Namibia is a country of startling contrasts that straddles two great deserts: the Namib (after which it is named) is the oldest desert on the planet, and its sea of red sand lies along the Atlantic coastline, while in the eastern interior lies the Kalahari, a vast and sparsely vegetated savannah that sprawls across the border into neighbouring countries.

 

This English speaking nation has rapidly become a well-known safari destination with a difference, famed for its remote and intimate lodges, interaction with the indigenous people as well as the wildlife, and offering unique opportunities to become involved with the cultural heritage of all its people.

 

The landscape is defined by an arid climate and a long geographical history. The western part of the country has a mixture of enormous sand dunes, open plains, rugged valleys, escarpments and mountains and it is here that the oldest desert on the planet, the Namib, is found. The eastern interior is a sand-covered, more uniform landscape and contains the country's second great desert - the Kalahari, a vast and sparsely vegetated savannah that sprawls across the border into South Africa and Botswana.

 

All this is in contrast to the rich grasslands, and subtropical woodlands of the Caprivi area in the north-east, the mopane woodlands of Etosha National Park, and the rich coastal lagoons of the Atlantic Ocean on the western coastline.

For a place that at first glance may seem lifeless, the reality is astonishing: approximately 4000 species of plants, 650 bird species and 80 large mammal species, of which 604 plants, 14 birds and 15 mammals are almost entirely endemic to the country, some extending marginally into southern Angola. Reptile species total 240 and, as is fitting for such a dry, hot place, sun-loving lizard species number 125, making this the richest lizard fauna in Africa.

 

 Namibia Photo Gallery

Little Ongava Premier Camp

Ongava Classic Camp

Doro Nawas Wilderness Camp