Namibia desert and Etosha safari in 8 days (7 nights)
An eight-day loop out of Windhoek that moves from dune country to the Atlantic coast and then north into game country. Two nights at Sossusvlei allow an early start in the dune field and at Deadvlei. Two nights in Swakopmund break the driving with a day off the road. One night in Damaraland covers the rock engravings and the dry riverbeds where desert-adapted elephant move, and two nights at Etosha put the waterholes within reach of morning and afternoon drives. Most legs are long gravel-road drives, so the week reads as full rather than restful.
The route, stop by stop
1. Sossusvlei, Namibia · 2 nights
Two nights put the dune drive at first light on a full day rather than squeezing it into an arrival afternoon, and leave the rest of that day unplanned.
2. Swakopmund, Namibia · 2 nights
The coast is the natural break in a driving week: a long transfer day followed by a day with nothing scheduled, in a town where supplies and a restaurant meal are easy to find.
3. Damaraland, Namibia · 1 night
One night is the honest amount here on a seven-night plan: it covers the rock art and a drive in the dry riverbeds for desert-adapted elephant without costing Etosha a day.
4. Etosha, Namibia · 2 nights
Two nights allow a full day moving from waterhole to waterhole between two shorter afternoon drives, which is when the larger herds and the predators tend to be at the water in the dry season.
Experts who can arrange this trip
- The Safari Vibe, who works in Namibia.