Kgalagadi National Park + Namibia
APJ12U

You will be met at Upington Airport and transferred to your hotel in this small town that acts as the gateway to the vast Kalahari.

 

Check in and relax under warm blue South African skies.

This morning we travel 3-hours through the vast and arid Kalahari, one of the world’s last unspoilt ecosystems and one of Africa’s greatest wilderness areas. In this land of far horizons, marvel at the gigantic nests of the sociable weaver birds set high in camel thorn trees and stop to examine some of the amazing succulent desert plants which have adapted to survive in such harsh conditions.

  

The malaria-free Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a visionary 3.7-million hectare joint venture between South African and Botswana. There are several rest camps, with accommodation in simple but comfortable air-conditioned chalets and tents. Your guide has an allowance to cover your breakfast, picnic lunch & dinner every day you are in the park.

Today is devoted to game viewing, as we explore the vast Kgalagadi National Park. As you will have the services of an experienced private driver/guide throughout your safari, you will have the flexibility of discussing preferred routings and travelling times with him each day. However we recommend setting off early each morning as the camp gates open (05h30 to 06h00 depending on the season), to take advantage of the best game viewing conditions of the day. Because of the heat, all game drives will be in an air-conditioned vehicle with your guide.

 

Wildlife is plentiful in the red sand dunes and semi-desert of this vast game sanctuary, which is twice the size of the Kruger National Park. Of the many species of mammals and reptiles that have successfully adapted to the harsh desert conditions, the most famous is the black-maned Kalahari lion. Kgalagadi is also renowned for the magnificent oryx, cheetah and leopards - which are more easily seen in the sparse vegetation. You will see some of Africa’s most unusual animals in the Kalahari and many of the “great cats” – lion, cheetah and leopard – but the vegetation does not support elephants, rhino or buffalo.

 

We hope to see some big cats before returning to camp for breakfast. The rest of the morning can be spent relaxing at camp, reading or bird watching, before enjoying a picnic lunch (included) and setting out again at the time of your choice (usually the late afternoon) for another game drive.

 

We should see large herds of antelope including springbok, eland and blue wildebeest. We also hope to see the brown and spotted hyena, black-backed jackals, curious meerkats, yellow mongoose, porcupines, honey badgers, bat-eared foxes, Cape foxes, African wild cats and many other interesting animals. Bird life is also prolific, with over 260 species, including 20 different raptors.

After some final game viewing, today we depart the great Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park through Mata Mata Gate and after completing border formalties enter Nambia.

 

We travel northwards for 4-hours along the edges of the vast Kalahari, the largest sand mass on earth. With its endless plains interspersed with Acacia trees and shrubs, this harsh environment is home to the Bushman people as well as an amazing variety of wildlife.

 

Enjoy a picnic lunch along the way, as we view the unique fauna and flora that have survived in this desert environment for thousands of years, before we check into our guesthouse.

Today we travel for 5-hours through ever-changing landscapes to the great Namib Desert, stopping for a picnic lunch (included) along the way.

 

The terrain becomes more arid as we travel towards Sossusvlei, whose great mountains of sand are a monument to the extreme forces of nature. Check in to your desert lodge in the Namib Desert and absorb the dramatically beautiful scenery.

An early start is imperative as this is the coolest part of the day and the best for photography, as you travel by 4x4 vehicle into the famous Sossusvlei, a clay pan surrounded by some of the highest sand dunes in the world – an endless sea of reddish sand stretching all the way to the distant horizon.

  

Its monumental star shaped sand dunes, some up to 1,000 ft (325m) when measured from the base, were formed by strong multi-directional winds. The warm tints of sand ranging from apricot to orange, red and maroon, contrast vividly with the stark white surface of the clay pans at their base.  This provides photographers with a spectacular display of images to capture.  

  

Climbing one of these dunes affords the energetic traveller an unforgettable experience of endless vistas across a sea of dunes. Time will also be taken to explore the impressive conglomerate gorges of the Sesriem Canyon, with its rock pools fed by the Tsauchab River. The erosion of many centuries has resulted in a narrow gorge, which in the rainy season sometimes fills the rock pools. The name Sesriem is derived from the six “rieme” (leather thongs) that early pioneers used to draw water from these pools.

Today we travel overland for 4-hours from Sossusvlei to Swakopmund, through the starkly beautiful Gaub and Kuiseb Canyons of the Namib Desert (picnic lunch included).

 

We visit Moon Valley, an unusual landscape formed by the valleys of the Swakop River and view ancient Welwitschia Mirabilis plants found on its vast gravel plains, before arriving in the charming seaside town of Swakopmund with its old lighthouse and easy access to the sand dunes and activities of the Namib.

 

Swakopmund is situated on the Atlantic Coast where the cold Benguela Current sweeps up from Antarctica, releasing no moisture into the prevailingly onshore winds – hence the very low rainfall and desert conditions. Fog is common along the coast in the early mornings and late afternoons and this is what gives life to the desert-adapted flora and fauna of the region. The cold current is also highly oxygenated, causing it to teem with marine life. Check into your hotel and relax on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.  

This morning enjoy a 3-hour Marine Cruise from Walvis Bay to view the resident school of dolphins and large seal colony at Pelican Point, whilst enjoying oysters and champagne on board.

 

Marine bird life is abundant and includes pelicans, terns and large flocks of flamingos which live in the shallow waters surrounding the harbour. You may also see migrating whales in season (September to October). Afternoon at leisure in Swakopmund.

This morning we travel 5-hours across the barren Skeleton Coast, renowned for its many shipwrecks and inhospitable coastline (picnic lunch included). It is here one finds a small lichen reserve, where a relatively large variety of these interesting and slow growing organisms are protected. We also stop to see the thriving population of seals at Cape Cross Seal Reserve and the many gannets and other sea birds in this area.

  

Continuing to timeless Damaraland, we take time to stop and explore the semi-desert flora and fauna of this region and its fascinating rock formations, as we travel through its vast uninhabited open spaces.

  

We also visit geological features in the area such as the Organ Pipes and the Petrified Forest where millions of years ago giant tree trunks were deposited and subsequently turned to stone. In the late afternoon check in to your lodge near Twyfelfontein.

Today we travel 5-hours through Damaraland to Etosha National Park, one of the largest and greatest game parks in Africa (picnic lunch included).

 

Etosha owes its unique landscape to a vast shallow depression – the Etosha Pan.  During the dry season it becomes an expanse of white cracked mud, shimmering with mirages and spiralling dust devils, with its open pans offering magnificent game viewing. Etosha is home to over a hundred different species of mammals, including cheetah, leopard, lion, elephant, rhino, giraffe, zebra and wildebeest.

 

Check into your rest camp near the southern entrance to the park and enjoy dining under the stars.

Today is devoted to game viewing in the famous Etosha National Park, one of the largest wildlife conservation areas in Africa surrounding an enormous salt pan that is the size of the Netherlands.

 

As you will have your own driver/guide throughout your safari, you will have the flexibility of discussing preferred routings and travelling times with him each day. However we recommend setting off early each morning as the camp gates open (05h30 to 06h00 depending on the season), to take advantage of the best game viewing conditions of the day, with all game drives in his vehicle.

  

Explore the vast Etosha Pan, which offer magnificent game viewing opportunities including springbok, oryx, black-faced impala and the small Damara dik-dik. A series of waterholes throughout the park guarantees rewarding game viewing, with Etosha being renowned for its vast arrays of plains game and its “great cats” which are more easily seen on the open pans - including cheetah and leopard.

  

The rest of the morning is free to relax by the rest camp waterhole. Enjoy a picnic lunch (included) before setting out again at the time of your choice (usually the late afternoon) for another game drive. With over 100 different species of mammals and reptiles in Etosha National Park, you can hope to see giraffe, hyena, kudu, springbok, warthogs, baboons and many other interesting animals. Etosha is also a bird watchers paradise, with hundreds of recorded bird species and many migrants during the summer months.

 

After a beautiful African sunset, enjoy the balmy evening and pristine stars of the Milky Way as you have never seen them before – as well as the spectacular Southern Cross.

Today we travel 3-hours through central Namibia to Okonjima (picnic lunch included).

 

This is the home of the Africat Foundation dedicated to the preservation of Namibia’s large carnivores, but especially leopard and cheetah. Namibia accounts for 25% of the world’s population of the endangered cheetah, which can be radio-tracked on foot in the rehabilitation area where they roam freely and catch their own prey. Leopards are also frequently seen from the viewing hide or can be radio-tracked from the game viewing vehicle.

 

Check in to your lodge and settle in, before enjoying a game activity in the reserve.

Transfer 3-hours through central Namibia to Windhoek Airport for your flight home.