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Day 1 Windhoek
Arrive in Windhoek and make your way to the hotel. Attend a pre-departure group meeting with your CEO scheduled for the evening. Please make sure you have all of the necessary visas for this tour by the time of the welcome meeting. It is very important to read the Visa section in our trip details to make sure which visas you will need, if any. Please note that not all nationalities are able to obtain a visa on arrival at the border.
*Please note: if you have pre-booked the Okavango Delta Flight your CEO will inform you when you will do the activity throughout your tour, days are subject to change: Okavango Delta Flight (Day 3 – Okavango Delta). For more information on the Extra see the Optional Activities section.
The city of Windhoek is traditionally known by two names: Ai-Gams, from the Nama people, which literally refers to the hot springs that were once part of Windhoek, while the second name, Otjomuise, meaning a place of steam, was given by the Herero people. Both traditional names reference the hot springs. Windhoek was originally the centre of a Nama leader, Jan Jonker Afrikaner, who defeated the Herero inhabitants of the region in the mid 19th century. Windhoek became the seat of colonial rule in 1892, as the capital of the colony of South-West Africa (Deutsch-Südwestafrika). They built a fort that eventually spanned a town that grew under its protection. During World War I, Windhoek was captured by South African troops and became a British dominion. Until the independence of Namibia was inaugurated in 1990, Windhoek was recognized as the capital of South West Africa as administered by the South African government.
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Day 2 Kalahari (Ghanzi) (1B,1L,1D)
Leave in the morning and continue through the eastern part of Namibia and cross into Botswana, travelling into the heart of the Kalahari.? ?Botswana visas are not available at the border. See our visa section for further information.
We arrive at our campsite that is approximately 10km outside Ghanzi in the early evening, just in time for an optional “Bushman Walk.” ?On this walk, get a glimpse of how the San tribe adapted to the Kalahari Desert, and learn fascinating wilderness survival skills the local people use. The gatherer life of the San/Bushmen has all but disappeared. There are few remaining Bushmen who still retain the survival skills of their ancient way of life.? During the walk, your San/Bushmen guides will share through an interpreter their rich heritage of accumulated knowledge that make the them masters of this harsh environment, helping us to learn about the botany of our surroundings. The walk is a slow hour and a half meander through about 4km of bushveld.
Around the campfire at night, you can experience the ancient dance rituals of the San/Bushmen. On special occasions, this is be a healing or trance dance that can continue all night and is an intense spiritual experience for both participants and visitors alike.
?Our accommodation provider for the night offer a number of activities to interact with the San/Bushmen, and to discover how they survived in the Kalahari.? Opt to upgrade your tent and stay in a recreated San/Bushman grass hut for the night, space-permitting. Each hut has stretchers with mattresses, lights and mosquito nets. The campground has a bar and small gift shop.
?Approximate Distance: 580 km
??Estimated Travel Time: 8 hrs??? -
Day 3 Maun (1B,1L,1D)
Drive across Botswana and travel from the Kalahari towards Maun. We leave Ghanzi in the morning and arrive to Maun around lunch time. After arrival, you can pick up any supplies and prepare for the 1 night/2-day excursion into the Okavango Delta. We recommend each person brings a 5 litre bottle of water to take into the Delta; this should be sufficient for both drinking water and cleaning purposes.
In the afternoon, opt to get a sneak peak of the delta from above on an hour-long flight over the delta in a very small plane. See various groups of wildlife from above and get a feel for the vastness of the delta.
Those not opting for the flight can kick back and relax at the campsite set next to a river and with a pool, bar and restaurant facilities.
Approximate Distance: 280 km ?
Estimated Travel Time: 4 hrs -
Day 4 Okavango Delta (1B,1L,1D)
After leaving some luggage in Maun, we hop into motor boats and travel along a river for about an hour before pairing off and sitting down in mokoros, traditional dug-out canoes, that take us deep into the delta. Each boat is pushed forward by a poler from a local community who stands at the back with a long bamboo pole that reaches the bottom of the waterways.
After a couple hours in the mokoro, we arrive to our basic bush camp in time for lunch. Set up tents and get used to the surroundings. Please note that there is no shower and only a dig-out bush toilet, as our camp is very basic and in the wild – but it is all worth it due to the incredible landscape and wildlife! ???In the afternoon, set off on a game walk to enjoy birdlife and game viewing in the pristine wilderness area of the Okavango Delta, the world’s largest inland delta. In the evening, count the shooting stars, sing with the locals or just unwind with a sundowner around the campfire.?? The polers will join us around the campfire tonight and usually love to sing and dance… join in!
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Day 5 Gweta (1B,1L,1D)
Enjoy the sunrise on an early game walk then return to Maun, first by mokoro, then motor boat, and arrive around lunch time. Pack up the truck, then hit the road to ancient baobab trees of Gweta. We will arrive to our campsite mid- to late afternoon. Have a walk around, take pictures of the baobabs, swim in the pool and enjoy a proper shower after the night in the bush.
Approximate Distance: 240 km
Estimated Travel Time: 4 hrs -
Day 6 Chobe River (1B,1L,1D)
Journey to the area of Chobe National Park, home to the largest elephant population in Southern Africa. The best way to appreciate the area’s thousands of resident elephants, crocodiles and hippos, is with an optional sunset boat cruise on the Chobe River. You may instead opt to embark on a game drive in search of lions, antelope, and of course, elephants. We arrive to Kasane around lunchtime and the optional sunset cruise starts in the late afternoon. It’s best to book the optional sunset cruise on the day of our arrival to the area and then save the optional game drive for the morning of the following day.?
Kasane is situated on the banks of the Chobe River, near its mouth. This is where the Chobe and Zambezi rivers meet, creating a border area of four countries – Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. ?Chobe National Park was Botswana’s first national park, and it is situated along the Chobe River. It has one of the largest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. By size, this is the third largest park (11,000 sq km) in the country, but it is definitely the most diverse and spectacular. ?The park is probably best known for its spectacular elephant population: with over 120,000 elephants, it has the highest concentration of the animal of Africa. ?Our campsite has a pool, bar and restaurant area.
Approximate Distance: 420 km
Estimated Travel Time: 6 hrs -
Day 7-8 Livingstone (2B,1L)
Cross the border from Botswana to Zambia at the Kazungula border post. Some nationalities do require a visa for Zambia, and many visas are available for purchase right at the border. See our visa section for further information.
Cross the Zambezi River by ferry to enter into Zambia and continue on to Livingstone. Livingstone is a great base to see both natural wonders and take part in some exciting activities. We’ve included a full day without any planned activities so each person can do what most interests. The most popular activities include visiting Victoria Falls to feel the immense falls up close and personal, rafting the Zambezi River (water levels-permitting), bungee jumping off a bridge in between Zambia and Zimbabwe or seeing the king of the jungle up close and personal on a lion encounter.
Note that this trip combine with other tours, and some tours will be finishing in Livingstone, while others will be continuing on. Many of our groups opt to book their final evening together aboard a sunset cruise along the Zambezi River with game-viewing, great scenery and an open bar.
Approximate Distance: 100 km
?Estimated Travel Time: 3 hrs -
Day 9 Livingstone (1B)
Depart at any time.
from $943.20
