On the road (and sometimes off it) in Namibia

[Atravelynn]

The quelas are unreal.  The knob on the Knob-billed Ducks is quite evident.  Great shot.

Interesting symmetrical bird watching, and a lovely species for symmetry.

 

"Some really lovely places to stay in the most unexpected locations."  This observation of yours makes Namibia appealing to a wider audience than those who love wildlife viewing.

 

I like how you are planning a return based on what you learned this time around.  You may encounter some safaritalkers who were inspired to go by this trip.

[pedro maia]

Great report and lots of information, I liked the lodging classification, but I ended up with the feeling that you were somehow disapointed with Namibia, in particularly with Etosha, am I wrong?

[Kitsafari]

thanks for working so hard on the very informative trip report. it does bring some valuable information on Namibia - a place I've yet to get to. 

[xelas]

Absolutely enjoyed your report, all your comments and of course excellent photos. Chalet #13 at Dolomite?! Someone obviously did its pre-trip planning well. Maybe not 100% as otherwise it would know about the vet fence. Good you did not have any food with you. Thank you for posting this report, and for the extra effort to value each accommodation.

[Galana]

Just caught up with this report today and enjoyed your narrative and style, @xelashas mentioned the Vet fence at Palmwag. That is what the yellow warning is about. As you discovered you got the wrong lodge at Epupa too.

Some excellent sightings nevertheless. Great Black Rhinos too.

Good to see you are planning  a re-run all ready. Look forward to hearing the plans. Sad to hear about your views on staff ability. That has never been my experience in eight visits.You cannot have caught them ALL on a bad day.

Noted you seem to have problems with East and West? Remember that even though you are in the southern hemisphere the sun still rises in theEast.

[ElenaH]

excellent TR @Soukous!  Beautiful pictures and informativ text making a good balance. I love the maps and the lodge rating! I even see your TR like an example for "how to write a Trip Report".Interestingly, I also had an impression that you were a bit disappointed with the trip. I am curious about your next itinerary. I do also want to visit Namibia and thinking about the places to visit. Last time I was there in 2014.

[Soukous]

On 5/19/2022 at 1:42 PM, pedro maia said:

Great report and lots of information, I liked the lodging classification, but I ended up with the feeling that you were somehow disapointed with Namibia, in particularly with Etosha, am I wrong?

 

A little bit, yes. But I think that was mostly down to my planning. The anticipated highlights did not live up to expectations.

Etosha? Yes, I suppose so. I find other national parks much more immersive. I don't like the 'highway through the park' .

[Soukous]

On 5/25/2022 at 10:24 PM, Galana said:

Noted you seem to have problems with East and West? Remember that even though you are in the southern hemisphere the sun still rises in theEast.

 

smart arse

[michael-ibk]

Thanks Martin, really enjoyed the report. Your descriptions of the lodges made me laugh more than once. Fantastic bird photos, and really stunning scenery. But your Etosha opinion is not helping me - I´m always a bit on the fence if I really need to go to Namibia and I´m not sure your report has made that decision easier.

[Soukous]

24 minutes ago, michael-ibk said:

your Etosha opinion is not helping me - I´m always a bit on the fence if I really need to go to Namibia and I´m not sure your report has made that decision easier.

 

As always it is a matter of opinion Michael. I know a lot of people who absolutely love Etosha.

 

Etosha is a vast park and has a great variety of mammal and bird life.

The NWR lodges are OK. I was probably a bit harsh because I was not at all impressed with the staff we encountered, but, if you want to stay inside the park then they are the only choice and the actual rooms are pretty good - at least the ones we used were good.

 

Apart from Dolomite, the lodges ( they call them resorts) are large. With the vast majority of people being self-drivers they have various standards of hard accommodation and also large camping areas - apart from Dolomite.

 

As for the game viewing, this was probably my biggest disappointment. You are not allowed off road - which is a good thing given the large number of vehicles - so you have to hope that the animals wander close enough for a decent view.

A large proportion of your game viewing will be done at various waterholes, and these can have a great number of animals hanging around.

 

Sadly each of the waterholes seems to have only one viewpoint, so for much of the day the light is dreadful. Because you are not allowed out before sunrise and are supposed to be back in camp before sunset it is not easy to be at the waterholes when the light is at its best.

In that regard Namutoni is one of the best places to stay because there are 2 water bodies within a 5-10 minute drive of the resort, so early morning and late evening are do-able.

 

If you are going to Namibia then it is hard to not include Etosha. 

 

 

[ice]

What puts me personally most off with regard to Etosha this the unbelievably complicated process to book your accommodation - they should have a look at SANParks and how super easy their system is. Etosha's landscape is obviously unique, the quantity and quality of animal sightings (imho) not so much. I have been there twice and would not return. In fact, I'm leaving in five weeks again and I did not even bother to try book rooms for Etosha.

 

However, I agree with Soukous: everybody who visits Namibia for the first time should at least try to spend a few days in Etosha.

[Zubbie15]

I'm very late reading this, but that let me get to it all in a day. Really appreciated the dry humor, and the unvarnished truth about the various locations. I'm another who's on the fence about Namibia, but some of the recent reports, including yours, definitely making think I've got to make time someday soonish... Thanks @Soukous! 

[Toxic]

Much like @Zubbie15also very late reading this but I binged it last night in its entirety. I loved your commentary and ranking system (particularly you biting your tongue on the non existent stop sign ), and your photos are beautiful!

 

Very much enjoyed the video of the elephants claiming ownership of the watering hole, and also the photos of the Violet-eared Waxbill and the many, many queleas! 

[Soukous]

On 7/9/2022 at 8:33 PM, Zubbie15 said:

I'm another who's on the fence about Namibia, but some of the recent reports, including yours, definitely making think I've got to make time someday soonish

 

It is definitely worth a visit. A better planned one than mine though

[linjudy]

@Soukous, thanks for the amazingly detailed report! We are planning a self-drive trip Sept 2023, and this report is super helpful. You mentioned you are already thinking about returning. What would you do differently next time? We will only have around 10 days (14 max). What would you suggest for itinerary?

 

 

[Soukous]

On 8/21/2022 at 8:53 PM, linjudy said:

@Soukous, thanks for the amazingly detailed report! We are planning a self-drive trip Sept 2023, and this report is super helpful. You mentioned you are already thinking about returning. What would you do differently next time? We will only have around 10 days (14 max). What would you suggest for itinerary?

 

 

 

Oh my, what would I do differently? A lot, but then that is inevitable as I'd want to see new places.

As far as suggesting an itinerary for you, I don't feel I have the depth of knowledge for that. @Galanawould be a much better resource.