Itineraries
A Taste of the North
2 Weeks
Despite the long distances, it is possible to get a taste of Botswana and Namibia's best wildlife areas in a busy two-week itinerary. To make this work, you'll need your own 4WD.
Begin in Windhoek and soak up its urban charms before you head out into the wilds. Spend at least three days in Etosha National Park, home to some of the best wildlife viewing in Southern Africa, then drive via Grootfontein to sleep on the banks of the Okavango River at steamy Rundu; that's Angola across the water. Track east into the Caprivi Strip for a couple of nights in Bwabwata National Park and the Nkasa Rupara National Park, before crossing into Botswana and staying along the Chobe Riverfront for a couple of days among big herds of big elephants. Leaving the paved road behind, make for the lion-and-leopard country of Savuti (two nights), then spend three days in Moremi Game Reserve. From there, make for Maun to continue your onward journey, leaving enough time for a scenic helicopter flight over the Okavango Delta with Helicopter Horizons.
Itineraries
Essential Botswana & Victoria Falls
3 Weeks
For most of this trip you will have to be completely self-sufficient and fully confident in your navigation and survival skills. For the less adventurous, tour operators in Maun are happy to help you organise a custom safari.
Starting in Maun, the classic staging point for all Botswanan safaris, you can stock up on supplies before heading out to the Okavango Delta, either by mokoro (dugout canoe) or charter plane. If you’re pinching your pennies, there’s no shortage of budget camping trips to choose from, though it’s certainly worth stretching your budget to allow for a few nights in one of the safari-chic tented camps in the wildlife-rich Moremi Game Reserve (try Chief’s Camp if you can afford it). Containing some of the densest concentrations of wildlife on the continent, Moremi is also the only protected area of the delta.
The next stage of your bush travel is a 4WD expedition through Chobe National Park (known for its huge populations of massive elephants). Stop at Savuti, where most megafauna are resident, and which is particularly well known for sightings of predators; Linyanti Marshes, an extensive wetland with opportunities to see elephants, lions, wild dogs, cheetahs and leopards; and the Chobe Riverfront, which is the most accessible part of Chobe and has the park's largest wildlife concentration. Whether you travel by private vehicle or tour bus, the overland route through Chobe is one of the country’s most spectacular and wildlife-rich journeys.
Make another supply stop in the border town of Kasane, at the meeting point of four countries – Botswana, Zambia, Namibia and Zimbabwe – and it’s time to cross the border to visit the world-famous Victoria Falls. The falls are one of the seven natural wonders of the world, and a visit reveals nature at its most inspiring. Whether you base yourself in Livingstone, Zambia or Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, it’s worth exploring life on both sides of the Zambezi River. If you’ve got a bit of cash burning a hole in your pocket, there’s no shortage of pulse-raising activities to help you get a quick adrenaline fix. Try a microlight flight over the falls for a unique perspective of this watery wonder.
Itineraries
Secrets of the Kalahari
2 Weeks
If you’re looking to leave the khaki-clad tourist crowds behind, this off-the-beaten-track option takes you straight through the heart of the Kalahari.
If you're starting in Johannesburg, head west for the border where you can cross at Bokspits to enter the enormous Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The park is one of the only spots in the Kalahari where you can see shifting sand dunes, though the undisputed highlights are its pristine wilderness and low tourist volume. It's the Kalahari of your imagination, noted for its wildlife watching, including large numbers of springboks, gemsboks, elands and wildebeest as well as predators such as lions, cheetahs, leopards, wild dogs, jackals and hyenas. If you like birdwatching, you’re in for a treat here too.
Head east towards Gaborone and then loop back to enter the southern gates of the utterly wild Khutse Game Reserve. Here are well-maintained trails and around 60 pans that once made up the largest inland lake on the continent. Leopard and lion sightings are possible wildlife highlights. From here, traverse north through some exciting 4WD territory into the adjoining Central Kalahari Game Reserve, where you can navigate one of the continent’s most prominent topographical features. It's about the size of Denmark, so there’s plenty of scope for losing yourself in Africa’s raw heart. Before leaving, spend a night or two in Deception Valley, renowned for its rare brown hyenas. Although wildlife densities are significantly lower than in Chobe or the Okavango Delta, so are the number of safari vehicles.
Heading north, you’ll pass through D’kar, where you can pick up some beautiful San crafts. If you’re here in August, immerse yourself in traditional Bushman culture at the Kuru Dance Festival. Press on for the remote Gcwihaba (Drotsky’s) Cave ( GOOGLE MAP ; S 20°01.302’, E 21°21.275’), renowned for its 10m-long stalagmites and stalactites, as well as Commerson’s leaf-nosed bats. Finally, at the furthermost tip of the country, you’ll come to the mystical Tsodilo Hills, which is a treasure chest of painted rock art that continues to be revered by local communities. The beautiful colours of these remote hills are striking but it's the 4000-plus prehistoric rock paintings throughout the hills that most people are here to see.
Itineraries
Namibia All Over
3 Weeks
This enormous itinerary meanders more than 2500km, from dusty bushveld to dramatic canyons. It combines a good dose of culture with death-defying activities, and all of it is accessible with a 2WD vehicle. There are also decent, if slow, public-transport links.
Before striking off into the desert, spend a couple of days getting your bearings in the lovely capital of Windhoek, which still bears architectural traces of its German colonial history. Ideally with a rental car loaded with plenty of supplies and a few friends, make a beeline north for Etosha National Park, one of the finest safari parks on the continent. It is possible to actually drive out onto the pan with its white saline floor stretching as far as you can see to the horizon.
Although you’re going to have to backtrack, you can quickly bypass Windhoek en route to seaside Swakopmund, where you can take your holiday up a notch in a flurry of exciting activities, including dune boarding and quad biking. Back on the main road south, keep the heart beating during a scramble up the massive barchan dune fields of Sossusvlei and/or a trek through Sesriem Canyon. The ever-shifting dunes of the Namib Desert are particularly worth gazing upon at sunrise, when their colourful hues dance over the landscape.
Continuing the canyon theme, head south for Fish River Canyon, a geological wonder of monumental proportions that is one of Africa’s hidden highlights. If you’ve packed sturdy hiking boots you could embark on a multiday hike along the canyon floor. From Fish River Canyon, detour west to marvel at the German anachronism that is Lüderitz. Sausages washed down with German beer are a prerequisite before embarking on your explorations. Nearby, you can stop off at the diamond-mining ghost town of Kolmanskop and explore the overwhelming emptiness of the Sperrgebiet.
Finish things off in Noordoewer, which sits astride the Orange River and is the jumping-off point for white-water rafting through some wild canyon country. Alternatively, head across the South African border to cosmopolitan Cape Town, which you can enjoy for a week or a weekend before setting off on the next adventure.
Itineraries
Caprivi to Kaokoveld
2 Weeks
This is not an itinerary for the faint-hearted. Many places in Namibia give you a vague sense that you’ve reached the end of the earth, but some of the destinations in this itinerary really are other-worldly. Getting to them, too, presents a major challenge that definitely requires determination as well as a fair bit of cash.
To do this trip as a continuous journey, you’re best off starting from Kasane in Botswana. From here, you can charter a plane or boat to Mpalila Island, a luxuriously remote retreat stranded in the middle of the Zambezi River. It’s where Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia intersect. From here, head into Namibia’s Caprivi Strip and visit the mini-Okavango of the Nkasa Rupara National Park, where the rains bring a delta-like feel to the forested islands that contain some of Namibia’s best birdwatching. Bwabwata National Park is another park on the rebound with lions, wild dogs and sable antelope. Drive from here to the untamed wilderness that is Khaudum National Park, a serious adventure destination. Here, wandering sandy tracks lure visitors through bushland and across valleys where lions and African wild dogs can be seen.
From Khaudum the road will take you south through Grootfontein, from where it’s worth making a short detour to the Waterberg Plateau Park. The park is famous as a haven for endangered species such as sable and roan antelopes and white and black rhinos, some of which you may be lucky enough to spot along one of the well-marked hiking trails. It’s an unusual place in that it feels a little like a lost world on top of the plateau with its pristine bushy landscapes – take advantage of the hides at the waterholes for your best chance to spot wildlife.
North of Grootfontein the road takes you into Namibia’s cultural heartland, the Owambo region, from where you can access the remote and mysterious Kaokoveld, homeland to the Himba – a culturally rich tribal group that has retained its striking appearance and dress – and one of the most inaccessible areas of the country.