Day 1 - arrive and transfer to N/a'an ku se
The lodge at N/a'an ku se is a unique experience, where guests will see the important conservation work the Foundation is carrying out in Namibia, meet some of their resident carnivores and learn about the ancient San Bushmen - one of the oldest cultures in the world. The Foundation is home to several cheetahs and other carnivores that cannot be released back into the wild.
Your two night stay at N/a'an ku se includes the following activities:
- Carnivore Feeding Tour: during the drive, visit the resident baboons, cheetah, leopard and wild dog. Watch them being fed and learn their individual stories.
- Ancient Skills Academy: learn about the San culture, about the signs and tracks of the bush, learn fire making with traditional San fire sticks, make bows and arrows, make jewelry and crafts and watch their singing and dancing!
- Sunset and Night Drive: the perfect way to end a day - enjoy a bush drive before stopping at a hidden view point where you will have drinks and watch the sun set. Watch out of nocturnal animals as you drive once the sun has gone down.
- Your choice of either San Stories Under the Stars or a Guided Nature Walk.
Day 3 - N/a'an ku se to Okonjima (280 km, around 3.5 hours)
Transfer from N/a'an ku se to Windhoek, where you will collect your hire car. Once the administration is done and you are armed with your map, head north out of the city, towards Okonjima Nature Reserve, home to The AfriCat Foundation.
Okonjima is world-renowned for having the largest free-roaming cheetah population in the world. The private reserve spans 22,000 hectares and is used to rehabilitate the carnivores under the care of the foundation. The reserve is also home to leopards, African wild dogs, hyenas and caracals.
AfriCat and Okonjima have dedicated their efforts into rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing large carnivores, with more than 1,080 released since 1993.
During your two-night stay at Okonjima, the following activities are included:
- Cheetah tracking on foot: begin your morning early, tracking cheetahs on foot with your guide.
- Leopard tracking by vehicle: what better way to end the day than a game drive in search of the elusive leopards, followed by a sundowner. Leopards are often seen at Okonjima, which is part of what makes it such a special experience.
- Guided Bushman Trail: join your experienced guide as you walk in the footsteps of the Bushmen. This easy and interactive 2.5km trail is much-loved by younger guests, where guides share centuries-old myths and legends of the Khoi-San people.
- Tour of the AfriCat Carnivore Care Centre, where you can meet some of the resident animals waiting to complete their rehabilitation.
Day 5 - transfer to Okakeujo Resort, Etosha National Park (250km, 3 hours)
After entering Etosha through the main Anderson Gate, you will game drive your way through to Okaukuejo, Etosha’s main rest camp, where you will check into your bush lodge. Originally the site of a German fort built in 1901, Okaukuejo now houses the Etosha Ecological Institute, founded in 1974.
After your evening meal there are chances to see Etosha’s big game at Okakuejo's famous floodlit waterhole, easily reachable within a minute or two on foot. The waterhole has been described as one of the “best game viewing opportunities in Southern Africa” and is the ideal venue to witness peculiar animal politics. Black rhino, Africa’s tallest elephants, lion, and numerous species of antelope are regular visitors.
Day 6 - Okaukuejo – East Etosha, Namutoni region
A full day’s worth of game driving awaits so you will want to leave early to enjoy the cool morning air, making your way to Halali camp, situated in the middle of the park. Along the way you will visit several waterholes and have magnificent views of the massive Etosha Pan, a shallow depression that is dry for the greater part of the year, but fed by moisture from perennial springs on the fringes. The pan covers about 25% of the park. Game viewing is excellent in this part of Etosha throughout the year.
Stop at Halali camp for a rest and a leisurely lunch, pay a visit to the waterhole and make use of the swimming pool, before continuing to the eastern side of the park, and your next stop at Fort Namutoni.
Day 7 - Namutoni - Okakeujo
Spend the morning around Namutoni’s numerous waterholes, enjoying the concentrations of water birds and huge colonies of flamingos. Take a slow drive back through the park, breaking for a rest (and probably an ice cream!) at Halali, on your way through to Okakeujo.
Take a drive north and west of Okakeujo camp and explore the quieter western side of the park, up to the Okahakana pan where you can enjoy a different view of the vast Etosha pan.
Spend late afternoon with a gin and tonic around the waterhole at Okakeujo, savouring the sites and sounds of the bush.
Day 8 - Okakeujo to Twyfelfontein, Damaraland (340km, 4 hours)
Leave Etosha early, and head south out of the park, turning off the main Windhoek road towards Khorixas (pronounced Korry-kas). Pass through stunning Koakoland and Damaraland scenery - a moonscape of fallen rocks and boulders, and beautiful red mountains.
You should arrive at Twyfelfontein in the early afternoon. Lunch can be taken at the lodge and is for your own account.
During your time in Damaraland, explore the Damaraland Living Museum, view the world-famous organ-pipes and visit the ancient 6,000 year old rock paintings - Namibia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. From the lodge you can also enjoy magnificent African sunsets and even a possible siting of the rare desert-adapted elephant.
Day 10 - Twyfelfontein - Swakopmund (330km, 5 hours)
From Twyfelfontein head into the desert and pass Namibia’s highest mountain, the Brandburg (2,573m), and more beautiful Damaraland scenery. Pause for a rest in the small (in fact, tiny) town of Uis, one of the best places to see and buy Namibia’s famous semi-precious stones.
Turn west and cross the gravel plains on your way to the Atlantic Ocean and the southern part of the Skeleton Coast. You will meet the ocean at Henties Bay and go south to the holiday town of Swakopmund. Wrap up warm as you approach the Atlantic coast - it can be brisk by the sea even in the height of summer!
There are a number of excellent restaurants, bars and cafe’s in Swakopmund and plenty of exciting activities to enjoy. You will be booked into a B&B, and activities and meals in Swakopmund are for your own account, to give you the flexibility to keep to you own time and do what interests you and your family.
We recommend:
- Dolphin cruise from Walvis Bay
- Quad biking into the dunes
- A living desert tour (very popular with younger visitors!)
- Sand-boarding
- (Budget permitting) - a light aircraft ride up the Skeleton Coast to view the shipwrecks
Day 12 - Swakopmund to Sossusvlei (350km, 5 hours)
Leave Swakop early and head south-east, crossing the desolate 'Namib gravel plains', before reaching the mountain desert. Traverse the spectacular Kuiseb and Gaub passes, driving to the river beds at the bottom and then back up the long steep road to the top! The scenery then changes as you head down to the dune fields. Cross open savannah and farmland and notice as it begins to give way to the immense red sand dune desert of the Namib.
Take a break at the tiny town of Solitaire, before heading to your lodge. Your goal is to reach 'home' during early afternoon, ready to take a dip in the pool and watch the colours of the sunset over the dunes.
Day 13 - Sossusvlei
Get up early and be at the gate to the park as it opens at 0600. Dawn is perhaps the best time to be in the park to watch the colours change as the sun rises. Spend the morning in and around Sosssuvlei, climbing Dune 45 and Big Daddy, and hiking to Dead Vlei, before the heat of the day catches up.
After lunch take a drive to Sesriem Canyon or just spend the afternoon relaxing around the pool and taking in the scenery.
Day 14 - Sossusvlei to Windhoek (350km, 5 hours)
Journey over the mountains and along scenic roads back to Windhoek, via the Khomas Hochland Mountain range.
Day 15 - return hire car and depart for home.
Family Self-Drive Overview - accommodated
1-2 | N/a'ankuse Foundation | FB |
3-4 | Africat Foundation, Okonjima Plains Camp | FB |
5 | Etosha – Okakeujo Restcamp | B |
6 | Etosha – Namutoni Restcamp | B |
7 | Etosha – Okakeujo Restcamp | B |
8-9 | Twyfelfontein Country Lodge (or similar) | DB |
10 | Swakopmund | B |
12 | Sossusvlei | FB |
14 | Windhoek | B |
15 | Depart for airport and home | B |
B = Breakfast; L = Lunch; D = Dinner; FB = Full Board (breakfast, lunch and dinner)