OUR 14-NIGHT SAFARI showcases the stark and intense beauty of Namibia, formerly called Southwest Africa. The semi-arid northwestern region of Kaokoland and Damaraland is characterized by rugged mountains and precipitous valleys. The west coast comprises the mysterious and hostile Skeleton Coast where desert gives way to black dolomite dunes and lava mountains collide with million-year-old Mediterranean Seabeds.

Our journey includes a night in Windhoek before flying in our private plane to the Sossusvlei, nestled in the Namib Desert, the oldest desert in the world. We spend two nights in this ancient desert where rolling and folding dunes look like melting ice cream in lemon and red hues. We walk through Sesriem Canyon, where the Tsauchab River has sliced through a gorge creating a gash 90 feet deep, exposes conglomerate layers that date back some 2-4 million years.

Experience Namibia’s geology on an amazing drive through the great escarpment experiencing numerous terrain changes and micro habitats that support unusual vegetation like the quiver trees, used by the San people for arrow holders, and the Euphorbia candelabra used by the bushman for arrow poison. The drive continues through the Tropic of Capricorn, the rugged Kuiseb canyon with its exposed sedimentation, to the Namibia’s spectacular coast and the seaside town of Swakopmund.

On a marine excursion, we see thousands of seals at the water’s edge. Walk along the black sand remnants of dolomite dunes and ancient seabeds that have eroded and carried to the coast. At Wallis Bay, thousands of pink flamingos provide a shock of moving pink against the blue water.

From the coast, we fly to Damaraland to track the elusive desert elephant along the dry riverbeds. Considered a sub-species of the African elephant it has a completely round foot which is quite soft due to the sandy terrain. The body is leaner, the two front legs are thinner and longer than the African elephant, and the tusks are shorter due to the shortage of calcium in their diet. The boulders of Damaraland sheltered rock paintings, and for the active and mobile, we’ll climb up and over the rocks to see these. There are also rock paintings reached by vehicle for those who wish to avoid climbing.

Our piece of resistance, Etosha Pan, is the largest saltpan in the world (22,000 square kilometers) supporting great concentrations of ostrich, elephant, giraffe, lion, cheetah, gemsbok, springbok, hartebeest, and black rhino which can be seen across the pan and at many of the water holes in the park.

Leaving the Salt Pans of Namibia, we bring you to Okonjima, where you’ll come face to face with cheetah - more than you’ve ever seen at one time, and all at close range. And, if you are extremely lucky as Kathleen’s group was in 2022, you might be rewarded with leopard sightings. We can’t guarantee it, but our excellent spotters will try their best.

The trip coincides with the start of the winter season when morning and evening temperatures will be cool, but daytime temperatures will be pleasant, in the 70’s. Far Fung Places has selected the May/
June period for this safari, just before the major tourist season, with cool and dry weather, and excellent game viewing.

The group will travel by two safari land cruisers with 6 window seats per vehicle plus the driver with a step ladder for ease of getting into and out of the vehicle.

Please inquire about our day-to-day itinerary for more details.

Land/Air Cost