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Alan J Castle
Visited:
September 2011
Reviewed: Jan 10, 2012
A destination with many different landscapes
We then spent a week in Etosha, staying in all three camps inside the park all of which had both good and bad points, but overall were of reasonable standard if quite expensive. But what an experience! Etosha is everything you have ever heard about this world famous park and more. Huge herds of plains animals, and of course their predators,
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excellent bird life especially raptors, and some special sightings of the beautiful, elusive African wildcat. Each camp has a floodlit waterhole with good viewing offering a very different view of animal behaviour.From there we moved to Walvis Bay, an unlovely town, for a disappointing sea safari. But the landscape along the coast is breathtaking.
Memories of Namibia: Stunning sunsets, alien landscapes, friendly locals, a wonderful holiday.
I began the safari in Swakopmund, spending three days there before meeting up with my minibus and travelling companions who were on their way up from Cape Town. I spent the time doing a morning desert safari, horseriding on a wide plain of sandstone hills that stretched for miles. The food at Swakopmund's abundant restaurants are of international standard, and are as varied as game pot roast to crayfish thermidor. The town itself is quaint and interesting, a remnant of its German ex-colonial history as a beach resort.
Having hooked up with my ride, we headed 120 km noth along the coast to Cape Cross, one of the largest colonies of Fur Seals in the world. The smell of 500 seals and their pups packed along a beach is something to be experienced. We then headed inland further north, to look at
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Bushman paintings and visit the village of one of the indigenous tribes, the Himba. We continued north and came into contact with another of the native Namibian peoples, the Ovambo with their brightly coloured European-style farm dresses and scarf hats folded in the shape of a buffalo's horns. Finally, we entered the gates of the Etosha Game Reserve, and were immediately greeted by the sight of a herd of zebra drinking from a waterhole. I have travelled the Kruger National Park several times, but game watch in Etosha is a totally different experience. Because the land is semi-arid or scrubland, animals cannot hide behing tall grass and so are much more visible. Etosha also boasts the springbok and gemsbok, majestic animals not common to the wilderness in South Africa. In the rivers, frequent sightings of crocodile and hippos can be made. And the birdlife is astounding too. Accomodation at the different campsites are well maintained and managed. There are options to stay at the comfortable bush cabins, or to pitch tent at the multiple campsites available, with easy access to hot water and other facilities.Our guide was wonderful and highly knowledgable, as were the local guides throughout the tour who showed me the desert, the bushman paintings and the landscape. I thoroughly enjoyed this safari and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone interested in going.
Scyv76
LU
Visited:
September 2010
Reviewed: Aug 28, 2011
20-35 years of age
Harsh landscapes that represent the beauty of Africa with its endlessly vast plains.
We used to be a party of 25 people driving in a tour bus with one tour guide who also used to be the driver. Our guide told us a lot of the country and the people itself and did a great job. Considering the accommodations, Namibia is a country with a great price / quality ratio, similar to South Africa in fact and better as Kenya / Tanzania, countries we visited the year before. When it comes to landscapes, Namibia is a real treasure for the adventurer; endless landscapes in the middle of nowhere, beautiful colors (especially in the Namib desert) and harsh vast plains are just among a few things to highlight. Wildlife is great too, especially in the Etosha national park where we unfortunately just stayed one and a half day. We would recommend to go for a jeep with a private guide (as we did) and not to
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ride with the tour bus through the park as it is done by many tourists, ...this is no real safari feeling watching animals through windows in a sticky tour bus. By the way, the Etosha national park is well known for its bird watching possibilities. Besides Etosha, the Namib desert with Sossusvlei / Deadvlei (something not to miss) was our second highlight. The colors during sunrise / sundown are among the most beautiful things you can see, especially for photographers. Weather was great during our 2 week trip through Namibia (no rain in fact). Only two things we would change when returning again to Namibia : 1) Looking for a tour operator who travels in smaller groups, in fact 25 people per bus is above average and a bit too much. 2) Trying to expand the trip to the Zambezi Region who touches Botswana and is well known for its incredible wildlife.
Christian
DE
Visited:
October 2017
Reviewed: Nov 12, 2017
Email Christian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome destination with beautiful Wildlife.
The camping part of the tour was not that good (which was organized by an organization for us).We were staying just outside the park in a camp which was quite good. Unfortunately our sleeping bags were to thin so that we were freezing at night. Additionally the food was really ‘basic’ (packet soup, backed beans, packet salat etc.) so that we ended up buying a bigger lunches by ourself at the camp when stoping there for a break at noon. We only got a ‘normal’ car (not a 4x4) to drive around the park. A 4x4 is not absolutely necessary, but I would recommend it because is a lot for comfortable (with luggage and
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camping gear we needed to squeeze in) and there are some places we had to skip as you need a 4x4 to get there.To sum it up I would give 5 stars to the wildlife and the park itself. The overall impression for us was only diminished by the not properly organized camping experience.
Skip the rainy season
Andersson's Camp was fine, though the absence of field guide books in the common area was disappointing. The food was good, cabin comfy. The private park around it was good value for animal viewing, despite downpours. Etosha in the rainy season was disappointing at several levels. Few animals, military vehicles speeding down the main road, dismal little museum. It was hard to grasp the history of the place, like which animals are native, which are introduced. Guide seemed reticent to handle questions of context. And be forewarned: there are no meerkats in Namibia.
fabuloustravel
CH
Visited:
April 2015
Reviewed: Jan 27, 2016
Email fabuloustravel | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Remoteness and desert scenery are prime reasons to go to namibia. Every other place I have been to offers better Wildlife, like Kenza, Tanzania, South Africa
Andrea Giuseppe Sanfilippo - Photographer
IT
Visited:
August 2015
Reviewed: Sep 28, 2015
Email Andrea Giuseppe Sanfilippo - Photographer | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Etosha National park is home to a large variety of wildlife and there are remarkable landscapes. However, the park is often crowded with tourists.
adoninger13
US
Visited:
November 2011
Reviewed: Dec 27, 2011
20-35 years of age
if you go to Namibiaq, see the dunes - they are magnificent and breathtaking.
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grocery stores or other restaurants nearby so either bring your own food and cooking equipment or prepare to be spending a lot of money on food.Etosha is very big. We spent one night at a campsite on the eastern end of it and the next night at the western end of it. We did our own game drives and saw loads of animals. Apparently, Etosha is a great place to see the Big 5, but unfortunately, we didn’t see any of them in the 2 days we were there. The problem with Ethosha is that although you may not spend a lot of money on paying for a safari (although you certainly can – we didn’t) you spend a lot on gas because the park is so massive. By the time we left Etosha I was very tierd of sitting in the car.
Overall, Etosha was great. Just know that it has pricey food and accommodation and the majority of the trip will be spent sitting in a vehicle – a safari vehicle or your own. Also, it should be noted that the campsites all had very nice, clean facilities and pools.
Olga.Bard
IT
Visited:
April 2011
Reviewed: Aug 31, 2011
20-35 years of age
one of the most fascinating place, it will make you fall in love and regret your desire to travel
wildlife wasn't very rich in aprile, but we saw a lots of zebras, kudu, giraffe, springbok, and many birds. and no lion no ghepard and no lepard.
scenery: very beautifull desert and skeleton coast, etosha, burn mountains, epupa falls is so so. windhoek is very small and just one day enough to visit.
weather in aprile doesn't perfect. in some areas it rained a lot(ex. waterberg, and etosha)
accommodation good: campsites are well equipped with hot water and electrical outlets.
food is good. (you can try all types of meat from zebra to crocodile)
transportation: Roads are often unpaved, you need 4x4, one tire more, and bensin reserve. before renting the car checked it for damage. the best thing: let a few tips, their will remember when you return.
be careful driving. Namibians are not very careful drivers often allow very risky moves.
Flitz
ZA
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 15, 2019
Email Flitz | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beautiful scenery but specific tour was a disaster
Scenery of dunes was amazing
Weather was not that cold for desert and for wintertime , warm during the day
We didn't receive lunch on first day, other days the food was very little, others bought food .The vegetarians and vegans had much more limited options too for barbeque
Guide was not informative and we hardly received any info about sights we visited.
Transportation was a broken down game drive vehicle , some bumping there heads on the roof when we visited Deadvlei .Our specific vehicle broke down in middle of the desert without a spare tyre .
Camping facilities basic and okay