8-Day Namibia Desert and Etosha Safari with Sossusvlei and Twyfelfontein

• Collection time will be between 09h00 and 09h30 from your hotel of choice within Windhoek.
• We will start our drive through the Khomas Hochland Mountains, along the breathtaking landscapes of the Namib Desert to Sesriem, surrounded by the highest dunes in the world.
• Enjoy the tranquility of the desert and let the day fade out with a gin and tonic while watching the sun go down on the horizon.

Driving time for the day: ± 4 hours.

• In the early morning hours, we will enter the Namib-Naukluft Park and head towards Sossusvlei.
• We will experience sunrise at the famous Dune 45, with a spectacular colour-changing effect in the sky.
• Afterwards, the drive continues to Sossusvlei. From here, we will discover Dead Vlei as well as Sossusvlei, where you will have the opportunity to climb the highest dunes in the world.
• In the meantime, your guide will prepare your well-deserved breakfast picnic under a shady camelthorn tree.
• After the meal, we will head back to Sesriem, where we will visit Sesriem Canyon, probably the smallest canyon in the world.

Return to the lodge in the afternoon for lunch.

• Start your day with a scenic drive through the breathtaking Namib Desert, passing canyons, mountains, and stunning landscapes.
• Arrive in Swakopmund, Namibia's top coastal holiday resort, known for its relaxing atmosphere and adventure activities.
• Enjoy options such as scenic flights, boat trips, dune boarding, and quad biking.

Driving time: 4 to 5 hours with several sightseeing stops en route.

• The rest of the day is free to explore the charming seaside town of Swakopmund.
• Stroll through the shops, visit the open-air curio market, or relax on the beach, though the Atlantic waters are chilly. You can also discover the local museum or the Namibian National Marine Aquarium.
• For the adventurous, optional activities include boat tours with oysters and champagne, scenic flights, quad biking, sandboarding, fishing, skydiving, and more.
• Your guide will help arrange activities based on your interests, at your own risk and expense.

Dinner today is not included in the cost of the safari and will be at the client's own expense.

• We will leave the coastal environment and drive inland past a couple of shipwrecks.
• Visit the Cape Cross Seal Reserve. This is a 60 sq. km reserve and has the largest seal colony in the world, with numbers reaching up to 240,000 at any given time. If these animals were humans, it could be the second-largest city in Namibia.
• After this activity, we will travel through Skeleton Coast National Park. The Namibian Skeleton Coast National Park is renowned for the cold and unpredictable Benguela Current of the Atlantic Ocean, which contends with the dune and desert landscape. This is a rarely visited park in Namibia with eye-catching landscapes ranging from sweeping vistas of windswept smaller sand dunes to rugged canyons with walls of richly coloured rocks and extensive mountain ranges. Wildlife here includes oryx, springbok, black-backed jackal, ostrich, brown hyaena, desert-adapted elephant, black rhino, and lions, which may be seen with luck.

• This morning, we will visit the Bushman rock engravings around Twyfelfontein before making our way to Etosha National Park. This area was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 and consists of over 40,000 rock engravings created by the San (Bushmen) people 2,000 years ago. It is a 45-minute walk conducted by local guides.
• We will then proceed to the Petrified Forest. This is a geological formation that occurred 280 million years ago. Huge trees were carried by a river and buried here. Sand was deposited around them, creating ideal conditions for the cells of the wood to be replaced by silica, and thus they became petrified. It is thought these trees are Dadoxylon arberi, the same tree responsible for coal fields in Europe. This is a half-hour walk led by knowledgeable local guides.
• The afternoon drive here is not guaranteed, depending on arrival time.

• Enjoy a morning and an afternoon game drive in Etosha National Park. Etosha means "Great White Place" in the local Oshindonga language, referring to the 4,800 sq. km salt pan that covers 23% of the park's surface area. The mammals include black and white rhinoceros, lion, leopard, cheetah, African elephant, plains and Hartmann's mountain zebra, Southern giraffe subs angolensis, eland, gemsbok, African wild cat, and spotted and brown hyaena, among other animals. It is quite unique in its own way, as the concentration and diversity around waterholes in the dry season is magnificent, giving one a chance to see animal dramas unfolding as they take turns to quench their thirst.
• We will be back at the lodge around midday and go back into the park in the late afternoon.
• Enjoy a siesta, the swimming pool, and the tranquility of the lodge. Etosha is a 22,270 sq. km park with 114 mammal species and over 350 bird species.

• Depending on your outbound flight, we can either leave early in the morning to catch a flight in Windhoek in the late afternoon, or do a morning game drive in Etosha and overnight in Windhoek.

This day marks the end of our trip.