Namibia

From sand dunes and wild coastline to lush, river-fed plains and dramatic mountains, Namibia is a country of extraordinary and varying landscapes.

The untamed and ruggedly beautiful Damaraland is home to the endangered black rhino and desert elephant, and a visit here enables guests to track these elusive animals on foot. The Skeleton Coast’s fascinating landscape is made up of mountain ranges, canyons and sand dunes, with Cape Fur seals and seabirds living alongside each other. Further north, the Etosha National Park is teeming with wildlife, including lion and large herds of elephant.

From the red sand dunes of Sossusvlei to the wooded bushveld of The Caprivi, and the surprising lushness of the Kunene River, Namibia is a diverse and fascinating spectacle of nature.

Scott Dunn’s highlights for Namibia:

Visit the Hartmann Valley by the Skeleton Coast, and rent quad bikes to explore dramatic dunes in the Namib Desert.
Rise early to take a balloon ride over the barren landscape of the Namib Desert at sunrise.

Damaraland is the area of wild desert mountains between the desolate plains of the Skeleton Coast and the plateaux of central Namibia. Its incredibly sparse population is made up mainly of the Damara people, after whom it was named, and this expanse of wilderness is one of Africa’s outposts of truly ‘wild’ life, where visitors can sometimes see zebra, giraffe, elephant and even black rhino.

Consisting of 22,270 sqkm of saline desert, savannah and woodlands, the Etosha National Park is one of the largest game reserves in Africa. Its definitive feature is the Etosha Pan, a vast, shallow depression of approximately 5,000 sqkm. For the greater part of the year the pan is a bleak expanse of white cracked mud which shimmers with mirages on most days.

Namibia’s Skeleton Coast, both fascinating and captivating, is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Referred to by Namibians as “the land God made in anger", this extraordinary, dramatic coastline got its name from the numerous whale skeletons covering the shores during the old whale-hunting days, and over a thousand shipwrecks hurled at the sands by the wild sea and offshore fog.

Sossusvlei is undoubtedly most famous for pictures of its soaring red dunes, their vibrant colours bursting into life as the sun rises behind them. You’ll have to rise early to catch the dawn but every minute of lost sleep is worth it. Sossusvlei is the most accessible part of a 300km-long, 150km-wide sand desert and the best way to get a feel for the the expanse is to climb one of the dunes.

Lying like an outstretched arm protruding from the north-eastern corner of Namibia, The Caprivi is home to several of Africa’s mighty rivers including the Okavango, the Kwando, the Zambezi and the Chobe. The region is a mosaic of waterways, bushveld and floodplains. Wildlife viewing can include exceptional birds, hippo, elephant, lion, giraffe, buffalo and antelope.

Namibia’s capital is pleasingly multi-cultural, its 160,000 inhabitants reflecting the country’s varied ethnic mix, as well as a European influence. Windhoek is the hub for all international flights and can be accessed direct from Johannesburg, Cape Town, Maun (Botswana) and London. It’s a delightful place to stop for a night and dust yourself down after a long journey.