ENG | FR
Reviews

Namibian Safaris & Cultural Tours

Africa through the hearts of the people

Email us about this tour

Kaokoland Combo Special Tour

18 Days / 17 Nights

This Special tour is a combination of self drive and guided, and visits many of Namibia's top destinations, specialising in the remote and magnificent Kaokoland where you will be joined by a guide.

Kaokoland, Namibia

*This tour can be Fully Guided or a combination of Self Drive (Days 1 - 5 and Days 11 - 18) and Guided (6 - 11).

B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner
Itinerary
Tour Dates
Map

Day 1

Flight

Fly overnight to Namibia via Johannesburg or directly via Frankfurt.

Day 2

Windhoek - Otjiwarongo

Your safari starts at the airport where your guide will meet you. If you are doing a self-drive tour, you collect your vehicle.

Depart from Windhoek towards the north in the direction of Okahandja. If time permits, stop at the large open Craft Market here, which boasts crafts from all over southern Africa, including Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and South Africa.

Enjoy lunch on the road before arriving at the lodge where you will overnight. Dinner at the lodge.

[Out of Africa Lodge or similar | L D]

Day 3

Otjiwarongo – Etosha National Park

Continue northwards into the Etosha National Park, arriving in time for lunch at the lodge.

The Etosha National Park spans an area of 22 270 square km, a large part of which is taken up by a vast salt pan. This beautiful barren and often haunting landscape is surprisingly abundant in game, which often congregate around the various waterholes scattered around the park, allowing for some spectacular game viewing. The park is home to hundreds of species of mammals, birds and reptiles, including several threatened and endangered species such as the black rhinocerous. Visitors can expect to see many buck species, elephants, giraffe, rhino and lions. If you are lucky you will see leopard and cheetah. After good rains, the salt pan fills with water attracting a mass of flamingos. More than 340 bird species have been counted in the park.

In the afternoon, go out on your first game drive where you will experience Africa's wildlife up close. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.

[Namutoni or Halali | BLD]

Day 4

Etosha National Park

Today will be a full day of safari game viewing allowing plenty of opportunities for good sightings and spectacular photographs. After breakfast at the lodge, go out on our morning game drive. You will enjoy lunch in the park/lodge and then return to the game drive in the afternoon. Travel through the park and into its southern regions. Have dinner and overnight at the Okaukuejo lodge or similar.

[Okaukuejo or similar | BLD]

Day 5

Etosha – Opuwo

Today you will enter Kaokoland. Kaokoland or Kaoko is a beautiful remote area situated in north west of Namibia. Its a very mountainous area and home to the Ovahimba, one of the semi nomadic tribes in southern Africa. This tribe makes its living by small subsistence farming mainly with cattle, goats and sheep. The area is also home to a wide variety of wildlife including springbok, oryx, elephant, giraffe, lion, rhino and the desert adapted elephant.
We will have dinner and spend the night at Opuwo Country Lodge.

[Opuwo Country Lodge | BLD]

Day 6

Etosha – Opuwo – Orupembe

If you are on self-drive, you will meet up with the guide in Opuwo or continue with the guide. Depart through beautiful, pristine landscapes in the direction of Orupembe. We will have a picnic lunch en route.
Dinner will be enjoyed under an open African sky prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients.
We will spend the night in tents.

[Campsite | BLD]

Day 7

Orupembe – Marienfluss

Breakfast will be at the camp prepared by the guide with the aid of the clients
Today we visit the village of one of the last remaining nomadic tribes, the Ovahimba. You will learn about their different ways of living and their daily activities. This ancient tribe of semi-nomadic herders have managed to survive and keep their traditions despite the harsh desert environment in which they live. They wear few clothes apart from a loin cloth or goat skinned mini skirts. The women are reknowned for the red ochre and fat (otjize) which they rub over their bodies to protect themselves from the sun, and which gives their skin a rich red colour. They are also known for their jewellery and intricate hairstyles.

A picnic lunch will be had en route prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients before continuing in the direction of Marienfluss passing by the Hartman's valley.
We arrive at the campsite in Marienfluss which is based on the edge of the Kunene river and border between Namibia and Angola. You can easily see the mountains of Angola from the campsite.
Dinner will be made over an open fire by the guide with the assistance of the clients.
We overnight at the campsite in tents.

[Campsite | BLD]

Day 8

Marienfluss Valley

The Marienfluss Valley is situated in stunning, scenic landscapes between the Otjihipa mountans in the east and Hartmann moutains in the west. We will depart early for sunrise and a lovely breakfast in the bush. The rest of the day you will be free to explore and enjoy the wonderful natural surroundings.
Lunch and dinner will be prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients.

[Campsite | BLD]

Day 9

Marienfluss Valley – Purros

After breakfast we depart in the direction of Purros passing by the Rooidrom. We have a picnic lunch en-route. The area is one of beautiful vistas with great game viewing opportunities in a truly wild environment.
We arrive and check in at Purros Community Bush Lodge(self catering).
Dinner will be prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients.

[Purros Community Bush Lodge | BLD]

Day 10

Purros

Breakfast will be prepared by the guide.
We depart for a game and nature drive in the Hoarusib river bed in search of the reknowned Desert Adapted Elephants. Other wildlife in this desert area include desert adapted lions, giraffe, springbok, oryx, steenbok, Mountain Zebra, as well birds including the largest non flying bird, the ostrich.
Lunch will be had back at the bush lodge, prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients.
In the afternoon, we will enjoy a scenic drive and sundowner in the Namib desert.
Dinner at the lodge will be prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients.

[Purros Community Bush Lodge | BLD]

Day 11

Purros – Bivouac, Hoanib River

Breakfast is at the bush lodge prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients. We depart in the direction of the Hoanib river in search of the desert adapted Elephants. We pass through very scenic and unspoilt landscapes of mountains and plains, creating a feeling of being on the moon.
We enjoy a lovely picnic lunch in the middle of this magnificent wilderness, prepared by your guide.
Your last dinner will be a delicious typical African barbeque enjoyed under an open African star where the stars and Milky Way are vividly visible. Dinner:you last dinner will be a lovely typical African barbeque in the middle of nowhere on the open African sky with lots of stars as well as the milky way.
A night of bivouac in African nature.

[Bivouac | BLD]

Day 12

Bivouac – Twyfelfontein

Breakfast will be prepared by the guide with the assistance of the clients. Those continuing the self-drive tour (Self-drive), will be taken back to Opuwo to collect their vehicle. For those on guided tour, we continue straight to Twyfelfontein.

Travel into the stark, but incredibly beautiful Damaraland passing by Palmwag, where we will again visit the Ovahimba.
Visit The Living Museum of the Damara, which lies close to Twyfelfontein and is the first traditional Damara project in Namibia and the only one of its kind. Here you have the unique opportunity to experience traditional Damara culture. Together with the Bushmen, the Damara belong to one of the oldest nations in Namibia. Their original nation was a mixture of hunter-gatherer culture and herders of cattle, goats and sheep. Although their culture is now largely lost, the museum contributes to its preservation, as well as bringing in an income for the Damara community that built it.
You arrive at the lodge towards the end of the afternoon.

[Twyfelfontein Country Lodge or similar | BLD]

Day 13

Twyfelfontein – Swakopmund

After breakfast, visit the celebrated rock engravings of Twyfelfontein.
Twyfelfontein is the site of one of the largest concentrations of rock petroglyphs (engravings) and rock paintings in Africa. It consists of a spring in a valley flanked by the slopes of a sandstone mountain. The rock art forms an extensive record of ritual practices relating to hunter-gatherer communities in this part of southern Africa over at least 2 millenia. UNESCO approved it as Namibia's first World Heritage Site in 2007.
Back on the road again, you meet up with some of the locals along the journey. Pass by Namibia's highest mountain (Brandberg), which reaches about 2573 metres above sea level. Lunch will be enjoyed on the road, at a restaurant or at Uis, before continuing the journey to the coast. Have dinner at one of Swakopmund's many fine restaurants. You will overnight at the Prost Hotel or similar.

[Prost Hotel or similar | BLD]

Day 14

Swakopmund – Sossusvlei

Depart for Sossusvlei, travelling south. Lunch will be enjoyed on the road or at a restaurant. The journey takes you through beautiful, scenic landscapes, including passing by the Kuiseb Canyon and across the Tropic of Capricorn. You may even spot wildlife, including mountain zebra, springbok, ostrich and even suricate.

Arrive at the lodge during the late afternoon.

[Namib Desert Lodge or similar | BLD]

Day 15

Sossusvlei

Set out early after breakfast to visit Sossusvlei. The area is best known for its spectacular red dunes, some of which are considered the highest in the world reaching 300m. Sossusvlei itself is a large, white, salt and clay pan located in the midst of this ancient, red wilderness and provides wonderful photographic opportunities. Occasionally the pan fills up with water offering a fantastic spectacle as the glassy lake reflects the surrounding dunes.

Despite the harsh desert conditions in the area, one can find a wide variety of plants and animals here which have adapted to survive.

Lunch will be enjoyed at the lodge before setting off again to Sesriem Canyon. The canyon has been shaped over millions of years by the Tsauchab river and is one of the few places in the area that holds water all year round. It is up to 30 metres deep at points and about 1km long with a width of between 1 and 3 metres. The canyon is a fun and interesting place to visit. Walk through its narrow passageway viewing the different rock formations and exposed layers along the way.

Return to the lodge in the afternoon.

[Namib Desert Lodge or similar | BLD]

Day 16

Sossusvlei (Namib Desert) – Kalahari

After enjoying breakfast at the lodge, continue in the direction of Mariental and then into the beautiful Kalahari Desert, characterised by low red dunes and tree and shrub Savanna. A variety of game roams this scenic area and you may spot giraffe, kudu, zebra, oryx, blue wildebeest, eland and more. Arrive at your destination for lunch. In the afternoon, head off for a sundowner drive in an open vehicle. The lodge is situated in a private reserve of 10 000 hectares. Dinner and overnight at Anib Lodge or similar. .

[Anib Lodge or similar | BLD]

Day 17

Kalahari – Windhoek

After breakfast, you depart back in the direction Windhoek, where you will enjoy lunch. In the afternoon you go on a City Tour of Windhoek. You will spend the night at a guesthouse.

[Avani Hotel or similar | BLD]

Day 18

Windhoek – Home

After breakfast, we transfer you to the airport for your international flight back home. End of service and we wish you a warm return back home!

[B]

COST: N$ 69 200 per person

SPECIAL RATE for 2021: N$ 62 280 per person

MIN seats for this tour: 2
MAX seats for this tour: -

Departure DateReturn DateSeats Available

Please note: the route on Google maps does not show Marienfluss, which is indicated by a red marker at the northern border of Namibia.

Giraffe, Kaokoland Self-drive tour Himba woman