Namibia safari and holiday
| country: | Namibia |
| departures: | 2010: 17 Apr, 29 May, 10 Jul, 31 Jul, 21 Aug, 18 Sep, 16 Oct |
| price: | From £3535 (13 days) including flights from the UK. Price includes meals. This trip can also be booked without flights |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
A truly varied small group trip which includes safari drives in the renowned Etosha National Park, rich with wildlife including lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant, rhino, and giraffe and where wildlife viewing comes relatively easily. Opportunities for activities include a dolphin cruise, excursion to a Himba tribe, scenic flights, eco-quad biking on the sand dunes, deep sea fishing and horse riding. Highlights of the trip include tracking leopard at a big cat rehabilitation project and a dolphin cruise where seals regularly jump on the back of the boat!
Accommodation is in mainly small, luxury lodges where the focus is on African décor, hospitality, and excellent cuisine. The lodges all have stunning settings and give guests varied perspectives on the vastly different Namibian landscapes. Our guides are local to the area, and have an intense passion for nature and their country. Their ability to speak local dialects gives guests a privileged insight into the intriguing local tribal cultures, whilst their well-trained game-spotting skills and expert knowledge of botany and wildlife provide for a unique and informative experience.
Accommodation is in mainly small, luxury lodges where the focus is on African décor, hospitality, and excellent cuisine. The lodges all have stunning settings and give guests varied perspectives on the vastly different Namibian landscapes. Our guides are local to the area, and have an intense passion for nature and their country. Their ability to speak local dialects gives guests a privileged insight into the intriguing local tribal cultures, whilst their well-trained game-spotting skills and expert knowledge of botany and wildlife provide for a unique and informative experience.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | After checking in to a small B&B in Windhoek, we take a tour of the city before dinner. |
| Day 2: | Drive north, stopping at a local craft market en route. This afternoon, visit a cheetah / leopard rehabilitation foundation: activities may include cheetah tracking, learning about their welfare programme and watching the feeding programme. |
| Day 3: | Drive to Etosha National Park, arriving in time for some late afternoon game viewing before returning for dinner at our lodge accommodation. |
| Day 4: | A full day’s game viewing in Etosha National Park, widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest wildlife viewing areas. t |
| Day 5: | Another full day’s game drive through Etosha National Park, leaving the park through the southern gate before sunset to arrive at luxury accommodation. |
| Day 6: | Drive to the west of Etosha National Park, spotting game en route. Game drive this afternoon into the western side of the park. After dinner, the nocturnal wildlife gives a different perspective on a night drive. |
| Day 7: | Drive into Damaraland: this afternoon, short hikes to view prehistoric rock engravings as well as some of the area’s fascinating geological formations. |
| Day 8: | Drive to the coast. The town has some great craft and gift shops, and you may choose to take a wander before dinner. |
| Day 9: | Today is free for optional activities, including a marine boat cruise, scenic flights over the coastline, golf and excursions to visit a Himba village. |
| Day 10: | Drive into the Namib desert. This afternoon, visit Sesreim Canyon before relaxing at the Lodge for a free afternoon. |
| Day 11: | An early morning drive into the desert for a walk on the dunes. Visit Sesreim Canyon before returning to the Lodge for a free afternoon. |
| Day 12: | Drive back towards Windhoek where we stay at a private concession which also provides a big cats experience in their natural environment. |
| Day 13: | An opportunity to explore Windhoek with its craft market and shopping opportunities before being transferred back to the airport. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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Admission fees to the Big Cat rehabilitation project ensures that the valuable work undertaken by the charitable foundation is supported. The foundation has rehabilitated over 80% of cats back into the wild since its work began. Our visits to the rock art sites in Damaraland are lead by local guides, and fees paid for our tours are reinvested directly back into the local community. We stay at eco-friendly, locally owned and managed lodges which have been built using local materials and which blend into their environments. We recommend eco-friendly activities for optional activities, use local guides in rural areas and aim to minimise our impact on all the destinations we visit.
Our guide on this trip is local, his wildlife spotting skills and knowledge of the flora and fauna will make for an informative and exciting experience. His knowledge of local cultures will provide a valuable insight when passing through different tribal areas, and guests will be fully briefed about local customs and traditions before visiting local villages. We use accommodation that is small and locally owned, ensuring that the costs are retained in the local economy. We travel in small groups of up to 8 people, to avoid overwhelming local communities and to give our guests an overall better experience. Small group travel means we can get off the beaten track and use small lodges and guesthouses that tend to be more homely and personable. Our local ground handler is particularly supportive of local conservation projects, and the company has its own trust, funded by a percentage of its revenue. The aim of the trust is to give tangible assistance to African people and their environment in their efforts to achieve economic viability without doing harm to natural habitats and wildlife, thus utilizing both on a sustainable basis for the benefit and enjoyment of future generations. We have forged a link with the Child Hope Initiatives Project in Windhoek, which provides basic numeracy and literacy teaching programme to 50 orphans. Guests are invited to bring items to donate to the project such as stationery, basic English books, toys and deflated footballs or other sports equipment. A visit to the project is possible as part of the city tour on day 1. We are a wholly online company, and do not produce paper brochures. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |