travelling through the fascinating Zambezi strip on your way to the awesome Chobe National Park in Botswana and ending at the mighty Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.

Starting from:
N$94 164 per person sharing
Min: 2 pax

We pick you up at your hotel /airport early in the morning and head down south to the small town of Rehoboth. Here you get a last opportunity to stock up on your goodies before we head west to the Namib Desert through the magnificent and spectacularly scenic Spreethoogte Pass. We make a quick stop for some exotic pictures overlooking the Namib landscape below. From there we stop for lunch in the desert restaurant at the small, iconic settlement of Solitaire and you are more than welcome to taste the famous apple pie at the desert bakery. After lunch we travel on to our lodge just in time to relax before an early dinner so as to get a good night's rest for the next day.

Today we wake up early to explore one of the most visited parks in Africa. We will stop to allow for your first sunrise picture in the Namib Desert on our way to Sossusvlei (translated as ‘dried up pan, or a shallow depression’ that can hold water after a very good rain). We will be driving through a dune corridor created by the towering dunes of the Namib. You can choose to climb on some of the popular dunes including Dune 45 (80-90 metres high) or the second highest, Big Daddy Dune, standing at ±312 metres above the surrounding plains. After climbing the dunes a 1km walk to Deadvlei is must-do. Once in Deadvlei we witness a surreal landscape of old Camelthorn (Acacia trees) silhouetted impressively against the dunes in the now dried-up lake. Trees here are estimated to be around 800 years old. This is one of the most photographed places on earth. After a visit to Sossusvlei itself we drive back to Sesriem before the heat of the day become unbearable. We stop for lunch at Sesriem camp and relax. In the afternoon we explore the fascinating geology of the nearby Sesriem Canyon. After that we return to the lodge bringing this exhilarating and adventurous day to an end

After a relaxing breakfast we travel along the edges of the Namib Naukluft Park in the Namib Desert. We stop for a geographical picture at the Tropic of Capricorn. From there we venture through the rugged terrain of the Namib, passing by two geologically impressive canyons, Gaub and Kuiseb, respectively. You will have the opportunity to test how far your eyes can see as we travel through the endless vastnesss of the Namib Desert approaching the coastal town of Walvis Bay. We stop for lunch at the picturesque waterfront while watching the pelicans and other coastal birds fly by. After lunch we pay a quick visit to the lagoon for some flamingo and other sea bird sightings before driving to our hotel in Swakopmund. After checking in, you can relax or stroll around the town. Dinner will be at one of the iconic restaurants in town.

Today you can join your guide on a tour of the Moon Landscape and Welwitschia Exploration. This exciting tour will take you to a bygone era as you experience a surreal landscape resembling outer space and study an ancient living fossil plant. Alternatively choose from an abundance of optional activities at the coast. Your guide can assist in arranging them. Examples are: quad biking, scenic flights, boat cruises, skydiving etc.

Early after breakfast we head north into Damaraland, but first we journey along the treacherous Skeleton Coast to the seal colony at Cape Cross passing by various shipwrecks and skeletons. At Cape Cross you are welcomed by almost 100 000 lovely Cape Fur Seals. It is one of the largest seal colonies on the African west coast. Take a picture next to one of the crosses erected by the first Europeans to set foot on Namibian soil.
After this visit we start to travel inland towards the massive Brandberg Mountain which is the highest point in Namibia at 2575m above sea level. The Brandberg is well known for housing almost 45 individuals rock painting done by the San people, some believed to be over 2000 years old, notably the famous White Lady painting. You will start to get a feel for the real Namibian lifestyle as we pass by the small mining town of Uis and several Damara villages and mini gemstone stalls along the road side.

The San people not only painted on the rocks but also engraved on them. We head to the world famous Twyfelfontein site to see one of the largest concentrations of petroglyphs ever made by man. These paintings were not created randomly, but rather express what the San community were going through at that time in the form of art. We can derive and interpret a lot of information from observing these mysterious images from time gone by.
There are a host of other available activities in the area, including tracking the elusive desert Elephants, visiting the Burned Mountain and the Organ Pipes, a geological phenomenon.
We arrive at our lodge in the late afternoon.

Before leaving Damaraland, the Damara culture is at your disposal at their Open Air Living Museum, where you can learn all about their culture and traditions. A visit to the Petrified Forest is a unique experience and worth seeing.

Afterwards we travel to the famous Etosha National Park, one of a largest wildlife parks in Africa. Here you are welcomed by thousands of animals in their natural environment. The park covers 22000 square km and is home to some of Africa's big game, including rhino elephant, lion and giraffe. For the next 2 day we will be exploring this magnificent wildlife kingdom. The vast expanse of the park makes it great for game viewing.
After dinner you are welcome to sit at the floodlit waterhole at the camp and watch the theatre of nature unfolding before your eyes as animals of all kind come down to drink.

Etosha National Park is one of Namibia's main attractions and sought after wildlife areas. It was proclaimeda wildlife protected area in 1907. The park currently covers an area of 22 000 square kilometres, of which approximately 4 700 square km is covered by the magnificent Etosha Pan. The Etosha Pan is a flat depression created many years ago by constant geological change. The Park is named after this endless white Pan. The first native tribe at the Park referred to the shimmering mirages on the endless horizon of the park as Etosha.

This park boast over fifty species of game and over two hundreds bird species. There is a huge population of springboks in the park amongst others. The contrasting vegetation zones of the Etosha National Park make it one of the best game viewing parks in Africa and it is a prime photographic destination boasting some good birding opportunities.

Today we continue tracking more of the Savanah big game as we pass by waterholes like the impressive Goas and dark water Nuamses. Today we will have a chance to take some stunning panoramic pictures as we head down to the Etosha lookout point where you have a 360° of the majestic Etosha Pan which is about 70km wide and 130 km long and covers an area of approximately 4 755 square km. We will get a chance to see more plain animals by mid-noon as they prefer to drink before it gets too hot. In the evening after dinner you can once again enjoy the sights and sounds of the floodlit camp waterhole as different animal come down to quench their thirst.

Today, we bid farewell to ETOSHA as we travel northeast. En-route, we pay a visit to the largest one piece solid meteorite on earth, just before the agricultural town of Grootfontein. Lunch will be provided en-route and after arriving at our next lodge, a visit to the San community in Tsumkwe awaits us.

The San people have held onto their centuries old practices and are one of the few tribes left in Africa that are still living their old traditional nomadic lifestyles. At their open air living museum, they will take us on an unforgettable cultural experience of a lifetime. Once we get there we will learn how they used to survive in the bush and they will demonstrate their traditions. You will learn how they track and hunt, and also about the different bushes they use for medicines and poison.