Namibia Mammal Safari

13 May 2024 - Start. Whether you are doing your first African safari or you are looking to add a few rare and elusive mammals to your mammal list.

$6298-6860 USD

Safari summary

This safari is about so much more than just spotting Africa’s Big Five Mammals. Our Namibia tour offers the freedom of doing night drives in certain areas and exploring some of the habitats on foot. Where bigger mammals can easily be seen from a vehicle, it is seeking smaller elusive mammal species on foot that becomes part of the privilege of being on safari in Namibia. Exploring the bush on foot also gives one the opportunity to go where vehicles normally cannot. Night drives and walks are an excellent opportunity to spot nocturnal animals in their natural habitat. Namibia’s diversity brings with it some fantastic mammal watching and you can count on seeing quite a big number of mammals, other fauna and flora and some superb classic African safari landscapes. Join us on this amazing adventure! *Please note that in the itinerary we do mention a number of small rodents and mammals that are considered specials for Namibia and the area but these are extremely difficult to see in the field. We will do our best to find them but if you are very keen to see them we try to organize that a research student joins us in the field to try and increase our chances of seeing some of them.

About this tour

	Tour type	Set-date, set-itinerary, group
	Main focus	Game drives
	Activity level	Easy activity
	Best months	May
	Countries	Namibia
	Parks	Etosha

Fine details

Safari highlights

Bird watching—with professional guide
Boat, canoe, dhow, kayak, mokoro safari
Night game drives

What’s included?

Accommodation
Meals
Park fees
Private vehicle and driver

What’s not included?

Alcoholic beverages
All drinks
Hot air balloons
Internal flights
International flights
Laundry
Premium alcoholic beverages
Spa treatments
Tips and gratuities
Visas

Itinerary

Day 0 - Arrival in Windhoek

Welcome to Namibia! Today is not part of the official mammal safari but as we are departing at around 9 am tomorrow (13 May 2024) , we advise that you arrive a day early. Accommodation, meals and airport transfers are not included but we can arrange all of this for you. Please let us know should you need assistance with booking any additional services.

Day 1 - Okonjima Nature Reserve

After meeting you at your Windhoek hotel, we will depart for Okonjima Lodge near Otjiwarongo in central Namibia where we will spend our first evening. On arrival, we will enjoy lunch, have time to settle in and freshen up, before departing for the afternoon activity which will be Leopard tracking with the lodge. During our tracking game drive we will be on the lookout for Leopard but could also spot Kirk's Dikdik, Common Eland, Hartebeest, White Rhino, Mountain Zebra, and many more.

Okonjima Lodge

Day 2 - Okonjima Nature Reserve

Today we have a full day to explore the reserve with a combination of game drives and walks searching for some of the resident mammal species. Some of the smaller mammals we will be targeting on the Okonjima property include Dassie Rat, Woodland Dormouse, Bushveld Sengi, a variety of Gerbils including Bushveld, Cape, Hairy-footed and Highveld Gerbil. We will end the day with sundowner drinks and dinner at the lodge and afterwards we will do another night drive searching for nocturnal mammals.

Okonjima Lodge

Day 3 - Roy’s Camp

After an early morning walk around the lodge we will make our way north to our overnight stop near the town of Grootfontein. Today is mostly a driving day but we should see some roadside mammals that might include Baboon, Gemsbok, Kudu, Hartebeest, Steenbok and Common Warthog. We should arrive at our lodge by mid to late afternoon. We will spend some time walking in the area around the lodge, looking for some smaller mammals. We will return to our lodge to freshen up and meet up for dinner.

Roy's Camp

Day 4 - Mahango National Park

After an early morning coffee and short walk we will make our way further east through the broadleaved woodland between Rundu and Mahango National Park. We should arrive around lunchtime and will have the afternoon to explore the riverine woodland around the lodge or do a game drive in the park. The location and habitat around the lodge is good for Shortridge’s Mastomys as well as Smith’s Bush Squirrel. We will again have the opportunity to do a walk after dinner looking for nocturnal species.

Day 5 - Mahango National Park

Today we have a full day to explore Bwabwata National Park (both the Mahangu and Buffalo sections) is well known for their big buffalo herds and plenty of Hippopotamus. We will either enjoy a packed lunch in the park or return to the lodge for lunch overlooking the river. This part of the Okavango River is home to huge Nile Crocodiles and plenty of Hippos. The resident Bushbuck and Vervet are always around and if we are lucky we might see African Elephant from the deck at the lodge.

Day 6 - Etosha National Park East

Etosha

We will start with a cup of coffee or tea overlooking the Okavango River enjoying a spectacular sunrise. Today is mostly a travelling day (we can do a quick early morning game drive in Mahangu) as we leave the tropical Caprivi and Okavango regions behind us and make our way south to Etosha which is one of the great game reserves of Africa and offers game viewing that is as good as you can find anywhere in Africa.

Day 7 - Etosha National Park East

Etosha

Today will be dedicated exploring the eastern section of the vast Etosha National Park. From a mammal point of view we will search for the endemic Kirk’s Dikdik, African Elephant, Lion, Black Rhinoceros, Giraffe, Spotted Hyaena, Leopard, Black-backed Jackal, Black-faced Impala (another endemic subspecies), Hartebeest, Gemsbok (Namibia’s national animal), Greater Kudu and Springbok. This part of Etosha is our best chance to see Cheetah and we will visit all our known hotspots for seeing them.

Day 8 - Etosha National Park South

Etosha

Today we make our way to the central section of the park with a full day of game viewing. We will stop at two waterholes where we often find Spotted Hyena drinking early morning and we often have Lion walking across the open plains returning from their hunt. Some of the smaller mammals we will be targeting around southern Etosha include Namaqua Rock Rats, Desert Pygmy Mouse, Cape Scrub Hare, Bicolored Musk Shrew, Bushveld Gerbil and Red Rock Rat.

Day 9 - Etosha National Park South

Etosha

After an early breakfast, we will use the first few hours of the day to explore the Okondeka Plains north of Okaukuejo. This area is also very good to try and find some of the smaller predators like Bat-eared Fox, Black-backed Jackal, Cape Fox and African Wildcat. We then leave Etosha and head towards Tandala Ridge located South of Etosha National Park. We will enjoy a night drive on the property which should give us a chance of seeing some of the rare and nocturnal mammals seen on the reserve.

Day 10 - Brandberg Region

This morning we will enjoy an early breakfast and do a short walk around the lodge. From here we will make our way south to Damaraland where we will spend one night. As the scenery changes, we will start looking out for Desert Adapted animals which calls this area their home. We might also be lucky to encounter the famous desert adapted Elephants of north-western Namibia which move up and down the Ugab River during our stay.

Day 11 - Erongo Mountains

We will spend early morning exploring around the Brandberg area and then make our way to the Erongo Mountains where we will spend the night. Dassie Rat and Common Rock Hyrax are common mammals while Black Mongoose, Slender Mongoose, Central African Large-spotted Genet, Steenbok, Kirk's Dik-dik, Leopard and Caracal are sometimes seen in this area.

Day 12 - Swakopmund and Walvis Bay

After an early morning walk (looking for any specials we might have missed) and a great breakfast we will make our way to the coast where we will spend the night. After arriving in Swakopmund and settling into our hotel for the evening we will spend the afternoon at the Walvis Bay Lagoon which has been declared a Ramsar site of global importance for thousands of waders that are found here. We return to Swakopmund to meet up for sundowner drinks and afterwards enjoy a wonderful meal together.

Day 13 - Walvis Bay and Windhoek

Early morning after a cup of coffee we will make our way to Walvis Bay Harbour, where we will do a morning boat cruise to search for some of the mammals on our list. During our cruise we will be on the lookout for South African Fur Seal, Heaviside’s Dolphin, Bottlenose Dolphin and many more. After our cruise we will enjoy lunch in Walvis Bay and the start making our way back to Windhoek where we will spend our last night in Namibia. We will overnight at a small reserve just outside Windhoek.

Day 14 - Departure

This morning after a leisurely breakfast we will make our way to the airport where you will take your return flight home. (Depending on your departure flight time, there is an option to do game drive with the lodge on their grounds)

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