Namibia is not your typical African safari tour. With colossal red sand dunes and an eery shipwreck-strewn coastline, it’s a vast land for the truly intrepid traveller. Replete with desert-adapted wildlife, endless salt roads and more stars than you believed possible, every single step leaves a footprint on your soul.
The land that time forgot
Namibia is home to both the Namib desert and the Kalahari, this ancient land is a haven for seasoned luxury safari-goers in search of the sublime. Desert-adapted lion, rhino and elephant roam its desolate upper reaches, clouds of flamingos flood the Etosha salt pan, and where the Namib collides with the Atlantic Ocean on the infamous Skeleton Coast, foggy shores are littered with the casualties of treacherous waters, San whalebone shelters and sand-swallowed ghost towns.
Making history
Once a German protectorate, Namibia has a pre-colonial history dateing back tens of thousands of years, and its tribal roots and archaeological significance still define it today. The country’s mostly pin-straight borders nod to signature German precision amid the Scramble for Africa. Though. when it comes to the Caprivi Strip, a strange little pan-handle that muscles its way inwards towards Victoria Falls, you’d think those straight lines were having a day off. This odd, 280-mile stretch has an embarrassing history. Thinking the Zambezi would lead them to the Indian Ocean, the Germans fought tooth and nail to secure a piece of what they believed would be the ultimate cross-continental trade route. Too bad everyone forgot about the famous – and somewhat immovable – waterfall that blocks the way. Awkward.
Tribal roots
In the far north-western corner of Namibia, the Kaokoveld desert stretches over Kunene River and into neighbouring Angola. Home to the semi-nomadic Himba tribe, this is as far-flung as it gets. Much like Kenya’s Masai, the Himba are Namibia’s poster children. Famous for their use of otjize, a sacred, beauty-preserving mix of red-coloured clay, oils, and perfumes, their thriving culture is as fascinating as it is ancient. An African safari tour through their remote tribal lands is nothing short of a spiritual experience.
Come a little south, inland from the infamous Skeleton Coast, and you’ll find Damaraland. Here, among the desert-adapted animals that roam its other-worldly landscape, you’ll find rock engravings carved by the indigenous San bushmen. (And the odd scorpion in your hiking boot. Shaking your shoes before putting them on is a good habit to get into.)
Luxury desert safaris
While history and dramatic landscapes play an enormous role in a safari to Namibia, its game-viewing demands equal billing.
In the north, tribal interactions and wildlife sightings are the order of the day. Down south, the sweeping red dunes of Sossusvlei offer photogenic sand-and-star safaris filled with gemsbok and framed by romance. From the magnificent 325-meter Big Daddy to the panoramic views from Dune 45 to the iconic camelthorn trees of Dead Vlei, Sossusvlei is nothing short of spectacular.
Etosha’s waterholes also teem with wildlife, from black rhino and elephants to lions, leopards, cheetah, zebra, black-faced impala and wildebeest. Like Makgadikgadi in neighbouring Botswana, its vast white salt pans can be seen from space.
Up and away
Windhoek’s international airport forms an unassuming gateway to this part of the world, though getting to Namibia’s remote reaches is the enviable task of a network of tiny bush planes. While often long, these transfers are a safari in themselves as you whizz above elephants, shipwrecks and rolling sand dunes. (Your pilot may even let you sit up front – if you ask nicely.) Should you transit Swakopmund, a quick sip of north-meets-south amid its German bräuhauser and 1950s seaside pensions is always worth it.
