Namibia Explorer

Day 1: Windhoek

• On Arrival at Windhoek International Airport, your rental vehicle will be waiting.
• Once all the formalities for your vehicle have been sorted out a 45-minute drive to Windhoek awaits.
• Windhoek is a city of many contrasts with architecture from the German colonial era dating back to the turn of the century.
• The afternoon is at your leisure, visit many historical buildings or simply relax after your long flight
• Meals: Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Olive Grove Guesthouse

Day 2: Kalahari Desert

• After breakfast departure from Windhoek and drive into the red dunes of the Kalahari Desert.
• An afternoon guided tour (optional extra) to learn about flora and fauna of the Kalahari Desert is on offer.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Kalahari Farmhouse

Day 3: Fish River Canyon

• Full days drive awaits but fear not as the day is littered with scenic stops.
• First up is the picturesque Quiver Tree Forest, this prehistoric desert tree offers you some fantastic photographic opportunities.
• Next is an area called the "Giant's Playground", where massive boulders offer an extensive rocky labyrinth, again perfect for capturing scenic photographs.
• From here you will pass the small desert town of Keetmanshoop and onto the worlds seconds largest canyon, the Fish River Canyon.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Canyon Lodge

Day 4: Fish River Canyon

• Today is at your leisure, explore the various vantage points of the canyon.
• For the fit and healthy, take a walk to the bottom of the canyon (but be warned this is not for the faint-hearted and will take up most of your day).
• Optional activities in the area include; magical scenic flights over the canyon, horse riding, and sundowner drives.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Canyon Lodge

Day 5: Lüderitz

• The coastal desert town of Lüderitz awaits, with old-world charm and colonial architecture.
• Driving through the Prohibited Diamond Area to Lüderitz is something to behold, there is a chance to spot wild desert horsing along this road.
• An optional sighting seeing tour of the town is highly recommended.
• Seafood should be on your menu tonight; all catches are straight off the boats in the harbour below.
• Meals: Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: The Nest Hotel

Day 6: Aus

• Leaving Lüderitz, it is on to the ghost town of Kolmanskop a short drive away.
• Kolmanskop, abandoned over 50 years ago offers not only an insight into the glory days of the diamond fields but also photographic opportunities galore.
• Leaving Kolmanskop via the Diamond Prohibited Area, you head to the small town of Aus.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Desert Horse Inn

Day 7: Namib Desert

• Today spectacular scenery awaits, this is the day to see the famous Namib Desert dunes for the first time.
• The drive here is on a dirt road so please do not speed, take your time and enjoy the passing scenery.
• Your destination is the 21 000 hectare Kulala Wilderness Reserve and Kulala Desert Lodge.
• Kulala Desert Lodge is the closest lodge to Sossusvlei itself, located in a prime area for photography.
• Kulala Wilderness Reserve offers dunes to the West, the Namib escarpment to the north and the east, grassy plains with the famous "fairy circles".
• Meals: All Meals
• Accommodation: Kulala Desert Lodge

Day 8: Namib Desert

• Today is the day where you get to see and climb the dunes around the famous Sossusvlei on a guided morning drive.
• Have your camera fully charged and memory card empty, as you could easily take more than 500 photos this morning.
• The afternoon is at your leisure to relax and take in the surrounding scenery.
• Optional but highly recommend tours available include: a tour to the Namib Naukluft Mountains and/ an early morning ballooning safari over the Desert.
• Meals: All Meals
• Accommodation: Kulala Desert Lodge

Day 9: Swakopmund

• Leaving the Sossusvlei region behind, one heads toward Swakopmund via the Kuiseb Canyon.
• Again this is a dirt road, so drive slow and be careful.
• Highlights en-route to Swakopmund include the "Moon Landscape" and the ancient desert plant, "Welwitschia mirabilis".
• The popular coastal town of Swakopmund offers a relaxed atmosphere with superb seafood restaurants, a town where the desert meets the Atlantic Ocean.
• Meals: Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: The Delight Swakopmund

Days 10-11: Swakopmund

• Two days at your leisure await in Swakopmund.
• Optional activities include a variety of adventure tours, including quad biking, skydiving, and sand boarding.
• Drive a short distance and visit Walvis Bay, with the estuary here being an attraction for birding fans and photographers.
• Meals: Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: The Delight Swakopmund

Day 12: Damaraland

• Heading North along the Atlantic Coast from Swakopmund you can stop and visit the lichen fields just before Henties Bay before visiting the seal colony at Cape Cross.
• Heading into the Skeleton Coast National Park where a shipwreck is waiting for you to inspect and photograph.
• From the Skeleton Coast National Park the drive takes you out of the Namib Desert and into the Damaraland highlands.
• Damaraland offers up rugged and desolate landscapes, koppies and valleys.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Palmwag Lodge

Day 13: Damaraland

• This day in Damaraland is at your leisure.
• A wide range of optional activities are on offer from the lodge; we highly recommend the Desert elephant tour and the Ovahimba Excursion.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Palmwag Lodge

Day 14: Etosha National Park

• Heading towards the famous and wildlife-rich Etosha National Park area is the route today.
• A must do is the detour to visit the Petrified Forest.
• On arrival at the Ongava Game Reserve unpack and relax for a while and time-dependent an afternoon game drive is on the cards.
• In the late afternoon/ early evening relax at Ongava Lodge's veranda and take in the wildlife visiting the floodlit waterhole in front of you.
• Meals: All Meals
• Accommodation: Ongava Lodge

Day 15: Etosha National Park

• Today you self-drive through the Etosha National Park from west to east, a stunning days drive awaits.
• Your destination is Mushara Lodge on the outskirts of the Park.
• During the day you get the chance if lucky to spot and photograph Lion, Leopard, Elephant and Black Rhino as well as visits of the Etosha Pan itself.
• Meals: Dinner, Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Mushara Lodge

Day 16: Africat Foundation

• Today drive through the town of Tsumeb and onto the "Hoba Meteorite" and "Otjikoto Lake", these two sites are well worth the stop.
• Africat Foundation is the destination for today, a non-profit organisation dedicated to the conservation and protection of Namibian wild cats.
• The chance to get up close and personal with the wild cats allows for some fantastically close photographic opportunities.
• Meals: All Meals
• Accommodation: Okonjima Bush Camp

Day 17: Windhoek

• Windhoek here we come.
• Your last chance to get some souvenir shopping done can be done just North of the city as you drive in or at one of the many shops within Windhoek itself.
• Arrival in Windhoek with check-in at the Olive Grove.
• Joe's beer garden is within walking distance of Olive Grove if you fancy some Namibian brews and German styled foods.
• Meals: Bed and Breakfast
• Accommodation: Olive Grove Guesthouse

Day 18: Namibia Explorer Self Drive Safari Ends

• Head towards Windhoek International Airport at your own pace after some last-minute shopping.
• Please get to the airport 3 hours before departure to hand your vehicle back and get checked in well ahead of the departure flight.
• Bid farewell to Namibia!
• Meals: Breakfast