Etosha

Ais Ais / Richtersveld Transfrontier Park

One of the African Peace Parks and featuring some of the most spectacular desert scenery in southern Africa. It joins Namibia's Ai-Ais and Fish River Canyon National Park with South Africa's Richtersveld National Park. The main features are the Fish River Canyon, a spectacular jagged rift in the otherwise flat landscape that surrounds it, and the nearby Ai-Ais hot springs that provide welcome relief to the feet of weary travellers.

Brandberg Nature Reserve

The majestic Erongo mountain range of the Brandberg massif rises from flat arid scrubland. The Konigstein peak at 2,573m is the highest in the country and forms just part of this range which is impressive when viewed from any direction. In the caves and ravines of these mountains many prehistoric rock paintings have been found, including the famous 'White Lady' of the Brandberg.

Caprivi Game Park

Wedged between Angola and Botswana, the Caprivi Game Park extends from the Okavango River in the west for about 180km to the Kwando River in the east. It is generally flat with deciduous woodlands, except for some 30 - 60m high dunes covered in vegetation. Although game is present, you may not see much as you are restricted to the single road running through the park.

The Etosha National Park

Regarded by wildlife aficionados as one of Africa's greatest and most intriguing wildlife sanctuaries. Despite being in a semi-arid area, the park is home to over 340 species of bird, 110 reptile and 100 mammal species, including close to 3,000 elephant, 300 black rhino - one of the biggest populations in Africa – 27,000 wildebeest, 7,000 zebra and rare antelope species like black faced impala, Damara dik dik, suni and roan antelope. Lion, cheetah and hyena are relatively common sightings and leopard often lurk in the tangled vegetation around waterholes.

Mudumu National Park

A true African wilderness experience. In contrast to the rest of Namibia, the area is lush with riverine forest, marshes, dense savannah and mopane woodland. An astonishing 430 species of birds have been recorded (nearly 70% of Namibia's total) and much game including the rare sitatunga and red lechwe as well as buffalo, elephant, zebra, antelopes, hippo and crocodiles.

Namib-Naukluft Park

Namib means vast, and this is an understatement when applied to the desert it names. The Namib-Naukluft Park is the largest conservation area in Namibia and one of the largest in the world, at almost 50,000 square km's. It encompasses several very different landscapes the wettest of which is the estuarine lagoon at Sandwich Harbour. At the opposite end of the moisture scale is the parched Namib Desert with endless orange dunes blown into razor sharp ridges by the sand-shifting wind.

Namibrand Nature Reserve

The Namibrand Nature Reserve, 60 km south of Sossusvlei, is part of the largest conservation area in Namibia, and the site of some of Africa's most breathtaking scenery. The park is a vivid and varied fabric of all the natural beauty of the Namib. Steep, rocky mountain ranges, enormous savannahs, vegetated dunes of deep red sand, and clay pans - these are four of NamibRand's distinct natural habitats. Many antelope, including the predominant gemsbok inhabit the park, as do over 100 bird species, among them Namibia's only true endemic, the Dune Lark.

Skeleton Coast Park

The Skeleton Coast is named for all the ghostly shipwrecks that are beached on its remote and inaccessible white shores. This 2 million hectare park is one of the most inhospitable and least visited places on earth - a challenge for those on a Namibia safari. To get there by road entails a drive through the rugged mountains of Damaraland. Only 4WD vehicles dare enter for fear of getting stuck in the soft sand and running out of fresh water, and a fly-in safari is the only other alternative. The attraction for visitors is its untouched and mysterious barren beauty, swept by cold sea breezes and often enveloped in a dense fog.

Waterberg Plateau Park

The 200 metre-high, flat-topped Waterberg Plateau is sometimes described as the Lost Eden because, once up there, the animals have no way down. Leopard, buffalo, and the rare and endangered roan and sable antelope live atop this magnificent brick-red sandstone block. The plateau can be explored on a Nature Conservation guided game viewing vehicle or guided wilderness trail. In the shadow of the plateau is a restful resort with bird studded camp sites where parrots chatter above your head, and cottages with impressive views over the surrounding savannah.