Namibia – through the country of the wide horizons

1st day: arrival in Windhoek

arrival and transfer to the Na´ankuse Lodge, a private reserve at only 20 km from the airport

optional tours in the afternoon 

– meet a Bushman family (San) in their traditional village
– walk with a cheetah or a Caracal
– the carnivore feeding

During the evening presentation of the group members and dinner.

2nd day towards ETOSHA NP

Drive towards the eastern part of the Etosha National Park. Accommodation in the lodge nearby the entrance.
included meals: breakfast and dinner.

3rd day ETOSHA NP
Safari within the eastern part of the national park. For optimal light conditions and sightings we get up very early and luckily we will meet groups of lions, elephants, giraffes and, of course, many antelopes. The peculiarity of the Etosha is its vast salt pan, a huge white plain forming the background for the most stunning wildlife pictures. Our travel period has been chosen with purpose: it’s the end of the dry period, water can be found only in the waterholes and so chances are good that we will have great animal sightings. One of the most scenic waterholes is the one of the next camp, Okaukuejo, where we can observe animals during sunset and, who wants, even the whole night.
included meals: breakfast. Lunch free on the road. Dinner free (possibility to organize a barbacue in the camp).

4th day ETOSHA NP West

Today we will explore the western part of the national park, a part that only recently has been opened to the public. The landscape changes, becomes more hilly and the white background of the salt pan will be replaced by the red earth and rocks of the Damaraland. This is the home to some other animals than those we have seen over the past days – here we can encounter, for example, the rare Hartmann-Zebra.
included meals: breakfast and dinner. lunch free.

5th day HIMBA PEOPLE & DAMARALAND
We leave the Etosha park today and drive through a part of the socalled Kaokoveld, a very dry savanna, inhabited by the famous Himba people. We will visit one of their villages where the photogenic women will explain their live and how they produce their particular jewellery and body decoration. We will reach the Palmwag Lodge, our accommodation, in the late afternoon. It is situated in the land of the desert
elephants.
included meals: breakfast and dinner.

6th day DAMARALAND & OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES
Day for optional activities such as guided walks, tracking of the desert elephants or the rhino.
Included meals: breakfast and dinner

7th day SKELETON COAST – CAPE CROSS – SWAKOPMUND
Drive along the skeleton coast, socalled because of the dozens of shipwrecks that grounded here over the centuries. Around midday we will reach Cape Cross to visit one of the biggest seal reserves of Southern Africa (the number varies but it can reach up to 250.000 animals). We will have enough time to observe these fantastic animals and their little ones. We will reach Swakopmund in the late afternoon. Our accommodation is a charming, organic guesthouse.
included meals: breakfast. drive about 460 km/6 hrs.

8th day SWAKOPMUND – OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES
Day for optional tours departing from Swakopmund. Among the numerous activities offered we particularly suggest

• the “living desert”-tour: it takes us in the dunes directly outside town, which seams, at first sight, completely uninhabited. Our guide will show us instead, in a very funny way, how populated this habitat is. Find with him geckos, lizzards, spiders and with luck also a viper or a chamaeleon.
• “the scenic flight” over the Namib-Desert, the Kuiseb-Canyon and the skeleton-coast, about 40 minutes in a small aircraft.
• “Cruise in the Lagoon of Walvis Bay” where you can observe flamingos, dolphins, whales, cormorans and sometimes even penguins or sharks.

included meals: breakfast. Accommodation at the guesthouse.

9th day DRIVE THROUGH MOON LANDSCAPE TO NAMIB DESERT
Drive through the incredible “moon landscape” and the Kuiseb Canyon towards the famous dunes of Sossusvlei. On the road we will stop at Solitaire, a very special place, not only famous for the best apple cake in whole Namibia. Depending on the driving time and stops on the road in the afternoon we have time for a first exploration of the area around Sesriem.
included meals: breakfast and dinner. Accomodation at Sossusvlei Lodge.

10th day NAMIB DESERT
A whole day for the exploration of the dune’s landscape of Sossusvlei: climb “Big Daddy” or “Dune 45”, walk to the death vlei with the picturesque dead trees and much more. In the afternoon possibility for the exploration of the Sesriem Canyon.
inlcuded meals: breakfast and dinner. Accommodation at the Sossusvlei Lodge.

11th day NAMIB DESERT (OPTIONAL BALLOONING) – KANAAN
Don’t miss the ballooning over the Namib Desert and the fantastic red dunes at sunrise – a unique photographic opportunity! (optional activity). We continue our journey in late morning and reach our next accommodation around midday. It is a private reserve, called Kanaan. Here we can take part in walks through the wild landscape of the Tiras mountains and take pictures of wild cheetahs (some of the activities are not included in the price) Accommodation in the lodge (fixed en-suite tents), breakfast and dinner.

This wonderful location is also a perfect spot for astrophotography.

12th day LUEDERITZ & KOLMANSKOP
In the late morning we drive southwards to Luderitz, a little harbourtown. In the afternoon we visit Kolmanskop, an abandoned diamond-miner’s town with a very special atmosphere, a must for photographers. The houses, the coloured rooms, the bathrooms and stairwells – everything half covered by the sand of the desert.
Accommodation in a hotel. Breakfast included. Drive about 230 km/3 hrs

13th day KOLMANSKOP & KEETMANSHOP
We return to Kolmanshop with the first morning light to catch the magic moments. Thereafter we continue our journey towards Keetmanshop to a private guestfarm with wonderful photographic opportunities.
included meals: breakfast and dinner.

14th day KALAHARI DESERT
Today we will make a little side trip to the Kalahari desert that we reach in the afternoon. The lodge offers a variety of optional tours such as a walk in the desert, a visit of a bushman family, a game drive and much more. Even this is a perfect spot for night shots.
included meals: breakfast and dinner.

15th day DRIVE TO WINDHOEK & DEPARTURE
Depending on the flight departures we reach Windhoek airport in the afternoon/evening.