Fly to Sossusvlei

Flight:   Windhoek – Sossusvlei              1 hour & 10 minutes

• You will be met on arrival by our representative to hand over your travel documents
• Meet your pilot and check in for your flight and briefing before taking to the Namibian skies
• Private charter flight from Windhoek to Sossusvlei flying over the Namib Naukluft Mountain Range
• Road transfer to the lodge on arrival
• 2 night fi package includes:
  – Dinner, bed & breakfast
  – 1 x lunch on day of arrival or lunch packs on day of departure
  – 1 x Sundowner drive
  – 1 x Guided Sossusvlei excursion including a full picnic lunch in the dunes
  – Local branded drinks
• Highlights: Sossusvlei, Dead Vlei, Dune 45, Big Daddy, Elim Dune and the Sesriem Canyon

Overnight at Hoodia Desert Lodge (Fully inclusive)

Sossusvlei

The sand dunes of Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert are often referred to as the highest dunes in the world. Various arguments are laid out to support this claim, but all miss the point, which is that Sossusvlei is surely one of the most spectacular sights in Namibia. Located in the Namib Naukluft park, the largest conservation area in Africa, and fourth largest in the world – the sand dunes at Sossusvlei are just one excellent reason to visit Namibia.

The best time to view Sossusvlei is close to sunrise and sunset; the colours are strong and constantly changing, allowing for wonderful photographic opportunities. The midday heat is intense and best spent in the shade.

‘Vlei’ is the Afrikaans word for a shallow depression filled with water (well, a depression that might sometimes be filled with water!), and the name ‘Sossusvlei’ should strictly only be applied to the pan that lies at the place where the dunes close in, preventing the waters of the Tsauchab River from flowing any further – that is, on the rare occasions that the river does flow as far as this. During exceptional rainy seasons, Sossusvlei may fill with water, causing Namibians to flock there to witness the grand sight, but normally it is bone dry. This particular ‘vlei’ is actually a more-or-less circular, hard-surfaced depression that is almost entirely surrounded by sharp-edged dunes, beyond which lies a formidable sea of rolling sand, stretching in unbroken immensity all the way to the coast. However, the name ‘Sossusvlei’ nowdays applies to the whole area – an area that encompasses the great plain of the Tsauchab River together with the red dunes that march along like giant sentinels to south and north of the plain.

The second attraction of the area is Sesriem Canyon, which is only a few kilometres from the campsite, the entrance gate, and main Nature Conservation office. The canyon derives its name from the fact that early Afrikaner trekkers had to use six (‘ses’) leather thongs (a thong is a ‘riem’) so that their buckets could reach the water far below. The canyon begins as an almost imperceptible but nevertheless deep cleft in level, stony ground, and then widens until it finally flattens out onto the plain. Because it is so deep and sheltered, it often holds water well into the dry season – an invigorating sight in such a barren and stark environment.

Climbing to the top of Big Mama, as it is known to the locals, is well worth every bead of sweat. Catch your breath, take a drink and try to avoid camera shake before capturing some unique moments in your life. From the top you can see Naravlei; so-called because of the countless cucumber-like melons growing around the edge of the pan. The !Nara plant is a vital source of nourishment for many desert creatures, including man. Cessna Pan is to the east and the rocky ridges of Witberg have proved to be a valuable landmark for adventurers over the years. Dead Vlei is at the foot of Big Mama. Its’ dead camelthorn trees, some over 800 years old, stand helplessly as photographers worldwide attempt to capture that unique, ageless desert shot. Out of view from the 2×4 car park, tucked behind a dune, is Hiddenvlei. Many species of bird shelter here on both dead and live camelthorn trees. For most of the year all 3 vleis are little more than huge hollows in the ground with no water whatsoever.

The belief that nothing could survive in temperatures that surpass 40ºC during the day and fall to below freezing at night is a real one. Water is scarce but life still manages to exist under the sand. Tiny tracks at the base of Sossusvlei’s dunes give the game away. A fine example is the toktokkie beetle, one of over 200 species of tenebrionid living in the Namib Desert. Whilst under the surface they communicate between sexes by tapping their abdomens on the ground. The shovel-snouted lizard is another sub-sand survivor, a reptile that has the ability to store water in its body. Other desert-dwelling creatures drink droplets of the desert’s periodic fog or lick minute tear-drops of water trickling down rocks and plants. Others simply burrow a channel in the sand, an action that will allow them to accumulate moisture such as Grant’s golden mole. This amazing little rodent spends almost its entire life under the sand and as a result of this evolutionary adaptation, has no need for eyes.

You are more likely to see or be shown larger tracks though. Black-backed jackal, a notorious scavenger, springbok and ostrich tip-toe across the dunes frequently. Gemsbok (oryx) last for weeks without drinking water. Moisture is not allowed to leave the body and therefore they stop sweating. Some unique moments in your life can be small ones as well.

Overnight at Hoodia Desert Lodge (Fully inclusive)

Fly to Skeleton Coast

Flight:   Sossusvlei – Swakopmund       1 hour & 30 minutes (scenic) – refuel (30 minutes)            Swakopmund – Möwe Bay                    1 hour & 30 minutes

• Road transfer to airstrip for departure flight
• Private charter scenic flight along the Skeleton Coast to Swakopmund to refuel
  Highlights: Sossusvlei, sand dunes, old diamond mines, shipwrecks, Langewand & Sandwich Harbour.
• Private charter flight from Swakopmund to Möwe Bay
• Road transfer to the lodge on arrival
• Includes:
  – All meals, scheduled daily excursions, park fees & local branded drinks
• Activities: Game drives within the Skeleton Coast National Park, Sundowners and walks on the beach, fishing at the coastline (equipment provided), 4×4 excursions to the Clay Castles, the Hoanib River Delta and the Mowe Bay seal colony, visits to the Suiderkus and Karimona shipwrecks & drives along the Hoarusib River to track desert-adapted wildlife

Overnight at Shipwreck Lodge (Fully inclusive)

Mowe Bay

Overnight at Shipwreck Lodge (Fully inclusive)

Fly to Etosha National Park

Flight:   Möwe Bay – Ondangwa              1 hour & 25 minutes – refuel (30 minutes)
Ondangwa – Etosha                                  30 minutes

• Road transfer to airstrip for departure flight
• Private charter flight from Möwe Bay to Ondangwa to refuel and then on to Etosha National Park (east)
• Road transfer to the lodge on arrival
• Includes:
  – All meals, Etosha AM drive & Onguma Sundowner drive (daily), park fees & local branded drinks.
• Etosha is one of Africa’s great game parks. With 114 species of mammal and 340 species of birds you are sure to see a great variety of wildlife on your safari

Overnight at Onguma The Fort (Fully inclusive)

Etosha National Park

Overnight at Onguma The Fort (Fully inclusive)

Fly to Windhoek

Flight:   Etosha – Windhoek                   1 hour & 40 minutes

• After your morning activity as included, you will road transfer to the airstrip for your departure flight.
• Private charter flight from Etosha to Windhoek International Airport. Keeping in mind that you need to be at the airport 2 hours prior to your international departure flight time.

End of Tour