Please quote Fly-in safari 2WDN

The Skeleton Coast Park is one of our planet's most inhospitable but hauntingly beautiful places - it is wild, desolate and uninhabited. It has everything from roaring sand dunes, windswept plains, towering canyons, and salt pans to seal colonies, shipwrecks and even one of the world's most productive fishing grounds.

Fresh water springs permeate through barren sands to create rare oases in the desert that sustain pockets of wildlife. Springbok, gemsbok (oryx), the desert elephant, ostrich, jackal and brown hyena eke out an existence in this rugged terrain, along with vegetation like the near-endemic welwitschia which has adapted to the harsh conditions.

The arid desert environment in the Skeleton Coast is within the northern reaches of the Namib Desert. The Benguela current brings cold waters all the way from Antarctica and helps to moderate temperatures. The cool air off the ocean meets the hotter desert air, and nearly every morning, a cool mist envelops the coastline, bringing life-sustaining moisture to the desert.

There are many regions in the Skeleton Coast. On this safari, we visit the most isolated, beautiful, remote (and private) northern sector of the park, from just north of Mowe Bay to just south of the Kunene River. This area has been set aside by the government for low-volume, exclusive safaris.

We offer two safaris, one for four nights/five days (departing every Saturday) and another for three nights/four days (departing every Wednesday). Both are flying safaris, starting and ending in Windhoek. However once we arrive at the Skeleton Coast we spend all our time in vehicles. Usually, both safaris can be combined with the Best of Namibia Wing Safari to create the Ultimate Namibian Safari.

If you have the time available, make sure that you book the five-day safari, on which we abandon our traditional early morning and afternoon activities and leave camp after breakfast and spend the full day exploring the park. We enjoy a picnic lunch out in the wild and we return to base camp in the later afternoon. We travel in 4x4 Land Rovers and cover an extraordinary variety of terrain. All safaris visit remote Himba villages just outside the park for an incredible cultural experience.

Days: either 4 or 5, depending on choice

Safari Synopsis:

Day, Route and Activities

1 The flight from Windhoek (2 ½ hrs) to Skeleton Coast Camp takes you northwest over the interior plateau of Namibia. We fly over the striking geological features of Damaraland, over craters of long-dead volcanoes and meteorite impact sites meeting the coastline at the Hoarusib River mouth. From there we do some low-level flying along the coast as far as Rocky Point, viewing the coastal plains and dunes from the air.

We arrive in time for lunch and settle into camp on the Khumib River. An afternoon introduction to the desert environs of the region includes a drive through dry riverbeds, gravel plains, natural springs and dunes, concluding with sundowners on the rugged coast near the loneliest grave in the world!

2,3 (& 4) After breakfast, we depart on the excursion for the day, taking in the highlights of this harsh environment. Activities comprise either full-day nature drives or walks with a picnic lunch, returning to camp in the evening, or half-day nature drives or walks returning to camp for lunch and venturing out again in the afternoon. The areas we traverse are vast and excursions vary somewhat depending on weather, season, animal movements etc. Areas you may visit include the clay castles of the Hoarusib River, Rocky Point, coastal shipwreck sites, seal colonies, cultural Himba villages, natural fresh water springs, lichen fields, roaring dunes and more. Your guide also provides an in-depth look at the specially adapted reptiles, birds, insects and plants that have evolved over the ages to survive in this seemingly inhospitable place.

Return to camp at sunset for dinner.

4 or 5 On the morning of departure guests may either spend their time at leisure in and around camp, or go on a regular early morning activity returning with ample time to pack and have lunch.

At lunchtime depart for Windhoek by light aircraft, flying over the interior of Namibia. Because of its situation and the fact that it is the site of the country’s major airport, many visitors begin and end their Namibian holiday in Windhoek.

Note: Itinerary Description Text supplied by tour operator

Vital Statistics

Duration 4 or 5 Days

Mode of Transport Light Aircraft

Group Size Minimum 2

Special interests and weather conditions Each group may have different interests, i.e. photography, botany, ornithology etc. The above itinerary will be flexible enough to accommodate this, and to allow the guides to concentrate on the interests of their guests. Activities are influenced by weather conditions, and we will endeavour to arrange an itinerary that maximizes optimum weather conditions in each area

General luggage restriction is 12kgs per person in a soft bag.