10-Nights Namibia: Epic Safari - Land Journey from $13,990

Tauck

OFFER ID 1499225

Namibia: Epic Safari

Embark on an epic 11-day journey to Namibia, home to the Big Daddy of sand dunes, desert landscapes alive with oryx, bat-eared foxes, zebras, lizards and more, pristine beaches that line the coast, and game reserves where rhinos flourish. A Bushman desert walk, behind the scenes visit to a wildlife sanctuary, ATV rides and more enable up close unforgettable discoveries. Pack your Tauck-provided rolling duffel bag for this ultimate 20-guest small group safari that flies you from place to place on small Cessna planes. From the desert, dunes and the Dead Vlei to a vast coastal wonderland and Walvis Bay where wildlife play to private reserves and a national park teeming with game animals, you'll discover the essence of Namibia in experiences that are in-depth, up-close and as unique as the country itself. Venture into different environs with expert guides at home wherever you travel and meet the Himba tribe, who live off the land. Learn about the wildlife that thrives here, the stars that own the night sky and conservation efforts underway to keep Namibia as pristine and protected as nature intended. And best of all, have fun along the way.

10 nights from $13,990 per person

Itinerary

Click here for Full Itinerary Details

Itinerary Details

Tauck World Discovery: Namibia: Epic Safari

Day 1 Windhoek, Namibia
Arrive Windhoek, Namibia

Tour begins: 5:00 PM, The Weinberg Windhoek. Welcome to Namibia! Enjoy an included transfer upon your arrival at Windhoek Airport to The Weinberg Windhoek, nestled on the grounds of the Am Weinberg Estate, in the center of the city. Enjoy a welcome reception dinner tonight at your intimate hotel.

Meals: D

Day 2 NamibRand Nature Reserve Namibia
Learn about life in the Namib Desert, from insects to brilliant night skies

Enjoy a flight to the NamibRand Nature Reserve, established to help protect and conserve the unique ecology and wildlife of the southwest Namib Desert. Spend two nights deep inside this private reserve at your luxury lodge where thatched-roof chalets feature unique star-gazing rooms that open to the sky. After lunch at the lodge, join a Bushman guide for a walk into the Namib Desert, hearing stories about desert life, both for the people who live here and the hardy insects and wildlife that survive in the desert plains; its resilient wildlife include oryx, bat-eared foxes, Burchell's zebras, and loads of lizards. Enjoy one of Africa's amazing sunsets before dinner at the lodge. Be sure to gaze up at the spectacular night sky; the reserve is Africa's first designated International Dark Sky Reserve and has been recognized as one of the least light-polluted and naturally darkest places on Earth.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 3 NamibRand Nature Reserve Namibia
Explore the towering sand dunes of Sossusvlei

Visit the spectacular red-tinted dunes of Sossusvlei this morning; the dunes are among the highest in the world, reaching a height of almost 1,300 feet. View them as you explore the region with an expert guide, stopping for an opportunity to climb 1,066-foot Big Daddy and a walk through the salt-and-clay pan known as Deadvlei, inhabited by fascinating fossilized trees. This afternoon, join us for an ATV excursion on the dunes around your lodge that you'll not soon forget; as an alternative, safari jeep rides will be available for exploring the area.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 4 Swakopmund Namibia
Fly to coastal Swakopmund where beaches attract local wildlife

After breakfast, enjoy a flightseeing excursion over the massive dunes of the Namib Desert and Sossusvlei, void of human intervention with the exception of its long-abandoned diamond mines. Continue soaring over the coastline, viewing an endless expanse of pristine beaches favored by the locals – seals and flamingoes! Touch down at Swakopmund for lunch and an afternoon at leisure at your hotel, steps from artisan shops and a craft market. Enjoy dinner tonight at your beachfront hotel.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 5 Swakopmund Namibia
Search for wildlife by kayak or catamaran

Drive down to the coast this morning for a choice of excursions; you can kayak amidst playful seals in Walvis Bay, rich with marine life, the bay is home to thousands of Cape Fur seals, bottlenose dolphins, flamingoes and pelicans, many of which you may spot today out at sea. Alternatively, enjoy a leisurely catamaran cruise in search of seals, bottlenose dolphins, flamingoes and pelicans (Please Note: This option does not go to Walvis Bay). Enjoy a seafood barbecue on the beach before returning to Swakopmund.

Meals: B, L

Day 6 Ongava Game Reserve Namibia
Visit a Himba village & fly to Ongava this afternoon

Board a charter for a flight to Opuwo, home to the indigenous Himba people living according to the traditions of their ancestors; Himba women are known for their use of red otjiize, a blend of red ochre and butterfat they use to beautify their bodies and hair. Enjoy an opportunity to interact with the women and children during a memorable visit to a tribal village; the men traditionally spend their days herding cattle. An afternoon flight brings you to Ongava Private Game Reserve on the border of Etosha National Park for a three-night stay in thatched en-suite chalets at a luxury lodge perched on a hilltop in the heart of the reserve. Your lodge features an amazing watering hole and a concrete blind – a partially underground, windowed enclosure that is close to the watering hole – enabling up-close wildlife viewing day and night. Enjoy a sunset game drive in the reserve before dinner tonight at your leisure.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 7 Ongava Game Reserve Namibia
Two game drives in the Ongava Private Game Reserve

Wake up early for a morning game drive in the reserve, looking for black-faced impala, lions, white and black rhinos, plains game and more with your expert safari guide, and stop at the Ongava Research Center to learn about the ongoing studies on the flora, fauna and environmental changes of the region. After lunch, embark on an afternoon game drive and then look for rhino on a guided walking safari. Join us for a traditional sundowner in the bush, before dinner tonight at your lodge. The sunsets are beyond magnificent.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 8 Ongava Game Reserve Namibia
View wildlife on a game drive in Etosha National Park

Etosha National Park is a haven for wildlife, boasting the continent's largest concentration of black rhino and other large mammals in abundance, including elephant, giraffe, lion, leopard, cheetah, wildebeest, kudu, oryx, eland and hartebeest. Spend a full day in the park, viewing the animals on a game drive in special safari vehicles. Return to your lodge mid-afternoon for time at leisure. Dine as you wish at the lodge tonight.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 9 Windhoek, Namibia
Wildlife Watching at your lodge, then on to Zannier Reserve

Enjoy a final game drive this morning on the grounds of the wildlife-rich Ongava Reserve and have lunch at your lodge, before heading to the airstrip for a flight to Windhoek. Upon arrival, drive out of the city to your luxury safari lodge in the Zannier Reserve, a 22,000 acre wildlife sanctuary set in a diverse natural habitat of near-desert savanna. Hundreds of rescued animals live in the wild here, including lions, elephants, leopards, cheetahs and rhinos. Stay two nights in thatched huts inspired by traditional Owambo architecture and nestled in the heart of the reserve. The Omaanda Lodge, whose name means rhino, overlooks the savanna all the way to the distant mountains, promising endless views.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 10 Windhoek, Namibia
Hold hands with baby baboons at a wildlife sanctuary

Your safari adventure continues today with a unique opportunity to meet and interact with baby baboons on a private behind-the-scenes visit to a wildlife sanctuary, bordering the reserve. The sanctuary provides a home to a wide variety of animals and birds, including meerkats, mongooses and rock hyraxes, along with monkeys, lions, leopards, cheetahs, African wild dogs, and more. A musical performance by local schoolchildren and a presentation on the on-going conservation efforts underway at the sanctuary follow, making for a most interesting morning. Enjoy lunch and return to your lodge. Join us tonight on the deck of your lodge as we toast a sunset spectacular to behold at a memorable sundowner, followed by a farewell dinner.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 11 Windhoek, Namibia
Journey Home

Tour ends: Windhoek East, Namibia. Fly home anytime. A transfer is included from Omaanda Lodge to Windhoek Airport, a 30-minute drive; allow a minimum of three hours for flight check-in at the airport.

Meals: B

Featured Destinations

Zannier Reserve

NamibRand Nature Reserve

Etosha National Park

Located about 250 mi/400 km north of Windhoek, Etosha Park is Namibia's best-known tourist attraction and one of the most interesting game reserves in the world because of its unusual terrain. Etosha is a combination of dried lake (salt pan) in the north and grasslands, dense brush and open plains in the south.

Etosha means “great white place,” so named because 25% of the country is covered by a huge salt basin that was an inland lake 12 million years ago.

The sun glints off the 6,500-sq-mi/16,835-sq-km salt pan—a dry, flat, shallow, silvery-white depression—providing an eerie backdrop for wild animals moving through the shimmering haze. Dust in the air adds to the mystery: Everything is slightly indistinct, and since mirages are common, we occasionally found ourselves questioning what we'd really seen. It's widely regarded to be a photographer's paradise, especially during the dry winter months, when wildlife congregates around the artificial waterholes that line the pan, allowing for excellent close-up sightings.

Etosha is home to around 100 large mammal species, among them the elephant, giraffe, zebra, leopard, cheetah, lion, kudu, spotted hyena and black-backed jackal. It is the only reserve where you are likely to see the range-restricted black-faced impala (distinguished from the normal impala by the black blaze on its face) and is also an important stronghold for black rhino.

A checklist of 340 bird species found in Etosha includes local specialties such as white-tailed shrike, and an impressive selection of raptors and ground birds such as bustards.

The prime watering holes are on the southern side of the park, but they're only full after the rainy season (December-March). The Kuvelai River, which feeds Etosha, either floods or dries up completely, vanishing into the sand.

The park is open year-round, but the best time to visit, for both climate and the best photos, is August and September. There are three camping/self-catering rest camps with facilities inside the park (Halali, Namutoni and Okaukuejo) and several private lodges just outside. Okaukuejo has a floodlit water hole for nocturnal viewing.

Ongava Game Reserve

Swakopmund

Sossusvlei

Windhoek

Vacation Details

Valid Date Ranges

09/24/2024 - 10/04/2024

from $13,990 per person

10/01/2024 - 10/11/2024

from $13,990 per person

* This departure has been designated a guaranteed departure by the operator, meaning that the minimum number of guests has been met, although still subject to weather and other conditions.

Prices Start At

from $13,990 per person

Length

10 Nights

Air City

Call for airfares from your city.

Vacation Rating

Deluxe

Remarks

Prices are per person, based on double occupancy, and subject to availability and change without notice. Prices reflect land only accommodations, airfare is additional. Blackout dates/seasonal supplements may apply. Itinerary and map subject to change. Offer subject to availability and change without notice. Some restrictions may apply. Please click here for a description of the travel style options provided by Tauck.

All fares are quoted in US Dollars.

OFFER ID

1499225

Reference this number when contacting our agency so we may better serve you. Also keeping this number handy will allow you to locate this document again quickly.

Request More Info!

OVERVIEW SUPPLIERS DESTINATIONS DEALS

Vacations Search

Between

And

Escorted Tours Only

Land Only Tours