This morning your guide collects you from your various accommodation establishments in Windhoek. Head towards the Ongava Private Reserve, stopping at Okonjima’s AfriCat Day Centre on the way.

At Okonjima, visit the AfriCat Foundation, a sanctuary dedicated to the research and rehabilitation of Africa's big cats, particularly leopards and cheetahs. Go on an informative game drive and tour, learning about the foundation's mission and meeting some of its resident carnivores.

Please note that this visit does not include tracking wild cats; for that, an overnight stay is required. After a light lunch, you’ll continue north, arriving in time for an afternoon game drive at Ongava Game Reserve with an Ongava ranger, shared with other lodge guests.

Today, enjoy an exciting guided morning game drive in Etosha National Park to see its diverse wildlife and bird species. After returning to Ongava Game Reserve for a late lunch, you can relax by the pool. In the afternoon, head out again for another game drive in Etosha, making sure to exit the park before sunset.

Alternatively, spend the whole day in the park, having lunch at a rest camp or a picnic near a busy waterhole. Once back at camp (gates close at sunset), you can spend the evening watching animals at the camp's floodlit waterhole while enjoying dinner.

Experience these unforgettable guided game drives in Etosha from the comfort of a specially modified, air-conditioned 4x4 with pop tops.

After breakfast this morning, you'll continue your safari to Damaraland, traveling through farmlands and small towns. Damaraland is known for its colorful landscapes, table-topped mountains, unique rock formations, and unusual vegetation. The area's rolling hills, dunes, gravel plains, and ancient river terraces have been shaped by wind, water, and geological forces. The region's variety and solitude, combined with its scenic beauty, offer a true sense of wilderness.

Enjoy a delicious Magic Box picnic along the way and arrive at Camp Doros in time for fireside sundowners. Please note that today involves a long journey, followed by a three-night stay at your next camp.

The Doros Joint Management Area features semi-arid mountainous savanna with wooded river valleys. It offers some of the most stunning views in Damaraland. Natural springs provide water year-round for desert-adapted wildlife, including elephants, black rhinos, kudu, giraffes, springboks, oryx, klipspringers, steenboks, and predators such as cheetahs, leopards, and hyenas.

Today, have an exciting and memorable morning searching for rhinos with the help of local trackers. The black rhinos here are part of one of the only free-roaming populations in Africa, making this experience truly special. After your morning adventure, you'll return to camp for a freshly prepared lunch and have time to relax during the hottest part of the day. In the afternoon, you'll head out again for a scenic nature drive or walk to explore this vast and remarkable ecosystem.

Camp Doros collaborates with the Save the Rhino Trust (SRT), an NGO that has played a crucial role in preserving the rare and endangered desert-adapted black rhino. Despite facing severe threats in the '80s and '90s, the black rhino population in Namibia has grown significantly since the formation of SRT.

Namibia is home to the larger subspecies of black rhinoceros found in southern Africa. The only wild population that remains unfenced and outside reserves lives in the arid western Kaokoveld. These rhinos prefer mountainous areas but also follow temporary rivers into northern Namib, especially after rains. They are the only black rhinos in Africa recognized as a "desert group." Like desert-adapted elephants, they travel great distances.

These rhinos walk and feed at night and rest during the day. To meet their dietary needs, they eat from at least 74 of the 103 plant species in their range. They are one of the few animals that eat the fibrous Welwitschia leaves and heavily feed on the milk bush (Euphorbia virosa), despite its sharp spines and toxic latex, likely due to its high water and fat content. The black rhinoceros, once widespread in the subcontinent, is now endangered. The smaller subspecies, Diceros bicornis minor, does not live in Namibia.

Today, continue your adventures in Damaraland, exploring the fascinating landscapes with your private naturalist guide both by vehicle and on foot. Damaraland is a surprising haven for desert-adapted wildlife, including elephants, giraffes, oryx, springbok, and sometimes predators like lions. However, wildlife sightings depend on various factors, including the season, so specific encounters can't be guaranteed.

The wildlife roams across vast, unfenced desert landscapes, making it challenging to find animals, but this is part of the adventure of exploring this untouched gem of Namibia. Today, you'll focus on searching for the elusive desert-adapted elephants in the ephemeral river systems, which means you'll spend most of the day out. Your guide will bring a delicious picnic lunch, and you'll return to camp in the late afternoon.

Desert-Adapted Elephants: In areas with enough vegetation and water, an adult elephant eats up to 300 kg of roughage and drinks 230 liters of water daily. Imagine what a herd would consume in a week, month, or year. African elephants in a desert? Yes! Along with other large mammals like black rhinoceros and giraffes, their ranges extend from river catchments in northern Kaokoveld to as far south as northern Namib. Apart from the Kunene River, seven river courses northwards from the Ugab provide them with routes across the desert.

To meet their nutritional needs, these elephants browse at least 74 of the 103 plant species in their range. They aren't a separate species or subspecies but an ecotype unique to Namibia, adapted to hyper-arid conditions. Elephants in Mali, on the southwestern edge of the Sahara Desert, are the only others known to survive in similar conditions.

After an early breakfast, drive south past Namibia's highest mountain, the Brandberg, which stands 2,573 meters above sea level. Then, head west to the coast at Henties Bay. From there, continue south to the coastal town of Swakopmund, where you can enjoy the pleasant seaside atmosphere and cooler coastal air for the night.

Stay on the eastern outskirts of town, overlooking the Swakop River valley and the desolate desert dunes. Tonight's dinner is at a popular restaurant known for its locally harvested fresh seafood, as well as other local and international dishes.

After an early breakfast, take on a fascinating drive southeast through stunning and ever-changing desert landscapes. Pass through the impressive Gaub and Kuiseb canyons before reaching the dunes at the settlement of Solitaire.

Then, have a picnic lunch along the way and continue to the Namib Tsaris Conservancy, where you spend the final two nights of your safari at Camp Sossus. You should arrive mid to late afternoon, with enough time to get acquainted with the camp and enjoy a hot bucket shower before dinner.

This morning, early for an excursion into the Namib Naukluft National Park. Enter the park gates at sunrise to capture the dunes while the light is soft and the shadows highlight their towering shapes and curves. This area has some of the highest free-standing sand dunes in the world.

Your local guide explains how the Namib Desert was formed and introduces you to the fascinating creatures and plants that have adapted to survive in this harsh environment. After exploring the areas around Sossusvlei and Deadvlei, you can enjoy a picnic in the shade of a camel-thorn tree. Return to your lodge in the early afternoon for a late lunch. The rest of the afternoon is free for you to relax (which is usually welcome after an exhilarating morning in the dunes) or to join another guided activity offered by the lodge within the nature reserve.

After a leisurely breakfast this morning, depart from Sossusvlei and return to Windhoek. The drive takes you northeast up the Great Escarpment and through the scenic Khomas Hochland highlands. Enjoy a tasty picnic lunch along the way and should arrive in Windhoek by mid-afternoon.

Once in Windhoek, transfer to your chosen accommodation or the Windhoek International Airport (additional transfer booking needed) if you have an evening flight. Departure flights must be no earlier than 6:00 PM to allow enough time for the journey back to Windhoek. Alternatively, you can arrange an extra night in Windhoek at an additional cost. A final night in Windhoek is highly recommended!