Namibia, The Grand Tour: 14-26 Nov plus 27 Nov-1 Dec. 6 places max. With Tom Peck
Quest is extremely happy to team up with Kathryn Haylett & Your Safari to offer our first trip to Namibia! This extraordinary country offers the very best in both wildlife and landscape, & this tour is specifically designed to make the most of both.
The tour is split into two so that guests can balance budget with exactly what they want to see & photograph. The first half (14-26 Nov) will take us to the central and north of the country. After arriving at the capital in Windhoek we travel on to Okonjima Nature Reserve, home to AfriCAT a carnivore sanctuary. We will have 2 opportunities to go out with the rangers in the 54,000 acre reserve tracking leopards through the bush and observe all the myriad of wildlife species that live alongside them. Then 4 days in Etosha National Park: open plains, savannah grasslands, a huge salt pan & waterholes teeming with abundant wildlife - lions, cheetah, elephants, black rhinos and giraffes, as well as over 340 species of birds including ostrich, eagles, hornbills & owls. Next we spend 2 days in the spectacular boulder-strewn scenery of the Erongo Mountains. We then take a 2 day break in Swakopmund, a resort town on the Skeleton Coastline where we will trip out to the desert. The highlight of the tour is next: Sossusvlei & the petrified trees by the dunes. We will stay just inside the national park at Sesriem so we can maximise our golden hour time amongst the dunes. We then return to Windhoek.
Part 2 of the tour (27 Nov - 2 Dec) takes us from Windhoek to the south of Namibia, Luderitz and Kolmanskop. We are based at Shark Island where the birdlife is prolific - flamingos, black oyster catchers & all manner of waders. We will then spend a day at Kolmanskop, the famous desert ghost town. Once a diamond mining town Kolmanskop was abandoned when the diamonds were depleted & other locations became more viable. The geological forces of the desert mean that tourists now walk through houses knee-deep in sand. Kolmanskop is popular with photographers for its settings of the desert sands reclaiming this once-thriving town & the arid climate preserving the traditional Edwardian architecture in the area. The following day we go to the village of Elizabeth Bay, abandoned in 1935, another deserted town & diamond plant left to the elements and onslaught of the Atlantic coast. We will spend our time exploring the old village and industrial ruins and with luck will have Namibia's famous sea mist clinging to the coast before it evaporates as the sun warms up the desert. On our way back to town we can spend some time visiting the Cape Fur Seal colony at Atlas Bay. We will spend our final morning in Luderitz photographing the architecture (German colonial buildings, the art nouveau Goerke Haus & the striking hilltop church at Felsenkirche). Then we fly back to Windhoek and connect to our flights back home.
Travel & Accommodation. We will use Your Safari's 9 seater safari vehicle to travel around Namibia. This is a specialised vehicle for photographers with a pop-up roof & side camera rests to allow for the perfect photography vantage points. Accommodation in Namibia is always en-suite in 3 or 4* accommodation.
Price: We have an amazing deal for this inaugural trip: The price includes all ground travel in Namibia, 10 evening meals, single occupancy accommodation & all park entrance fees. Price does not include international or domestic flights or soft/alcoholic drinks. Because this is Quest's first trip to Namibia we are not quite sure of how many will wish to come, so if the trip is full with 6 guests the cost for Part One is £4,495 per person; if 5 people it is £4,995; if 4 it is £5,795. Part Two is £1,295 for 6 people; £1,355 for 5 & £1,145 for 4 people. Guests can of course book for both Parts One & Two together, or can do either section independently.
For more detailed info on each section of the trip please click on the links below, or contact Tom at 07515 549485, thomaspeck1@me.com
