10 Days Canyons, Dunes & Big Game

Etosha, Fish River Canyon, Luderitz, Namib

This safari is the perfect combination for those that wish to ease into their safari experience. Departing every Tuesday, with a minimum of 4 people as from the 1st November 2011, the first 3 nights are spent in accommodation before heading south for 6 nights camping. Book your pre and post safari accommodation NOW!

Comfortable Lodge 3 nights + Adventure Camping 6 nights

DEPARTS: Every Tuesday from Windhoek
Price: on request
Maximum Group Size: 12 + 1 guide
Children: minimum 12 years old
Price valid until 31 March 2012

Contact us for your additional accommodation requirements; shuttle buses to Windhoek; Intercape Bus tickets for neighbouring countries or flight tickets with Air Namibia.

ITINERARY:
Day 1 LODGE, OUTSIDE ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK
We depart from Chameleon Backpackers Lodge, Windhoek 08h30. We stop briefly at Otjiwarongo and enjoy a road side lunch before entering Etosha National Park through the Andersen Gate and we have an afternoon game drive to some of the closer waterholes looking for predators as well as zebra, giraffe, elephant and rhino. We arrive at our lodge just before sunset outside the gates of Etosha National Park. Overnight is in twin share permanent tents with en-suite bathroom facilities. Dinner is prepared by your guide and an early night is recommended. (LD).

Day 2 LODGE, OUTSIDE ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK
We depart from our lodge at sunrise to be the first at the gate to the park and game drive ‘til mid morning when we will stop for a light breakfast. We visit many waterholes and drive half way across the park in our quest to find the big 4 as well as all the plains game arriving at Halali for a rest during the hottest part of the day. Here your guide will prepare you a delicious lunch whilst you have a dip in the pool or relax by the camp waterhole. Continuing after lunch you will visit the mighty Etosha Pan and have the experience of walking on the pan to feel the immenseness of this 4500 sq km saltpan (seasonal). We will then continue back to Okaukuejo calling into some well-known waterholes and leave the park prior to sunset. Twin share rooms or permanent tents with en-suite bathroom facilities. Dinner is prepared by your guide and another early night is recommended. (BLD).

Day 3 GUESTHOUSE, WINDHOEK
Early morning leisure breakfast and departure to Windhoek via Outjo and Omaruru. Your guide will give you a light lunch en-route to Windhoek, with a short stop in Okahandja for the Craft Market. Arrive in Windhoek late afternoon where you will be dropped off at your accommodation. Overnight tonight in twin share rooms with en-suite bathroom. Dinner is at your own expense. (BL).

Day 4 QUIVER TREE FOREST
Pick up time today is from 7h30 and then we start our long journey south, travelling through the thin strip of Kalahari Desert that protrudes onto the eastern side of Namibia. Stopping at small towns along the way including Rehoboth, traditional home of the Baster people, we aim to arrive at the Quiver Tree Forest in the middle afternoon. Located just north of the southern centre of Keetmanshoop, (officially the sunniest town in the world), we make camp and have time to explore the area on foot. Quiver trees are not in fact trees; they are a type of aloe, (Aloe Dichotoma), so called because the branches fork "dictomously". These weird looking plants dot the landscape in this part of the world and are locally common; however they are one of the world’s rarest flora species. Overnight camping with meals prepared by your guide on an open fire. (BLD).

 

Day 5 FISH RIVER CANYON
We leave Keetmanshoop and head further south to Fish River Canyon. We are heading to the main view point where we can see how impressive this canyon actually is. This is an ideal opportunity for photos and to spend some time experiencing this amazing sight. After lunch we then make our way to our campsite for the night which is a few hours drive away but still based on the top of the Fish River Canyon. Overnight camping under the stars with dinner prepared by your guide on an open fire. (BLD)

 

Day 6 KLEIN AUS VISTA, SOUTHERN NAMIB
It’s an early start to make the most of the morning and our visit in to the Canyon. Viewing from the top we can see the river sparkling in the sunlight far below us, and can barely imagine how many millennia it took for the forces of erosion to carve such a magnificent vista. It’s possible to make our way into the canyon and to the bottom of this the second largest Canyon in Africa. We have lunch and a dip in the cool waters before making our way out and back to camp. Time to pack up camp and move on to our next destination, the tiny town of Aus. We sleep tonight at Klein Aus Vista, a private reserve, beautifully located in the Aus Mountain Range, (Huib-Hoch-Plateau region). Overnight camping under the stars with dinner prepared by your guide on an open fire. (BLD)

Day 7 KLEIN AUS VISTA, SOUTHERN NAMIB
We are up with the dawn this morning for the short drive to Luderitz, we travel on the main road and keep a sharp look out for the unique Namib wild horses. These horses are the only feral horses in Namibia and have, very unusually, become adapted to an existence with very limited water.

We arrive in Luderitz in time to join an optional extra excursion, a trip on an old wooden sailing ship, "The Sedina". Alternatively you can spend the morning exploring Luderitz town, with its traditional German architecture and later we will take a drive out to Diaz Point to see the bird life, hopefully a few seals and the stone cross replica, originally erected by the Portuguese mariner Bartholomew Diaz.

Lunch today is not included in the program; this is to allow everybody as much flexibility with their time as possible and to give us the opportunity to sample some of the excellent local cafes. After lunch, we drive out to Kolmanskop, a desert ghost town about 20 km out of Luderitz. It was built in the 1920's during the diamond rush and was abandoned when bigger and better diamonds were found further along the coast. The area is still abandoned and the desert has encroached over the entire town, giving an eerie feeling and real meaning to the word "ghost". Returning to camp late afternoon we have time to relax before dinner and an early night is recommended. (BD).

N.B: The "Sedina" excursion is subject to availability and, if undertaken, will be for the clients own risk and expense.

Day 8 NAMIB DESERT CAMP, OUTSIDE NAMIB-NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK
Turning north, we once again head deep into the ancient southern Namib. The scenery is hard, and sometimes forbidding. The process of erosion in these areas is well advances and we pass time rounded 'koppies' arid terrain and outcrops of tortured rock. Our lunch stop will be near to Maltahohe at a Namib cultural centre so we can stop and learn a little of the culture and lives of the people of this region. We aim to arrive at our camp during the later afternoon and watch the colours glow and change on the mountains to the east. Overnight camping under the stars with dinner prepared by the guide on an open fire. (BLD).

Day 9 NAMIB DESERT CAMP, OUTSIDE NAMIB NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK
A pre dawn start is essential this morning as we want to catch the soft light of the sunrise on the desert. After passing through Sesriem, the gateway to the dunes and driving into the heart of the dune field, we reach Sossusvlei itself by walking the last 5km through the dunes. The walk is like nothing else, in the cool of the morning, with soft sunlight just beginning to play over the dunes creating a sharp light and shadow contrast across the whole desert. Ancient mineral pans, stunted camel thorn trees and the chance of seeing a gemsbok or maybe an ostrich make the photo opportunities perfect. We spend the morning in and around Sossusvlei, also visiting dune 45, and as the day wears on we return to Sesriem for lunch to escape the heat of the afternoon. As the day cools off in the late afternoon we will take a short excursion to the Sesriem Canyon. Overnight camping under the stars with dinner prepared by your guide on an open fire. (BLD).

Day 10 WINDHOEK
After breakfast we begin our journey, over the mountains and along scenic roads, back to Windhoek. We will travel over the Naukluft Mountains and also the Khomas Hochland Range, through beautiful mountain passes on our way back to civilization.

We are due back into the city around 16h00 and you will be dropped off at your accommodation on our return. (BL).

*Please note:  all tours' itineraries and duration can be changed and combined with other tours or included in a programs of a longer tours and safaris. All the above are available as a self-drive option.

Contact & reservations:

 
E-mail: info@namibweb.com

Reservations are only accepted in writing: by fax or via e-mail.
Final availability confirmation: in writing: by fax or via e-mail.

Terms & conditions, Payment options and Cancellation policy