Hoanib Valley Camp

Wildlife & Nature Off-the-beaten-track + 3 more + 3 more

Namibia & Botswana Express: Caprivi & The Panhandle

Namibia, Botswana

Explore the spectacular scenery of Namibia and iconic wildlife of Botswana on this self-drive and safari adventure.

12 days

from £8,010 pp

Namibia Walking Odyssey

Off-the-beaten-track Adventure + 1 more + 2 more

Hike dunes, deserts and mountains across Namibia’s wildest corners.

14 days

from £5,570 pp

Namibia Fly-In Safari

Safari Wildlife & Nature + 2 more + 3 more

Scenic flights and safaris across Namibia’s iconic landscapes.

11 days

from £7,125 pp

Namibia Northern Explorer

Classic Wildlife & Nature + 2 more + 3 more

Wildlife, conservation and Namibia's dramatic northern landscapes.

13 days

from £5,135 pp

Classic Namibia Self Drive

Family Classic + 3 more + 3 more

Our classic self-drive adventure through deserts, dunes & wildlife.

13 days

from £4,875 pp

Canyons & Ghost Towns

Off-the-beaten-track Adventure + 1 more + 2 more

A road trip through Southern Namibia’s lesser-visited highlights.

13 days

from £5,145 pp

Quirky excursions

View all excursions in Namibia

Shipwrecks

Continually lashed by the angry waters of the Atlantic, Namibia's Skeleton Coast is so wild that only the brave or foolhardy have risked sailing its waters during stormy seas. There are numerous shipwrecks along the coast, some of them extremely well preserved, bearing eerie testimony to the force of nature and the genuine isolation of the beaches upon which they are washed. For this reason, most of the wrecks or usually only visible from the skies and accessible on a light aircraft Skeleton Coast Safari, which gets participants to remote areas that few are able to reach. Airborne highlights of a Skeleton Coast Safari include views of the Eduard Bohlen wreck, at Conception Bay, not far from Swakopmund, and the Winston, the Montrose and Henrietta, all between Cape Cross and Terrace Bay. During time in the Kunene Region of extreme northern Namibia, you can visit the Kaiu Maru wreck and a scattered array of broken up fishing vessels in the near vicinity. Haunting and evocative, these wrecks tell a vivid story of the difficulties in exploring this windswept coast and the folly of ignoring nature's warnings.

Nature Walks - Skeleton Coast

It's difficult to generalise about the exact nature of walks over such a large and diverse area as the Skeleton Coast, but it's safe to assume they will include fascinating insights into life in the desert and some decent levels of exertion amongst the rugged terrain. Serra Cafema Camp in the far northern Kunene region is surrounded by the Hartmann Mountains, with some highly enjoyable and challenging unguided hikes in the gullies, peaks and valleys within a stone's throw of camp. Getting further afield, you might pause on a quad biking or nature drive excursion for a short walk and a period of quiet contemplation amid the genuinely spectacular landscapes for which the area is renowned. On a mobile, light aircraft Skeleton Coast Safari, there are stops for walks on various beaches along the coast, perhaps pausing to mingle with a cape fur seal colony or to explore an eerie shipwreck. The further you enter the dense dunes away from the coastline, the more these excursions resemble the dedicated desert walks in Sossusvlei, the Namibrand Nature Reserve and Swakopmund, opening up keen insights into the smaller details of life in the desert. Perhaps most attractively of all, there is no better way to appreciate the stark, peaceful atmosphere of this incredibly remote area than by getting out on foot, far away from engine noise.

Quad Biking - Skeleton Coast

Having been lucky enough to sample many of Southern Africa's most thrilling excursions and memorable wildlife spectacles, quad biking in the remote Kunene region from Serra Cafema camp is still one of our absolute favourite experiences. The terrain is rugged, beautiful and absolutely perfect for quad biking, with steep hills, wide verdant valleys and scattered sand dunes. Potentially exhausting on foot and necessarily navigated by your guide in nature drives, there is a great thrill to being in total control at the wheel, with a guide to ensure that you don't get disastrously lost in one of the most remote, uninhabitable corners of the continent. While there are some tricky stretches and it can become tiring after a couple of hours, there is no prior level of expertise required to explore these fabulous landscapes by quad bike. Durations and routes can vary depending on the enthusiasm and skills of the group, and it may even be possible to drive to the airstrip while your luggage is transferred in a separate vehicle, should there be other guests at camp willing to participate. No matter the itinerary, there will be some truly inspirational scenery combined with stops to learn about the history, geology and wildlife of this little explored wilderness. And reassuringly, with Wilderness Safaris running the camp and the quad biking operation, environmental impact is minimised.

Skeleton Coast Safaris

Getting to the most remote corners of the Skeleton Coast and the Kunene Region will inevitably involve light aircraft travel, unless you are lucky enough to find an expert navigator with whom you can travel in convoy. Scenic flights needn’t necessarily be tailored excursions then, as your transfers to and from Serra Cafema camp for example will give an incredibly picturesque, sweeping overview of this unique terrain. For something utterly special though, the numerous flights undertaken on a Skeleton Coast Safari, landing in areas that others simply can’t reach, are Africa’s best series of scenic flights. These scheduled itineraries with the Schoemann family are genuinely unforgettable, staying in rustic camps in the most remote destinations imaginable, with numerous flights and activities per day. In amongst the picturesque aviation, there are also nature drives, Himba visits, shipwrecks and guided walks. From the more conventional desert dunes around Sossusvlei and Swakopmund to the dry river beds of Damaraland and the rugged mountains of Kunene, there is a searing range of breathtaking habitats that are uniquely appreciated from the skies. For those without the time or budget for a light aircraft safari or a stay at Serra Cafema, scenic flights from Swakopmund provide an airborne taster of the striking collision between desert and ocean.

Meet the Himba - Skeleton Coast

An extremely photogenic minority people in Namibia, the Himba largely occupy remote, arid areas of Kaokoland (which for our purposes comprises areas of Damaraland and the Skeleton Coast). A semi-nomadic people whose way of life has remained largely unaffected by the outside world, the Himba have become increasingly recognisable through high profile TV documentaries and some quality eco-tourism operations. While this risks changing their traditional lifestyle inexorably, Himba village visits have largely remained sensitive to their customs and requirements. Communities benefit from these cultural exchanges, but money has not yet become a central concern for the people and altered their priorities. Himba women are instantly identifiable through the ochre that hardens their hair, creating vivid colours and striking shapes. Both men and women wear minimal clothes, adorned with tribal jewellery and trinkets that it's often possible to purchase on a community visit. Living in small domed huts made from mud and grass, the women breed cattle and goats while caring for the children, whereas men are more involved in socio-political activities. All of these traditions are explored to a certain extent in village visits, and you should also get the chance to converse a little if your guide speaks some of the Herero-based dialect. Surrounded by pristine scenery in genuinely remote tracts of African wilderness, Himba cultural visits from Serra Cafema Camp or on a Skeleton Coast Safari provide a fascinating break from more traditional, nature based activities by vehicle or aircraft.