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Itinerary of the “Kaoko - Caprivi Safari”

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Day 1
Arrival at Windhoek International Airport. We will meet you at the airport, advise you on security and exchanging money and take you to your accommodation in a peaceful suburb of the capitol. Here you will find some time to relax and freshen up. Windhoek, being the capitol of Namibia is by far the biggest city in this country and shows a great mix of culture, development and history. A thorough city tour takes us through all the historical, colonial, modern and other interesting parts of Windhoek. Shopping in Windhoek is great and you will have enough time to fill your bags with arts and crafts. Lunch and dinner are enjoyed in the centre of this multicultural city. Since Windhoek has many good restaurants, mostly with German character, it is really worth our while dining in town.

Exclusive: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Standard: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Tented Safari: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Accommodation and Breakfast (Dinner in town, guided, on own account)

Day 2 and 3
To add a bit of geology to today's route, we stop at a rather remarkable geological monument. Due to continuous erosion of the ephemeral Ugab River, a smaller version of Monument valley suddenly unfolds before our eyes. A remarkable finger of solid calcrete rock, locals call it the Vingerklip, beautifully protrudes from the surrounding Mopane savannah. Hobatere, considered one of the last most unspoilt wilderness areas in Namibia, offers game drives with a difference. The endemic Hartman's mountain zebra, a Namibian special, is a guaranteed sighting, along with many other different kinds of antelope. Often even lion, leopard, cheetah and elephant are found in the area. The night drives are mostly very successful, concentrating only on the nocturnal species, like Polecat, Genet, African Wild Cat, Aardvark, Aardwolf, Porcupine etc. The local guides are birding experts, creating an excellent experience for seasoned birders – Hobatere is a birders paradise, since birds like Bare-cheeked Babbler join us at the breakfast table already. Guided Night drives, with lesser nocturnal species being the centre of attention, deliver much unexpected sightings; Springhare, Genets, Nightjars, Cape and Bat eared Foxes and even the elusive Aardvark are frequently seen here.

Exclusive: 2 Nights Hobatere Lodge
Standard: 2 Nights Hobatere Lodge
Tented Safari: 2 Nights Hobatere Lodge
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast
1x Game drive
1x Night drive
1x Game walk

Day 4 and 5
Rugged and beautiful landscapes, rare and beautiful succulents, endemic birds and very interesting People. The Kaokoland, home of the Ovahimba. The Himba people could be described as cattle and goat breeders with a nomadic way of life. To visit the different settlements of the various tribes is extremely interesting, since the Himba, Tjimba and Themba people still dress and live as they did many years ago. Times are changing though, and so are the Himba, the Kaokoland nonetheless deserves a visit. The Kunene River finds it s way through one of the harshest and most rugged geology imaginable, lining the north-western Namibian border to Angola. After quite a bumpy drive through arid and dusty Kaokoland, the beauty and sudden richness of life brought upon by water immediately catches our attention. The Epupa falls, finally. Before thundering down the oldest Namibian rock formations, the Kunene River feeds thousands of indigenous Makalani palms and Phragmites reeds, creating an atmosphere as close to paradise as known to mankind. Exploring the riverbank is fun and pleasant. Keep an eye open for rufous-tailed Palm-thrush, a local endemic. We also hope to encounter the distinctive and beautiful cunenensis race of the Red-necked Francolin, Olive Bee - eater, Grey Kestrel, Mourning Dove and Cinderella Waxbill.

Exclusive: 2 Nights Epupa Camp
Full board
Standard: 1 Night Omarunga Camp and 1 Night Kunene River Lodge
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast
Tented Safari: 2 Nights tented Camp at Kunene River

Day 6
Today we cross Ovamboland. Being the most densely populated area in Namibia, this is ethnic Africa at its best. To get a bit of insight on their traditions, how these people survive and what they live on, we pay a visit to a traditional Ovambo village.

Exclusive: 1 Night Oshakati Country Hotel
Standard: 1 Night Oshakati Country Hotel
Tented Safari: 1 Night Oshakati Country Hotel
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast

Day 7 and 8
Early start to Etosha National Park, "the great white place". 22 000 square km National Park offers excellent opportunities to photograph and observe Springbok, Zebra, brindled Gnu, Giraffe, Hartebeest, Steenbok, Damara Dik - Dik, black faced Impala and with some luck, Elephant, Lion and even Leopard and Cheetah cross your way. Remember, this is Africa, although we are very experienced in how to find various sightings for you, it still remains a matter of luck and patience. The birdlife in Etosha is good, very good… and yes, we do stop for birds. The main advantage of Etosha probably goes to a variety of habitat. Endless plains, wide grasslands, thickets of Mopane, dry forests and Acacia-savannah frame this great dry lake of loam and salt.

Exclusive: 2 Nights Mushara Lodge
Standard: 2 Nights Onguma Bushcamp
Tented Safari: 2 Nights tented Camp at Onguma
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast

Day 9
A long drive north-east takes us through a variety of Acacia savannah and dry forests. As soon as we cross the vetenary line (a fence separating commercial from communal land) we enter real Africa once more. Cattle, chicken, children and an old goat have right of way, smoke fills the air and pots are being sold next to the road. The mighty Okavango meanders through this flat land, creating a riverside atmosphere full of life. As soon as we arrive we take a short birding walk and take a dive into natural history for a bit.

Exclusive: 1 Night Kaisosi River Lodge
Standard: 1 Night Kaisosi River Lodge
Tented Safari: 1 Night Kaisosi River Lodge
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast

Day 10, 11, 12 and 13
Kwando:

Exclusive and Standard: The Kwando river system could be seen as Namibia’s equivalent to the Okavango Delta. The largely forested islands brim with sycamore figs, Jackalberry, Leadwood and sausage trees. We take part in a boat trip mainly to experience the atmosphere and do some splendid bird watching. The carmine bee-eater breeds in the sandy cliffs of the Kwando River. Other interesting species like the Nile monitor, African and Lesser Jacana, lesser Swamphen and different kingfishers are often spotted here. At night Hippos emerge to graze on the lawn and diners are serenaded by an enchanting wetland chorus of hippos, insects and the tink-tink of reed frogs.

Tented Safari: We put up camp on the western side of the Kwando River – Bwabwata National Park. This area allows for off-road gamedrives into Africa at its best. Driving along the meandering shore of the Kwando and into the dense Kalahari woodland allows for superb game and birdwatching.

Chobe: River to River, that’s where the game is found; so we head directly to the Chobe River, the place were two rivers (Zambezi and Chobe) and four Countries (Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe) meet. The Chobe is considered one of Africa’s game and birding hotspots with a practically non-stop “binoculars glued to the eye” game- and birdwatching experience. The area is inhabited by Chobe's two trademark antelope, the water loving red-Lechwe and the very rare Puku. Although gamedrives in the Chobe National Park are possible, we rather explore the riverside by boat. This allows quick access to wonderful sightings like front views of drinking elephant, charging hippos and sunbathing crocodiles. Buffaloes often use Kasikili Island as emergency grazing ground and can be witnessed here in their thousands. We might get lucky and find swimming elephants or drinking lions. Since the wide river allows for marshy shallow backwaters and lagoons, the birdlife is more than prolific here. Our local guide will take us right into the homes of lesser Jacana and open-billed Stork.

Additional (not inclusive): A visit to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. This will be done as a daytrip. Cost per Person: Daytrip = N$ 810. - Plus US$ 50. - Visa (U.K.) plus US$ 20. - Entrance to the falls

Exclusive: 1 Night Susuwe Island Lodge and 3 Nights Impalila Island Lodge
Full board with Activities
Standard: 1 Night Lianshulu Lodge and 3 Nights Chobe Safari Lodge
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast
Short gamedrive in Bwabwata Park
1 x Boat trip on the Kwando
2 x Boat trip on the Chobe
Tented Safari: 2 Nights Tented Camp in Bwabwata National Park
2 Nights Chobe Safari Tented Camp
Extended Gamedrives in Bwabwata Park
2 x Boat trip on the Chobe

Day 14 and 15
A bit of backtracking leads us back to the Okavango river. We will take a short birding and nature walk at the Popa game reserve. Although The Popa “falls” should rather be renamed to Popa “rapids”, the small Popa Park offers good walking and a great variety of different plants and trees. The rapids do deliver some interesting sights to take pictures of and are worth a short visit. Mahango Game Park – small but very special. Since Mahango is rather small, some don't even bother to go there, but it remains one of the best game viewing spots. Although no abundance of game is found here, the variety makes up for it. Sable and Roan Antelope, Reedbuck, Red Lechwe, Waterbuck, Tsessebe, Bushbuck and Crashaw's Plains Zebra are regularly seen. Often Leopard and Lion are seen here, as well as Giraffe and great bachelor herds of Elephants. Since our accommodation looks out on the river, it is an excellent Hippo and bird watching opportunity, let alone the beautiful surroundings.

Exclusive:2 Nights Mahangu Lodge
Standard:2 Nights Mahangu Lodge
Tented Safari: 2 Nights Mahangu Lodge
Dinner, Accommodation and Breakfast Walk in Popa Park Gamedrive and Walk in Mahango Game Park

Day 16
After a long drive, we reach Windhoek late in the afternoon On our way we stop over at the large woodcarvers market in Okahandja and the African craft centre in Windhoek.

Exclusive: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Standard: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Tented Safari: 1 Night Haus Sonneneck
Accommodation and Breakfast (Dinner in town, guided, on own account)

Day 17 Transfer to Windhoek International Airport. Time to say Good bye.

Please note:
Due to logistical booking problems that might occur, we reserve the right to change the itinerary with short notice.

Inclusive:
• Transfer and Transport as stated in itinerary
• Accommodation as stated in itinerary
• Meals as stated in itinerary
• Entrance fees as stated in itinerary
• Fully trained and certified English, German and Afrikaans speaking guide.

Exclusive:
• Personal expenses
• Drinks and Tips
• International and National Flights
• Visas

2008 - Price per Person (15% VAT included) with an occupancy of:

Please take Note: the first pre-payment is only due 45 days before departure. Payments can all be deposited into a secure account in Germany.
Please find a forex calculator here