Luxury Namibia Safari
Namibia’s iconic Skeleton Coast, diverse landscapes, desert-adapted wildlife and sweeping ochre dunescapes make this country one to remember. Journeysmiths can design your perfect desert adventure.
Known for its surreal landscapes, Namibia is a photographer’s paradise. It’s a unique place for a safari, too, with plentiful elephant, giraffe, lion and other plains game easily spotted thanks to the open setting. You might even catch a glimpse of black rhino – Namibia has the second-largest population of black rhino, just behind South Africa. Taking a scenic flight between desert lodges is the most time-efficient way to experience Namibia, but if you have the time, we can arrange a private overland safari so you can explore from the ground.
No matter how you travel through Namibia, you’ll want to include a visit to the atmospheric Skeleton Coast. See the haunting remains of shipwrecks and the enormous colony of Cape fur seals at Cape Cross Nature Reserve. The Etosha salt pan is another highlight, attracting giraffes, elephants, big cats and several species of antelope. Be sure to look up as darkness falls – the Namibian night sky comes to life in a vibrant display of stars, galaxies and planets. So exquisite is the darkness here that the NamibRand Nature Reserve has been a designated Dark Sky Reserve since 2012.
- Remarkable desert scenery.
- Excellent for safari year-round.
- View diverse deserts from the air during scenic flights.
- Privately guided overland safaris capture the sheer sense of scale in Namibia.
- Africa’s best star gazing.
- Unique outdoor activities including quadbikes and sandboarding.
- Superb Big Five game viewing in Etosha.
Etosha is a unique safari location in the heart of Namibia. The 1,900 square-mile Etosha salt pan is vast and extremely flat, creating an otherworldly landscape and one-of-a-kind location for spotting wildlife.
Damaraland is a glorious mix of Namibia’s diverse and dramatic landscapes. Take in the vast deserts, flat-topped mountains, wide canyons and classic savannahs, each proffering its own array of highly adapted wildlife.
Kunene, in northwestern Namibia, is among the most remote areas of the country. The Kunene River flows south through undulating dunescapes and rocky ridges, creating an unbelievable landscape flanked by golden-green grasslands.
Skeleton Coast’s ominous name comes from the shipwrecks and whale bones that litter the shore. An estimated 500 ships rest here, having long ago met their end against the harsh breaks of the Atlantic Ocean.
The giant red dunes of Sossusvlei are a quintessential sight on a Namibia safari. Landscapes here are surreal, with multicoloured sand formations and dramatic canyons, along with a surprising array of plant and animal life.
Swakopmund looks more like a village in Germany than a Namibian seaside town, but it’s a lovely stopover for boating and seal watching during your overland safari.
Sculpted by its namesake river, Namibia’s Fish River Canyon is the second-largest canyon in the world. Enjoy breathtaking views during guided day or multi-day hikes along the canyon’s edge.
The Caprivi Strip is the part that juts out from the north of Namibia over the top of Botswana. It’s a fertile, lush area unlike the rest of this spectacularly desert-covered country.
"The desert scenery in Namibia is seriously remarkable - there’s nowhere else quite like it. And at night, the sky is sensational, awash with thousands of stars. With such open landscapes, spotting roaming game is easier too and I’ve experienced some breathtaking game drives."
Travelling through Namibia, the scenery is ever-changing, each diverse landscape as impressive as the last. The country is known for huge red sand dunes in Sossusvlei, but there are many other iconic landscapes. Here’s our list of ten wonderful experiences to consider including in your Namibia safari.Travelling through Namibia, the scenery is ever-changing, each diverse landscape as impressive as the last. The country is known for huge red sand dunes in Sossusvlei, but there are many other iconic landscapes.
Here’s our list of ten wonderful experiences to consider including in your Namibia safari.
Unaffected by light pollution, Namibia’s night sky is astonishingly beautiful. An enchanting inky blanket, aglow with the light of thousands of sparkling stars. Stargazing allows us to reconnect with the natural world and there’s no better place for it than the NamibRand Reserve, Africa’s only Gold Tier Dark Sky Reserve and one of the darkest places on the planet.
Sossusvlei Desert Lodge even has its own observatory, telescope and resident astronomer who will share their knowledge of the night skies with you. With a skylight directly above your bed too, the celestial experience will continue all night.
Nothing prepares you for the visceral sensation of standing on the Skeleton Coast, a place that local Bushmen call “The Land God Made in Anger”. Fog-shrouded Atlantic breakers crash against the shore, and the beaches are littered with the carcasses of whales and shipwrecks.
But it’s also the place of the living, of immense seal colonies and skulking jackal waiting to pick off the young, the weak and the old. It’s desolate, hard to reach, and rarely visited by tourists, but for us, that adds to the appeal and makes it even more atmospheric. We’ll arrange a fly-in safari where you’ll explore on foot, hiking across coastal plains, in a vehicle, or even from the skies.
Towering red sand dunes, dry cracked earth, and ghostly trunks of dead trees form the stark beauty of Sossusvlei, one of Namibia’s most spectacular and best known attractions. The sand here is five million years old, tinged red by its iron oxide content and heaped to heights of over 80m.
To walk up famous Dune 45, the most photographically reproduced dune in the world, is strenuous but you are rewarded by panoramic vistas of the surrounding dune valley. These are some of the tallest dunes in the world, and yet they are soft and ever-shifting, as is the glorious light that illuminates them.
The rocky deserts of Damaraland are home to the largest number of free-roaming black rhino in the world.
Working with Save The Rhino Trust, we can arrange for you to spend time tracking these incredible and critically endangered animals on foot as you join the rhino rangers on their patrols. And, as well as enjoying this heart-pumping, and privileged experience you will be contributing to the protection of black rhino in Namibia as funds raised through this unique activity supports the work of Save The Rhino.
From the aerial perspective of a plane over the Namib Desert, along the Skeleton Coast, or through the Great Escarpment, you will come to know the country’s complex geology and fantastical landscapes in a way that’s impossible on the ground.
We work with experienced aviator brothers Bertus and Andre Schoeman who grew up introducing visitors to the wonders of Namibia by air alongside their father. They fly their small planes from Windhoek to some of the most alluring and remote bush camps and landscape locations, specialising in a four-day tour that is packed full of the best that Namibia has to offer.
In the extreme north west of Namibia, Serra Cafema camp sits on the banks of the Kunene River as it passes through the Marienfluss Conservancy. This is Himba land, and Serra Cafema Camp exists by the permission of these custodians, along with a continually growing partnership and shared responsibility.
As a visitor, you will have a chance to spend time with Himba people, to learn some of their desert secrets and to hear their stories and folklore whilst staring into the flames of a campfire. Humanity is built and maintained by connections; this experience of embracing another culture can be life-changing.
For more than a century, the Etosha National Park has been a protected area on the rebound from the ravages of big-game hunting in the 19th century. Now largely recovered, its landscape is dominated by the Etosha Pan, the vast salt pan which forms part of the Kalahari Basin.
Dotted with waterholes, Etosha supports populations of elephant, giraffe, lion and leopard, alongside white rhino and black rhino and a variety of plains game. We recommend staying on some of the excellent private reserves bordering the national park where you can enjoy the most exclusive wildlife encounters.
The name Namibia may be synonymous with the Namib desert, but don’t let that fact obscure your appreciation of the equally fascinating environment that lies on its western side; the coast and the abundant waters of the Benguela Current.
The area between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay is one of the best places in the world to see three different species of dolphins and, if you are visiting between July and November, you will also be able to see whales. There’s so much more than marine mammals too; huge leatherback turtles, sharks, orca, sunfish, seals and penguins.
At 160km long, as deep as 550m, and up to 27km wide in places, Fish River Canyon is the largest in Africa. Carved by the once mighty Fish River, the canyon is a maze of twisting gorges, incised plateaus and majestic rock formations.
For the most serious adventurers, we recommend that you take a specialist hiking guide who will organise camps and supplies along the way. Otherwise, there’s Fish River Lodge, perched on the rim of the canyon and open all year. From the deck of the lodge, you can gaze into the abyss and take walks into the surrounding 45,000 hectares of wilderness atop this marvel of the landscape.
The desire to produce art is one of the things that has defined us as a species and in Damaraland, you have the chance to engage with the humanity of the people who produced more than 5,000 petroglyphs and paintings at the UNESCO World Heritage site of Twyfelfontein.
Dating from as long ago as 4000BC, many images depict animals, but some are more mysterious, such as humans morphing into animals and are open to multiple interpretations. In the company of your expert guide you will learn about the paintings’ cultural significance to the local Himba people.
&Beyond’s Sossusvlei Desert Lodge is nothing short of magnificent, a secluded palace in a rugged oasis in the heart of the desert, lying beneath an endless sky.
Nestling among rugged boulders on a ridge that provides panoramic views over the surrounding area, Mowani creates the impression of an African village. The asperous landscape is a magnificent backdrop to the camp’s thatched cottages, and the desert-adapted wildlife remains completely undisturbed as its environmental footprint is so light.
Stay at Little Ongava, the natural home of luxury safaris in Namibia, to explore a beautiful private reserve and the thriving Etosha National Park, abundant with intermixed flocks and herds of uncountable numbers.
Set in one of the most private areas of Damaraland, Onduli Ridge is the perfect property if you relish tranquility.
Unique design set in the heart of Namibia’s sun-bleached coastal dunes, Shipwreck Lodge is one of Africa’s most innovative new camps.
In the local Herero language, Onguma means, "the place you don't want to leave." Having stayed here, we can say without question that you’re sure to agree.
Looking across the river the scenic mountains of Angola, a remote sense of peace envelopes you at Serra Cafema.
Natural Selection’s Hoanib Valley Camp is a joint venture between local communities and the Giraffe Conservation Foundation. It’s an elegant, intimate camp in the desert with strong ecological and sustainability credentials, reflecting the priorities of its local partners.
Watch oryx and other desert-adapted wildlife cross the highest sand dunes on earth when you stay at Little Kulala in Namibia’s stunning Sossusvlei.
The Strand Hotel is a modern, well-run property right on the beachfront, so you can walk out straight onto the sands and along the coast.
Set in a grove of ancient Kokerbome, Fish River Lodge has been carefully designed to echo the terraced and rugged terrain as well as the colours and textures of the landscape.
Nunda River Lodge sits at the entrance to Namibia’s beautiful Caprivi Strip just a short distance from the entrance to the Mahango Game Park nestled at the mouth of the Okavango Pan Handle.
Safarihoek is a spacious and elegant lodge with the main building on an elevated deck to catch the breeze and positioned under vaulted thatch, allowing for infinite 180º views over the plains below.
Okahirongo Elephant Lodge is surrounded by beautiful mountain landscapes and rugged tranquillity.
This luxury tented camp is situated close to the Hoanib River and straddles both the Palmvag Concession and the Skeleton Coast National Park. The Hoanib Valley is a truly unique environment, strikingly beautiful and remote. Staying at the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp you will see the valley at its finest, and get close to the wonderful wildlife residing here.
Treat yourself to an authentic desert camp experience when you sleep under canvas in the well-appointed luxury chalets at Wolwedans Dunes Lodge.
Hansa Hotel is the oldest and finest hotel in Namibia, a monument in its own right in Swakopmund. The building dates from 1905, so is an important part of the town’s architectural heritage, and is a very charming place to stay.
Canyon Lodge is located in a semi-arid remote region near the Fish River Canyon in the southern reaches of Namibia.
Lianshulu Lodge is located in the western section of the Caprivi Strip overlooking the Kwando River.
Elephant in Damaraland, Namibia
Wildlife in Etosha National Park
The Himba people of Kunene
Seal colony along Namibia's Skeleton Coast
Hiking in Namibia
The dramatic landscapes of Sossusvlei
Cheetah in the sand dunes of Namibia
Scenery of Damaraland
Sundowners in Namibia
We are a boutique travel specialist. For over 30 years we have been crafting the finest tailor-made holidays to the world’s wild places. Your time is precious and with a world to see, we understand the importance of getting it absolutely right for you every time.We are a boutique travel specialist. For over 30 years we have been crafting the finest tailor-made holidays to the world’s wild places. Your time is precious and with a world to see, we understand the importance of getting it absolutely right for you every time.
An experienced team of well-travelled individuals, passionate about crafting journeys that are as exceptional as they are personal, while maximising our positive impact on the places in which we work.
While the evolution of travel and technology has seen much change at Journeysmiths over the years, our fundamental beliefs about the perfect holiday have not.
Journeysmiths mission is to inspire and expand peoples horizons through exceptional travel experiences, while preserving the natural world for future generations.
We highlight the top ten Tanzania family safari adventures.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu was the first person to call South Africa “the rainbow nation”. It’s a reflection on the fascinating diversity of this country, not only in the identities of its people but in the landscapes, wildlife, cultures, and activities it offers. South Africa is a country which, because of its variety, can be all things to all people, truly a rainbow of varied opportunities and experiences.
in South Africa
Without a shadow of a doubt, South Africa is one of the very best places to watch wildlife in the world. The Kruger National Park — a protected area the size of Wales — is certainly the most famous and popular safari destination, but with Journeysmiths you’ll escape the crowds to explore vast, wildlife-filled private reserves, in the company of the best guides.
Cape Town is one of the world’s great cities with a unique setting beneath Table Mountain.
To experience a little bit of everything that South Africa has to offer, you can hardly do better than to drive along the coastal road of the Garden Route between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. It’s an extraordinary journey, and there’s wildlife on both land and shore, endless beaches, historic battlefields, and the vineyards are never far away. One day you might be whale spotting at Hermanus — renowned as one of the best whale watching locations in the world — and the next you could be learning about the Battle of Rorke’s Drift, handling antique weapons and scrambling over the British and Zulu positions.
Formerly the Zulu Kingdom, the province of KwaZulu Natal runs along South Africa’s dramatic Indian Ocean coastline. The Drakensberg Mountains create a natural border between Lesotho and the Eastern Cape, and offer some excellent hiking routes.
Three of Africa’s great rivers set the scene for your Zambia safari. The Zambezi, the Luangwa and the Kafue rivers are all of different character and have national parks named for them.
Not sure where to start? We have answered frequently asked questions we’ve received over the past decades about our bespoke safaris. Here we discuss everything from pre-planning information to responsible travel. We hope you will find this useful, but if you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Slowing down and staying longer is the new way of travelling and there are huge benefits to this approach. People, wildlife and the environment directly benefit from you staying a little longer; but in equal measures, so do you.
For families of all ages there is so much to see and do in South Africa, making it an excellent and diverse travel destination. We’ve chosen 20 of the best experiences to immerse you in the culture, wildlife and beautiful places of this remarkable country.
7 Secret Places to Spot Leopards in Southern and East Africa
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite leopard viewing destinations for the best chances of guaranteed sightings.
We highlight some of the places filmed in Planet Earth Three’s Deserts and Grasslands episode; view elephants in Zakouma National Park and Arabian camels roaming the Ennedi plateau in Chad, ostriches and chacma baboons in Namibia.
Namibia has a diverse cultural heritage and is home to one of the most distinct African tribes — the Himba — a group of semi-nomads who live in the Kunene region.
What To Do In Kenya With Children? We’ve chosen our best experiences for a luxury family safari to Kenya.
Booking your family safari to Botswana opens a door to a world of exciting adventure. From the minute your Cessna touches the bush strip, your family will be in the wilds with expert guides. We curated the top 10 family experiences in Botswana to whet your appetite.
When one of TV’s best-known wildlife enthusiast, Steve Backshall, tasked us with crafting an unforgettable father-son safari in celebration of his son’s 5th birthday, we knew exactly how to create a trip that would excite and inspire both in equal measures.
Botswana is one of the best places for a family holiday of a lifetime! There are millions of animals across plains, deserts and deltas.
South Africa is an excellent choice for family travel with children of all ages. Its wildlife is abundant, with a great diversity of species, including the Big Five: rhino, leopard, lion, elephant and buffalo. There are vast malaria-free reserves and it’s easy to get from safari regions to Cape Town and the beach.
A safari holiday gives your family a wonderful chance to meet local communities and experience their culture.
The only travel company to have access to a huge moment in conservation history, our Kenya Conservation safari group got to watch a rhino release!
An Exploration of Unforgettable Experiences at My Favourite Camps in Kenya
The Kalahari is a fascinating place for a family safari. The children can sit by a meerkat den watching these curious little creatures foraging and playing as one stands guard on its hind legs looking out for eagles. They can watch enthralled as a San Bushman reveals hidden secrets that have enabled them to survive here for thousands of years.
Are you celebrating a big birthday, a retirement or special anniversary? Maybe you have a plan to take your whole family, children and grandchildren on a trip that will delight and inspire them. Any reason will do!
Care for Wild Rhino Sanctuary
Working in partnership with globally recognised conservation organisation; Care for Wild, the world’s largest rhino orphanage, we have curated a truly unique and exclusive experience giving a privileged few behind-the-scenes access to this otherwise incredibly private sanctuary.
The Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater are truly spectacular settings filled with great herds and big cats. We take you far from the crowds and minibuses with your own private guide, staying in exclusive accommodation. Families with older teenagers will love the wildly remote Selous, Ruaha and Mahale, where you can walk, canoe and even track chimpanzees. Round it off on exotic Zanzibar.
Imagine gliding silently along an Okavango waterway in a mokoro canoe as zebra and impala graze the grasslands. Or cantering on horseback with your guide alongside giraffe. In the Kalahari, take an early morning walk with a San Bushman as he explains the ancestral secrets of survival.
Here’s something you might not expect. The people looking after you on safari might create some of your happiest safari memories. You’ll remember laughter and those after dinner stories and jokes around the campfire. During a three-night stay in a luxury camp, you’ll get to make friends with your guide, the chef, the vegetable gardener and the other people who love their work.
Botswana is a great choice for an exclusive family safari. Roaming the spectacular deserts, deltas and savannahs are literally millions of animals. The fertility and abundant water of the Okavango and Linyanti Deltas supports an incredible 200 different mammal species. The Government’s high value, low volume tourism policy helps conservation and enables you to enjoy a top quality private safari.
Between safaris there is plenty for children to do in camp while the adults relax. Safari lodges may be small and in remote locations, but they have excellent facilities and your hosts’ purpose is to give you the best possible time. In this section we also suggest a couple of places that combine easily to complement your Botswana safari.
With opportunities to see the Big Five of both land and sea, along with incredible scenery, enormous national parks, world-class vineyards, a fascinating history and vibrant, friendly people, South Africa frequently tops the lists of the world’s best holiday destinations. Even so, less than 1% of the world's travellers make it here, so it’s a place where you’ll find yourself with a few select, like-minded and discerning adventurers who have discovered this gem of a country. It’s a place you could return to for the whole of your life and never tire of it.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
We will ensure you can enjoy the best of Africa in the exclusivity of Kenya’s private conservancies where walking, riding and other expertly guided activities enable the richest safari experience.
Here’s our list of ten wonderful experiences to consider including in your Namibia safari:
Botswana is Africa’s most exclusive safari destination. Each enormous private reserve has just one or two luxury lodges guaranteeing a series of private experiences as you travel from one exquisite location to the next. Expert guides will take your family on safari among big cats and vast elephant herds in beautiful deltas and deserts.
Young children delight to see wild animals in their natural environment. With Journeysmiths your safari will be expertly designed to match your family’s needs and interests. We use the best guides and arrange superb accommodation in the wilds of Africa.
We’ve collated a list of our ten favourite Tanzanian experiences to show you what’s possible in this incredible country.
Here’s our list of ten wonderful experiences that you might consider having whilst you are in Uganda:
The best way to give your family the facilities it seeks may be to book out an entire camp or lodge. Perhaps you are planning a multi-generation safari. Or you may want to fulfil a dream of walking, mokoroing and camping out in the Okavango. You may simply crave an extra degree of privacy. Most lodges we use take fewer than 16 guests, some take only eight, so booking a whole lodge is a viable option.
Kenya has the ingredients for an amazing family safari. Your children will love seeing vast numbers of animals in iconic African settings. Stay in amazing and exclusive accommodation on private reserves. Enjoy adventures on foot, horseback and by open vehicle with Africa’s finest guides. Your children can see pioneering conservation work in action and meet remote tribal communities. Maybe end with a few days by the coast.
If you’re looking for a country that’s got everything, choose South Africa. Renowned for the spectacular views of the Garden Route, vibrant Cape Town, malaria free safaris, fascinating history and outstanding wildlife, the whole family will fall under the alluring spell of this diverse country.
Are you feeling inspired to travel after watching Planet Earth Three?
Coasts offer the opportunity to see a wide variety of wildlife both at sea and on shore and are excellent destinations for wildlife enthusiasts. Follow in the footsteps of the Planet Earth crew and journey along the picturesque Garden Route coast to see Cape fur seals gathered in their thousands in South Africa. Head to the eerie Skeleton Coast of Namibia to find the desert-adapted lions that laze on its sand dunes. Or hop on a boat in Chile and watch the enormous barnacled body of southern right whales emerge from the water as they breach a matter of metres from your eyes.
Without freshwater, life on land wouldn't exist.
Freshwater is the most precious resource on our planet, but it's finite. Vital to life, only 2.5% of all Earth’s water is fresh and less than 1% of that is accessible. Planet Earth Three’s episode on freshwater documents its importance for selection of species.
Mountain gorilla can be found in Rwanda and Uganda, both superb destinations but each offering something slightly different. Read on to find out which is best for you.
The school holiday cycle is full of opportunity; there is a safari for every season, whether it’s during the Christmas, Easter or Summer holiday period.