namibia with kids - deeper africa with kids 2018 final.… · namibia with kids day by day...

family safari

Namibia with Kids DAY BY DAY ITINERARY

888.658.7102 [email protected] www.deeperafrica.com

Family Safaris with Deeper Africa

From aardvark to zebra, our family safaris create a rich learning experience for young people and everyone lucky enough to travel with them. Our guides are parents themselves, and are experts in experiential learning. This is education at its most fun. Your safari guide is at once a teacher, translator, and a tracker. He’ll keep you safe, comfortable, and entertained throughout your entire journey.

NAMIBIA WITH KIDS SAFARI 888.658.7102

OVERVIEW: NAMIBIA WITH KIDS

Wilderness Safaris

Namibia is home to towering dunes, swirling red-orange sand, gorgeous coastline, and amazing desert adapted wildlife. Its parks and reserves host a variety of captivating animals including the “Big Five,” as well as desert species such as klipspringers, oryx, carcal, and desert elephant. Our safari will take you on an unforgettable journey beginning in the capital of Windhoek and onwards to the dunes of Sossusvlei, the beaches and marine environment of Swakopmund, and finally, the arid plains of Etosha National Park.

This is a safari full of discovery and adventure. Children will learn from some of Namibia’s best safari guides and animal caretakers, who will teach them about animal behavior, natural history, and conservation. Each camp and lodge has been selected for its family friendly atmosphere and exciting activities available for young explorers. Na’ankuse, Solitaire, and Okutala all serve as wildlife rehabilitation and care centers. Accompany caretakers as they feed giraffes, walk alongside cheetah, and care for endangered rhinos and elephants.


INCLUDED

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Wifi

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

Arrive at Hosea Kutako International Airport in Windhoek, Namibia where you will be met by your Deeper Africa guide. Look for him holding a Deeper Africa sign with your family’s name on it. From there, you will be transported to Na’ankuse Lodge and Wildlife Sanctuary, which is located close by on the outskirts of Windhoek.

Na’ankuse is a truly unique lodge situated on former farmland that now houses a center that cares for injured or orphaned animals. The center’s patients include baboons, meerkats, mongoose, and African wild cats which are all cared for by volunteers from around the world. The center also rehabilitates larger predators. You and your family will have the opportunity to take a carnivore feeding tour and watch as caretakers feed lions, leopards, wild dogs, baboons, caracals and cheetahs. They’ll answer all your questions about the animals and how they came to be at Na’ankuse.

In the evening, you can also take a nature walk with your guide around the lodge’s 3,500 acres (14.16 kilometers), where you will most likely spot one of the many meerkats or antelope that call Na’ankuse home.

DAY 1 N/A’AN KU SE LODGE | WINDHOEK

©Namibia Tracks & Trails


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

Depart from the capital of Windhoek for a journey through the Khomas Hochland Highlands and into the low plains of the Namib Desert. En route to your destination at Solitaire Guest Farm & Desert Ranch, enjoy a picnic lunch and views of Namibia’s amazing geology, rolling hills, and desert sands. Keep your eyes peeled for roaming springbok and gemsbok herds.

Solitaire is a privately owned guest farm located at the foot of the rugged Rand Mountain Range which overlooks the vast Namib Desert. The guest farm is dedicated to eco-tourism, and has partnered with the Na’ankuse Foundation to create space for a carnivore rehabilitation center which returns cheetahs to the wild. This afternoon, your family can undertake a cheetah tracking safari with the Namib Carnivore Conservation Centre. You will drive out to the ranges where the cheetahs roam. Cheetahs are located by center biologists using radio-telemetry. Once within about 100 meters (328 feet) of these animals, you’ll accompany the biologists safely up to the cheetahs on foot. This is a fantastic opportunity for photographs. You can also view the cheetahs through an open top vehicle, which allows you to follow them, should they choose to sprint off.

DAY 2 SOLITAIRE GUEST FARM | SOSSUSVLEI

©Solitaire Guest Farm


Today you will visit Sossusvlei, a place which contains some of the highest sand dunes in the world. No part of the Namib Desert is more visually stunning. The highest of these dunes is said to reach over 1,000 feet. The sand has colors ranging from pale apricot, to brick orange, to deep red, all which contrast vividly against the dazzling white surfaces of the clay pans at the base of the dunes.

The Namib Desert may be the world’s oldest desert – it has existed for at least 55 million years, possibly more. It has no surface water. Thick fogs are frequent along the Atlantic coast, and these fogs are the life blood of the desert. The fogs provide just enough water for highly adapted animal and plant species to survive. This is one of the most unique places on planet Earth.

From Sossusvlei, head to Dead Vlei, another white clay pan whose name means “dead marsh.” Dead Vlei is surrounded by some of the highest sand dunes in the world, including “Big Daddy.” You’ll be able to see dead acacia and camelthorn trees scattered throughout the pan, which make for dramatic photos against the backdrop of the orange sands. If you and your family are feeling up to the challenge, climb to the top of Dune 45 for some spectacular views of the surrounding desert. From there you can spot aardwolfs, cape foxes, gemsbok, springbok, and lanner falcons.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle


©John Blanton


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

Get ready for a day of wildlife viewing in Namibia’s arid climate. You’ll be exploring today through the desert brush in your Land Cruiser alongside your Namibian guide. Along the way, your guide will explain the importance of wildlife and environmental conservation to his country. Namibia was the first African country to enshrine conservation in its constitution. Its empowerment of local communities to manage their wildlife resources is visionary. Keep your eyes peeled for mountain zebra, springbok, kudu, oryx, and klipspringers during the day. At night, predators including bat eared foxes, caracal, and leopard may be on the prowl.

At Solitaire there are many hiking trails into the mountains, with stunning views and the chance for wildlife sightings. Tonight, you can walk with your guide or drive to the top of “Sunset Hill’ and watch the brilliant orange sun descend below the horizon. Your guide will make sure to point out some of the circular imprints in the ground called “fairy circles.” He’ll leave it up to you to debate whether these designs are of natural or supernatural origin.


©Solitaire Guest Farm


Set out after breakfast for the Atlantic Coast. Along the way, you’ll get to see some of Namibia’s most vivid landscapes. You’ll drive through the “Moon Landscape,” an area of granite rock which was pushed upward through the earth’s crust 500 to 400 million years ago, and has since eroded to create an otherworldly scene. The “Moon Landscapes” is a regular location for film shoots because it looks like an entirely different planet.

Stop for a picnic lunch, before heading to another location: the “Welwitschia Plains” which are host to an ancient desert plant: the Welwitschia. This is one of the most remarkable plants in the world, as it can live up to 2,500 years. This plant was on the planet during the Jurassic period and can now only be found in the unique climate conditions in Namibia’s coastal dunes.

Arrive at Beach Lodge by evening, situated right on the coast outside of Swakopmund, with beautiful views of the Atlantic Ocean. Fall asleep tonight to the sound of waves crashing on the shore and get ready for tomorrow’s adventures.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Wifi

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

DAY 5 BEACH LODGE | SWAKOPMUND

©John Blanton


Today you’ll be on the water for a guided marine cruise on the Walvis Bay Lagoon. The Walvis Bay Lagoon is considered one of the richest and most important wetlands in southern Africa. The nutrient-rich deep-water of the lagoon breeds phytoplankton, which then fuels the very productive food chain of zooplankton, marine invertebrates, fish, and marine mammals that inhabit its waters. Bottle-nosed and heavy-side dolphins and whales often enter the lagoon July through November. Preventing them from being beached or stranded in shallow waters is a constant concern for conservationists. You can also find Cape Fur seals swimming and sunning themselves on the rocks in the afternoon. They may even pop out of the water next to your boat to ask you for an afternoon snack.

Bird life in the lagoon is spectacular. Flocks of pink flamingos can be seen wading along the shallower edges of the lagoon. More than 50 species of birds can be found here including sea gulls, the chestnut-banded plover, damara terns, pelicans, and cormorants.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Wifi

Private Guide

Private Vehicle


©Beach Lodge


Today you will have some choices – all equally attractive options. If you are feeling adventurous, opt for an excursion to the desert dunes for some sand sledding and sand boarding – like a ski resort, minus the snow.

For a more relaxed morning, spend some quality beach time playing in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. You can also take a trip into Swakopmund, an old world town situated between the beach and the desert. The Germanic architecture is left over from German colonization here in the 19th century, and a small German speaking population remains to this day. For kids, the National Marine Aquarium of Namibia may be of interest. While the aquarium is small, it is home to a variety of colorful fish, local shark species, and friendly stingrays that you can reach in and pet.

Don’t forget to catch a breathtaking sunrise on the Atlantic Coast.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Wifi

Private Guide

Private Vehicle


©Namibia Tracks & Trails


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

This morning, a bush plane will take your family to Etosha National Park where you will be staying at the Okutala African Quest Lodge. You’ll fly along the beautiful Skeleton Coast, where you can look down and see shipwrecks on your way west. You’ll fly across the dunes and into Namibia’s rugged back country, with your ultimate destination being Namibia’s most famous national park.

Like Na’ankuse Lodge and Solitaire, Okutala also serves an animal rehabilitation center with a focus on restoring wildlife to their natural habitat. Still, there are some animals that are unable to go back into the wild, so they have become permanent residents of the lodge. Here it is not uncommon to be approached by friendly giraffes while relaxing in the pool, or catch a glimpse of Klippie and Rocky – the two resident klipspringers – jumping onto the lodge roof. Enjoy a sundowner in full view of the local watering hole where you can spot many species including ostriches and rhinos.

In the afternoon, take a tour of the animal enclosures with your guide and one of the lodge caretakers. This evening you can choose which wild resident to serve dinner. Options include hyena, giraffe, elephant, leopard, and cheetah feedings.

DAY 8 OKUTALA AFRICAN QUEST | ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK

Beverly Joubert ©Okutala African Quest


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

Get ready for a full day of traditional safari wildlife viewing. Climb aboard your Land Cruiser for a short drive into Etosha National Park. The park takes its name from the world-famous Etosha Pan – one of a number of large salt pans formed by the wind action in this flat region.

The Etosha Pan is so massive it can be seen by astronauts in space. This is an ancient place formed over 100 million years ago. The pan itself is extremely salty, but its edges give way to a surprising variety of vegetation types and thus a great diversity of wildlife. Springs feed the waterholes along the southern edge. That means frequent sightings of over 114 species of mammals.

Etosha has four of the Big Five. Elephants can be found in the park, along with lions, leopards, and endangered black and white rhinos. Rhinos are seen both in Etosha and the adjoining Ongava Game Reserve. Note that Etosha’s elephants have relatively small tusks due to breakage from mineral deficiencies in their diet, as well as genetic defects. Etosha is also one of the most important breeding grounds for greater and lesser flamingos in the southern African region. During rainy season, millions of flamingos congregate on the pan to breed.


African Bush Camps©Okutala African Quest



INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Swimming Pool

Private Guide

Private Vehicle

Today you’ll return to Etosha for more wildlife viewing, while you move eastward away from the pan. You’ll be able to watch wildlife at a number of watering holes – each one attracting its share of unique creatures. You’ll have good sightings of plains game including wildebeest, Burchell’s zebra, giraffe, eland, and the black-faced impala. There are lion and leopard in Etosha, as well as jackals and warthogs.

Return to Okutala this afternoon for an endangered species tour. View and learn about endangered rhinos and desert elephants, and how conservationists in Namibia are working to create safe havens to protect these animals.

©Namibia Tracks &Trails


DAY 11 INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL | INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Say goodbye to your guide and any animal friends you have made during your stay at Okutala before departing to Windhoek for your international flight home.

Flight #1

• Departs: Windhoek, Namibia

• Arrives: TBD

DAY 12 INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL | INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT

Flight #2

• Depart: TBD

• Arrives: TBD

©Okutala African Quest

INCLUDED IN YOUR SAFARI

• Full board accommodations in all lodges and tented camps

• All meals as specified in itinerary

• All park and entrance fees

• Private 4x4 Land Cruiser, unlimited wildlife viewing, guided

marine cruise

• Private safari guide

• All in-country transportation

• Enrollment with SATIB Evacuation Service

• Laundry at some lodges and camps

• Beverages in your 4x4 safari vehicle

• Bottled water available at all times

• Extensive pre-departure briefing and materials including

health information, reading list, and map

EXCLUDED FROM YOUR SAFARI

• Gratuities

• Alcohol & Beverages

• Laundry at some lodges and camps

We plan your wildlife adventures in areas where wildlife

habitats are known to exist for the season and time you are

traveling. Still, animals in the areas you are viewing are not in

a zoo. They run freely, and we cannot always anticipate their

movements.

Also, Deeper Africa uses best efforts to provide the lodging

set out in this itinerary, but occasionally there are circum-

stances that occur in Africa that require lodging substitu-

tions. We reserve the right to make comparable lodging

substitutions whenever necessary.

2018 CUSTOM PRICING & DEPARTURES

January - October

• 8 persons: $5,299 USD per person




•Single Supplement: $299 USD

Child Under 11 Years Pricing, January - October





All pricing is in US dollars. All arrivals and departures are

through Hosea Kutako International Airport in Windhoek,

Namibia. Prices do not include international airfare. All

itineraries and prices are subject to change.

5353 Manhattan Circle, Suite 202 Boulder, Colorado 80303

888.658.7102 303.415.2574 720.565.0512 fx

www.deeperafrica.com

family safaris

ADDITIONAL SAFARI INFORMATION


2018 pricing $5,299 - $7,899 (Adult) $4,599 - $6,099 (Child)

Best Value

namibia with kids - deeper africa with kids 2018 final.… · namibia with kids day by day...

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