Hotel Helmeringhausen

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

including flights

Flying Namibia's Skeleton Coast

Wildlife & Nature Luxury + 3 more + 3 more

An unforgettable sky high adventure through one of the world’s most remote landscapes.

9 days

from £12,100 pp

including flights

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

including flights

Namibia's Wildlife & Conservation

Family Classic + 2 more + 3 more

Namibia’s big skies, rare wildlife & real conservation in action.

12 days

from £5,835 pp

including flights

Namibia's Desert & Coast

Family Classic + 3 more + 3 more

Self-drive highlights of Southern Namibia.

12 days

from £4,975 pp

including flights

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

including flights

Quirky excursions

View all excursions in Namibia

Wild Horses of the Namib

A startling sight for anybody driving through the desert without prior knowledge of their existence, the wild horses of the Namib have adapted to the harshest possible conditions to freely roam the barren plains of the Garub, on the eastern fringes of the desert. Close to Aus and Luderitz, the wild horses are usually easy to see when driving in the area, as they often congregate next to the main road or even cross it en masse! Descended from domesticated animals used on farming settlements, the exact reasons they broke away from human influence to become wild remain shrouded in contention. This air of mystery, their unique behavioural patterns and an admiration for how they have continued to survive in the desert, even in the worst years of drought and famine, helps to account for the fascination the horses hold for locals and tourists alike. There is now a photographic hide near a trough at Garub where the horses come to drink, so if your timing is in you should return home with some excellent pictures.

Gondwana Sperrgebiet Nature Drives

Five farms were amalgamated to form the private 50,000 hectare Gondwana Sperrgebiet Rand Park, part of the family run Klein Aus Vista project that also incorporates the best accommodation in the area. Just north is the Namib-Naukluft National Park, and there are areas within the reserve where soft, high dunes can be found. Overall though, the landscape is usually more reminiscent of the Nama Karoo to the east, dominated by rugged granite boulders, dry riverbeds and panoramic gravel plains. After the winter rains which descend on the desert between July and September, a dazzling array of wild flowers can carpet the desert floor to bring an explosion of welcome colour. No matter the time of year, a nature drive within the park will bring superb photo opportunities and serene sundowners, with all the usual desert wildlife to seek out and the odd quivertree set starkly against an arid backdrop of broad plains.

Desert Ghost Town

Kolmanskop is an abandoned ghost town gradually being swallowed by the unforgiving Namib. The centre of the German diamond mining industry after their discovery in the early 20th century, a thriving village was established as chancers and professionals moved in, driven by avarice and ambition. The erstwhile wealth and decadence is still apparent in the grand colonial buildings, with a hospital, ballroom, school, theatre, casino and even an ice factory all constructed. Some have been restored for tourism, such as the concert hall, but most are exactly as they were left in 1954, when the supply of diamonds finally ran out. It is fascinating to witness how time and the elements are gradually wearing the buildings down, and enjoyable to plough knee deep in sand through some of the more consumed buildings. Overall, the effect is frequently eerie, particularly the black and white photography adorning some of the walls, offering a potted history of German colonialism in Namibia. There are stunning photo opportunities, with the early morning desert shades contrasting vividly with pastel coloured buildings. Please bear in mind that you need a pre-booked permit to enter Kolmanskop, but we can either secure this for you in advance, or you should be able to procure it through your accommodation. It is possible to explore under your own steam with a permit, but there are two guided tours per day on Monday to Saturday and one on a Sunday. The site closes after 1pm, so get your sightseeing done early!

Commonwealth War Graves & POW Camp

Incongruously located just a few kilometres east of Aus, a small cemetery and the remains of a First World War POW camp speak of Namibia's unique, little known history. It's intriguing to note that Great War hostilities travelled this far, with South African Commonwealth troops crossing the border into German controlled South West Africa in 1915 to overwhelm a token Schutztruppen force sent by the Kaiser. All of the captured officers were made to build their own POW camp amidst the harsh desert conditions, but reports indicate that they were not too unjustly treated and gradually adjusted to their lot. Ironically, it was influenza rather than combat which killed a number of people in 1918, both German and South African. Their graves can be seen in a reasonably well preserved cemetery at the end of a challenging road off the B4, buried together and with dates suggesting that many died within the same October fortnight. A short way south-east from here are the slightly underwhelming remains of the POW camp, although their story and the smattering of identifiable brick constructions can still evoke a sense of what it must have been like to be imprisoned in this inhospitable land far from home, a place to all intents and purposes utterly irrelevant to the politics of the time.