WD09 tour: 13-Day Namibian Odyssey itinerary

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Okonjima Lodge

Okonjima Lodge

Etosha - Okaukuejo

Etosha – Okaukuejo

Opuwo - Kunene

Ongongo – Kunene

Twyfelfontein-Damaraland

Swakopmund

Windhoek

Windhoek

Sesriem

Sesriem

Depart Namibia

Accommodation

Accommodation

Camping

Camping

Camping

Camping

Camping

Chalets

Guesthouse

Guesthouse

Camping

Camping

    L, D

B, Brunch, D

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L

B

B, L, D

B, L, D

B, L

Day

Route

Overnight

1

After being met at Windhoek airport, we are taken north to Okonjima Lodge to rest and relax after our flight. Okonjima Lodge is the home of the Africat Foundation, where they are working for the conservation of big cats, especially leopard and cheetah. 

After lunch, there is time to take a walk or a swim. Mid-afternoon tea is served and then our Okonjima guide will discuss the options available for the afternoon. These options include visiting the cheetahs that Okonjima are trying to re-introduce to the wild (orphaned Cheetah are very difficult to put into the wild), or tracking some of the radio-collared leopard that they have in a 40 hectare area. It will not be possible to do both today, but there will be another opportunity tomorrow.

After supper there is a night hide available for those that can still keep their eyes open! From here you have a chance to see porcupines, caracal and sometimes leopard.

Driving time:  approx. 3 hrs (300 km)

Okonjima Lodge.

En-suite facilities.

Lunch and dinner.

2

An early morning allows us time to do another activity, such as visiting an area with rehabilitated cheetah that can’t be returned to the wild, taking a bush walk with an Okonjima guide, or tracking on foot some young cheetah that have been re-introduced to the wild. 

Brunch is served mid-morning, leaving the hottest part of the day as a time for relaxing, going to the hide or maybe taking a swim in the pool. Mid-afternoon tea is followed by another opportunity to visit Cheetah or track Leopard.

After dinner there is another chance to visit the night hide for those that wish.

Okonjima Lodge.

En-suite facilities.

Breakfast, brunch and dinner.

3

Early risers may have time for one last activity at Okonjima, before packing up and having a late breakfast. Then one of the Okonjima guides will drive us back to the main road where we will be met by our Wild Dog guide and continue north up to Etosha National Park, stopping for lunch along the way. Once at Etosha we organise our camp for the next two nights in Okaukuejo. There will be time for our first game drive before dinner. There is also a floodlit waterhole at the camp where there is a very good chance to see black rhino as well as other big game. 

Driving time:  approx. 3hrs  (250 km)

Okaukuejo Rest Camp.

Camping /

communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

4

We rise before dawn and, after a quick breakfast, we head out on an early morning game drive. Time to get out your binoculars and be alert to spot some of the hundreds of species of animals and birds which inhabit the Park. We will head east across Etosha to Halali, another rest camp. Here we will stop for lunch and relax through the heat of the day.  There is a swimming pool and kiosk. In the afternoon, we will return to Okaukuejo via another route, game driving the whole time.  After dinner, you can spend another evening watching game at the waterhole.

Game drives for the day

Okaukuejo Rest Camp.

Camping / communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

5

We have another early start to be ready to game-drive across the western half of Etosha.  This side of the Park is open only to Namibian-registered safari operators and, as such, we will see few other vehicles.  After lunch, we say good-bye to Etosha and continue north into Kaokoland. Our journey takes us through communal farmlands until we come to Opuwo, the capital of the Region. We will camp at a Himba community camp near the town.

Game driving and driving 

Driving time: approx. 6.5 hrs  (450 km)

Opuwo Community Camp.

Camping / communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

6

Today we will spend the morning getting to know the Ova-Himba people. They are a fascinating people who still hold on to their traditional way of life. We will visit some of their villages and learn about their way of life, and how they survive in this rugged part of the world. In the afternoon we will head south to Ongongo Falls, another community camp in a beautiful setting. There is a natural waterfall and pool at your doorstep.

Driving time: approx. 2.5 hrs  (150 km)

Ongongo Community Camp.

Camping / communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

7

A relaxing morning enjoying the waterfall and pool before heading south to Aba-Huab community camp. There is the possibility of seeing the rare Desert Elephant on the way.  After lunch we will arrive in time to set up our camp before driving to Twyfelfontein to see the petroglyphs and San (Bushman) paintings. It is a fascinating area made even more spectacular by the incredible rock formations.  Once again, dinner is under the starry African sky.

Driving time: approx. 6hrs  (490 km)

Aba-Huab Community Camp.

Camping / Rustic ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

8

Our day starts by travelling through the lovely countryside around the Brandberg - Namibia’s highest peak. After a quick stop at Uis, we then cross the gravel plains of the Namib Desert.  Our first stop on the Atlantic coast is the Cape Cross seal colony, where thousands of seals congregate on a rocky point, and where we stop for lunch. From here we go straight down the coast road to the seaside resort of Swakopmund.  You may explore the town on your own and head out to a pub after dinner, if you wish.

Driving time: approx. 6hrs  (380 km)

Chalet Accommodation.

Communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

9

There are many options available in Swakopmund to pass the morning, such as dune-boarding, quad-biking, flights over the coast or simply enjoying the sights in the town. We leave Swakopmund and drive back to Windhoek to return in the late afternoon. We will be in Windhoek for the next two nights in accommodation before heading south to the Desert.  Dinner can be taken at any of Windhoek’s wide choice of restaurants.

Driving time: approx. 5hrs  (350 km)

Guesthouse accommodation.

En-suite facilities.

Breakfast and lunch.

Dinner at own expense.

10

In the morning, we will be picked up by our guide and taken on a city and township tour of Windhoek and Katutura (optional). After lunch, we then have the afternoon to relax.  There are many good shops as well as Craft Centres, which are worth visiting.  There is also the Independence display at the museum situated in the original German fort.

Dinner is again at our choice of restaurant.

Guesthouse accommodation.

En-suite facilities.

Breakfast.

Lunch and dinner at own expense.

11

This morning we head off to see the sand dunes of the Namib Desert.  Our guide will collect us at 08:15. The drive takes us across the Central Highlands of Namibia and we will stop for lunch at the top of the Spreetshooghte Pass where there is a magnificent view of the Namib plains below. We then continue on to Solitaire and finally Sesriem, where we will camp for the next two nights. After making camp we may have time to visit the nearby Elim dune, before our evening meal camped under the starry desert sky.

Driving time: approx. 5hrs  (350 km)

Sesriem.

Camping /

Communal ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

12

We wake well before dawn and drive out to Dune 45 to watch the sunrise and have breakfast. We then continue on to Sossusvlei and some of the world’s highest sand-dunes. We can spend the rest of the morning walking among the dunes and marveling at the incredible scenery, with its endlessly changing colors and contrasts. We return to camp to relax during the afternoon or take a dip in the pool. Later on we can drive to the nearby Sesriem Gorge and walk into it.

Driving time: approx. 2hrs  (120 km)

Sesriem.

Camping / communal

ablutions.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

13

Unfortunately, this is the last day of our safari. There is the possibility of a scenic flight over the dunes first thing in the morning, which our guide can organize. Otherwise we have a leisurely start and, after breakfast, we pack up and leave Sesriem to make our way back north, once again travelling through the Highlands. Our route is not the same as the journey down, but the scenery is equally lovely. Stopping for lunch on the way, we arrive back in Windhoek at approx. 16:00. 

There will be a transfer service to the airport in time to catch onward flights.

Driving time: approx. 5hrs  (350 km)

Breakfast and lunch.