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Namibia Safaris
NAMIBIA BUDGET OVERLAND ADVENTURE SAFARI
Victoria falls to Cape Town
Day 1
Victoria Falls; Here the Zambezi River plunges 100 metres down a mile
wide chasm, creating one of the most incredible natural wonders of the world.
The local name for the Falls is 'Mosi-oa-Tunya' which means 'the smoke that
thunders' and you'll soon find out why. When the river is in full flow, the
falling water causes a huge roar and sends a cloud of spray up to 500 metres
into the air.
There is so much to see and do at the Falls. Adventure activities abound - you
can bungee jump, white water raft, take a Microlite flight above the falls,
sky-dive and go game viewing on horse back. More sedate excursions include
canoeing, light aircraft or helicopter flights over the Falls, and the sunset
cruise on the Zambezi. Of course, the Victoria Falls themselves are the main
attraction and you can walk through the rain forest along the cliff opposite for
an excellent view.
Give yourself a couple of days before hand to see the splendour of the Falls and
participate in many of the activities.
Days 2 - 5 Botswana: We cross the border into Botswana.
We visit Chobe National Park and travel along the edge of the Kalahari Desert to
Maun, a small town on the edge of the Okavango Delta.
Maun is also the starting point for
the mokoro trip. A mokoro is a traditional dugout canoe and your transport into
the Delta. As you glide through the waterways, you will see a fantastic array of
lush Delta. Leaving this behind, we enter Namibia where the dirt road takes us
along the edge of Mahango Game Park and on to Rundu. Here we spend the night on
the banks of the Kavango River, a picturesque divide from the shores of Angola.
Days 6 - 19 Namibia:
Next stop is Etosha Pan National Park. Thousands of years ago this vast saltpan
was a lake, until the Kunene river changed its course and deprived the lake of
its water source. Now the pan and surrounding bush support large numbers and a
wide range of wildlife. We spend a couple of day's game viewing from the truck
during the day and spend the evenings around the floodlit water holes at the
park's campsites. These water holes provide an excellent opportunity to observe
animals that are hard to find during the day, particularly rhino and also
smaller animals such as the genet. Elephant, lion, giraffe, zebra, oryx,
ostrich, springbok, jackals, hyenas and meercats are also likely to be seen at
Etosha.
From wild animals to tame ones, we spend a
night at the Cheetah Farm where you can scratch the big cats behind the ears
before watching them tuck in to their evening meal.
Namibia is a land of wide open spaces and we pass few inhabited areas as we
drive towards the Atlantic Ocean and the Skeleton Coast. This area derives its
name from the numerous ships and men that met their end on the treacherous
coastline.
On our way to Swakopmund, we stop at Cape Cross where the first European
explorer landed in the 15th century. It is now more famous for the Seal Reserve,
a breeding ground for thousands of cape fur seals. They occupy the beaches
almost as far as the eye can see and you can watch them suckling their young,
resting in the sun and fighting with their neighbours.
Swakopmund is an old German colonial seaside resort with plenty of things to do
for the energetic and plenty of beerkellers for those after a more relaxing
time. Quadbiking or sand boarding on the dunes, deep sea fishing in the Atlantic
or scenic flights over the coastline - these are just a few of the activities on
offer.
Heading inland, we journey to the Namib Desert, famous for its 300 metre high
sand dunes, the highest in the world. It can be hard work climbing to the top
but the view is worth all the effort as the dunes stretch before you into the
distance and change colour in the setting sun.
After an overnight stay in the desert we drive south to Fish River Canyon, at
85km long and 400m deep it's second in size only to the Grand Canyon. You can
trek along the rim of the canyon and, from the viewpoints at the top, watch the
setting or rising of the sun. There are hot springs in the south at Ai Ais
(seasonal). Our last stop in Namibia is the Orange River, which forms the border
with South Africa. You can spend an afternoon canoeing here.
Days 20 - 24 South Africa: Crossing the river we arrive
in South Africa and drive through the sparsely populated areas of the Western
Cape. We drive through mountain valleys and stony semi-desert before arriving in
Stellenbosch, the centre of one of the Cape's many wine routes. A wine tour with
plenty of tasting makes for a great day out.
Finally we arrive at our journey's end. Cape Town is a beautiful city, nestling
at the foot of Table Mountain and you'll find plenty of café's, pubs, clubs,
markets and sights to see. You can climb the mountain or take the cable car to
the top for some wonderful views of the city and the Cape Peninsula. Nearby are
several beaches where you may find yourself whalewatching from the shore or
sharing your towel with a jackass penguin.
We arrive in Cape Town on the last day of the tour. We take you to a hostel
where you can book a dorm or a room, or you can arrange your own accommodation
at one of the many other hostels or hotels. There are several operators who run
excursions to the surrounding area and further a field to the Garden Route and
beyond. There is an international airport as well as flight, train and bus
connections to other South African cities.
Africa is an unpredictable continent. We do not have a
fixed itinerary so please treat the information given as a guideline only.
Although our information is written in good faith at the time of printing, our
route may vary at any time due to weather, politics or road conditions.
AFRICA PRE-DEPARTURE INFORMATION
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