9 Day Best of Namibia Safari

This 9 Day Best of Namibia safari is an ideal tour for first-timers to Namibia, as it gives you an excellent overview of some of this country's most popular and spectacular highlights. As a scheduled tour, you get the benefit of traveling as part of a small group with your own dedicated, expert guide.

Please ask us about booking this tour as a private departure, with no other guests on board. This costs more, but with a private departure the itinerary is flexible and can be customised to your liking.

Scheduled departures are 100% guaranteed with a minimum of one person and a maximum of seven people per safari. These scheduled tours depart on a Tuesday and finish the following Thursday. There are selected departures on a Saturday, too. (Private departures will cost more, and can depart on any day of the week).

Basic Itinerary

• Day 1 & Day 2: Windhoek to Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert
• Day 3 & Day 4: Coastal town of Swakopmund, the adventure capital of Namibia
• Day 5 & Day 6: Explore Damaraland highlights
• Day 7 & Day 8: Game drives in Etosha National Park
• Day 9: Visit Wildlife & AfriCat Centres en route back to Windhoek

Day 1: Windhoek to Sossusvlei area

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Lunch, dinner and excursions with your guide

You'll be collected from your guesthouse or Windhoek International Airport should your plane land before 07h00. Setting off in a safari vehicle with your own private guide, you'll head southwest through the scenic Khomas Hochland highlands, down the Great Escarpment into the vast Namib Desert, stopping for a picnic lunch along the way. Towards mid-afternoon, you'll arrive at your accommodation for the next two nights. Activities include exploring the centuries-old Sesriem Canyon and towering red Sossusvlei dunes with your guide or simply relaxing and enjoying the tranquil desert views from the lodge.

Day 2: Sossusvlei/Namib Desert

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and excursions with your guide

Up early, you'll head for the Namib Naukluft National Park with your guide before sunrise to see the dunes in the soft, shadowy morning light. These are some of the highest free-standing dunes in the world. Your guide will share insights into how this desert was formed and how the incredible variety of curious creatures, plants and wildlife have adapted to these fierce conditions. You'll enjoy a picnic brunch under a shady camel-thorn tree with the option to explore Dune 45, Elim Dune, Sossusvlei and Dead Vlei. You'll return to the lodge for a late lunch. If you haven't already managed it, a trip to Sesriem Canyon is on the agenda or enjoy some leisure time at the lodge.

Day 3: Sossusvlei to Swakopmund

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner

[Optional sunrise hot air balloon safari over Namib-Naukluft and Sossusvlei dunes in the morning before departing for Swakopmund. This activity needs to be pre-booked and involves an additional cost.]

En route to Swakopmund, you'll witness the ever-changing vistas of this captivating land, including the Gaub and Kuiseb Canyons. Passing through coastal Walvis Bay, you'll continue northwards to Swakopmund, a popular German colonial-style seaside resort that enjoys cooler coastal air. You'll have time to explore the town and waterfront before dinner at a popular local seafood restaurant. A centrally-located guesthouse in Swakopmund will be your accommodation for the next two nights.

Day 4: Swakopmund

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner

After breakfast, your guide will drive you to Walvis Bay for an unforgettable kayaking adventure where you have every chance of encountering Cape fur seals, dolphins, pelicans, flamingos, numerous seabirds – and hopefully, whales, turtles and sunfish.

You'll also take a short drive to Pelican Point and its lighthouse. Light refreshments will be enjoyed on the beach. If you prefer, you may opt for a motorised boat trip and savour snacks of fresh oysters washed down with local sparkling wine instead of kayaking!

You'll have the chance to explore Walvis Bay's waterfront area before returning to Swakopmund for an afternoon at leisure at your guesthouse or around the town. A host of activities can be booked at an extra cost such as camel rides, scenic flights, quad-biking, dune buggies, tandem or solo skydiving and more. Swakopmund is known as the adventure capital of Namibia.

Day 5: Swakopmund to Damaraland

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and excursions with your guide

Heading off to the northeast today, you'll encounter the diverse and dramatic Damaraland. Passing Namibia's highest mountain, the Brandberg (2,573 metres), you'll be able to view wildlife and take in the vast expanse of scenery. This ancient wilderness area is characterised by incredible displays of light and colour, rugged flat-topped mountains, intriguing rock formations and odd-looking vegetation.

Time permitting, you'll visit the prehistoric Twyfelfontein rock engravings (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), one of Namibia's key national monuments and the geological phenomena of Burnt Mountain and Organ Pipes (or they'll be saved for tomorrow's highlights).

The next two nights are at a desert camp nestled amongst an outcrop of gigantic granite boulders in the heart of Damaraland with easy access to nearby local attractions.

Day 6: Damaraland

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and excursions with your guide

After an early breakfast, you'll go on an exciting 4x4 game drive to explore the river valleys and search for wildlife, including the famed desert-adapted elephant. There's an option to stop for a picnic lunch en route and to visit the local attractions if you haven't already done so. Once you return to camp, you may have time to go on a guided nature walk or you can simply enjoy some well-deserved downtime if you prefer.

Day 7: Damaraland to Southern Etosha National Park

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and game drives in a private game reserve

Another early start sees you setting off for Ongava, a beautiful private game reserve along the southwest border of Etosha National Park. You will arrive in time for an afternoon game drive in open safari vehicles.

Day 8: Etosha National Park

Includes

• Overnight accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and game drives in Etosha National Park and Ongava Game Reserve

Game viewing in Etosha National Park is extremely rewarding. Home to 114 mammals and over 340 bird species, you have every chance of seeing elephant, lion, giraffe, wildebeest, eland, kudu, gemsbok (oryx), zebra, cheetah, leopard, hyena, honey badger and warthog, along with the endangered, endemic black-faced impala. Etosha is perhaps most famous for its salt pan, which is so large it is visible from space and its waterholes, each one different from the other, drawing wildlife that varies from season to season.