Namibia: Desert Landscapes and Waterhole Safaris

Namibia: Desert Landscapes and Waterhole Safaris

Namibia offers a safari of wide horizons. Its great wildlife park, Etosha, is built around a huge white salt pan, and in the dry season animals line up at waterholes in a steady procession. Add the red dunes of Sossusvlei, the rock art of Damaraland and the fog-bound Skeleton Coast, and you have a trip that is as much about landscapes as animals.

Etosha National Park

Etosha’s roads lead from waterhole to waterhole, so one of the best strategies is simply to park and wait. Elephants, lions, giraffes, zebras, springbok and oryx come to drink, and the rest camps have floodlit waterholes where black rhino often appear after dark. Lodges and campsites inside and just outside the park suit both self-drivers and guided trips.

Who Namibia Suits

• Independent travelers comfortable driving long gravel distances.
• Photographers drawn to light, color and space.
• Repeat safari-goers who have done East Africa and want something different.
• Travelers who prefer a dry climate; much of the country sees little rain.

Namibia also suits travelers who like variety in one trip. A typical two-week loop might start in Windhoek, head south to the dunes, turn north along the coast to Swakopmund, cross Damaraland and finish with three or four nights around Etosha. Fly-in safaris cover the same ground in a fraction of the time, using light aircraft between lodges, and some travelers mix the two by driving one half and flying the other. Guided small-group trips are a good middle ground for first-timers who would rather not navigate gravel roads.

Entry rules for U.S. citizens changed in 2025, and Namibia now requires a visa. The details and the official links are on Plan It Africa’s visa page.

Frequently Asked Questions