Doro Nawas is ideally situated for exploring the highlights of Southern Damaraland, including the Petrified Forest, Organ Pipes, Damara Living Museum and the ancient rock art at Twyfelfontein. These can be explored at leisure on a self-drive itinerary, but for the other major camp highlight, tracking desert elephant on game drives, you should definitely book a guided excursion. The conservancy is a real elephant highway at certain times of year, with the open plains surrounding the dry Aba-Huab river valley offering a favourable terrain for travelling en masse. The lodge is set on an extremely picturesque, wide open plain under the shadow of Damaraland’s mountains and kopjes. The central building commands sweeping vistas over the camp and the surrounding area from a rocky outcrop, so elephants can occasionally be first glimpsed from the lodge. There are indoor and al fresco dining options, a swimming pool, bar and panoramic stargazing deck.

The 16 spacious rooms are partly tented with stone walls and thatched roofs. Sliding glass doors provide panoramic views out to the valley and can be thrown back to facilitate one of the camp’s most distinctive features: the beds can be rolled out during good weather to enjoy a night under the stars (and a mosquito net). Another Wilderness Safaris camp that is intimately involved with the community, you can learn more about the local culture on guided walk in the conservancy. Doro Nawas is welcoming and comfortable, combining perfectly with one of the Northern Damaraland camps.