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NAMIBIA SWAKOPMUND LUXURY COASTAL ESCAPADE - 4 Day
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Swakopmund, Namibia's premier coastal resort, is home to the deluxe Swakopmund Hotel & Entertainment Centre. Built in and around the beautifully restored Old Station building, the hotel combines renowned Namibian hospitality with stylish comfort. With state of the art facilities, it caters for everyone from the holidaymaker to business conferences or that very special anniversary.
Features include 90 spacious rooms and suites overlooking a charming courtyard and heated outdoor swimming pool. Feast to your heart's content on Namibia's bountiful sea harvest at either of the 2 restaurants, and enjoy live entertainment and dancing at The Tavern action bar - whilst sampling Namibia's famed crisp and cool beers!
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The Entertainment Centre comes complete with a fully-equipped, world class casino, a cinema and gymnasium.
We have compiled a 3 night package, from either Johannesburg or Cape Town, utilising the scheduled services of SA Express. Extra nights are available on request. Extended packages taking in other highlights of Namibia can be tailormade to suit your individual requirements.
Includes: Airfare Johannesburg-Walvis Bay-Johannesburg or Cape Town-Walvis Bay-Cape Town on SA Express, transfers, accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis.
Excludes: Visas (if required), travel insurance, health requirements, additional meals, optional excursions, gratuities, all items of a personal nature and any service not specified.
Important Note:
Rates for flights Cape Town-Walvis Bay-Cape Town on SA Express on request.
All prices quoted are subject to change due to airfare increases or any other unforeseen circumstance.
Optional Excursions (per person, minimum 2 persons unless otherwise specified):
Namib Desert tour (half day excursion, minimum 3 persons) - View the moon landscape, Welwitschias (endemic to the Namib desert) and drive in a 4x4 down the Swakop River canyons. To round off the day climb the unique linear dunes that border the coastline. Refreshments included.
Cape Cross seal colony (half day excursion, minimum 3 persons). The biggest and best known of the 23 colonies of Cape fur seals can be found at Cape Cross. Entry fees and refreshments included.
Swakopmund Sundowners (+- 1.5 hours).
We set up a table on the beachfront with dunes rising behind you or, depending on wind conditions, travel 10 km into the desert. Champagne, soft drinks and an oyster platter included.
Quad biking (1 hour)
Dune Boarding (for as long as you want to!)
Sossusvlei Pleasure Flight. Bookings on arrival only through Pleasure Flights, Swakopmund.
Prices on request.
ITINERARY:
Day 1 - (Daily departures excluding Saturdays & Sundays). Morning departure on SA Express from Johannesburg or Cape Town to Walvis Bay. On arrival you will be met and transferred to your hotel in Swakopmund. Accommodation at the Swakopmund Hotel & Entertainment Centre for 3 nights on a bed and breakfast basis.
Day 2-3 - At leisure to explore the town with its German architecture and atmosphere, go quad biking, dune-boarding, or enjoy a day trip to the Namib Naukluft Park famous for its prehistoric Welwitschia plants. A pleasure flight over the Sossusvlei dunes, the highest in the world, is another popular adventure.
Day 4 - (Daily departures excluding Saturdays & Sundays). Transfer to Walvis Bay airport for your SA Express flight to Johannesburg or Cape Town.
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NAMIBIA DESERT EXPRESS RAIL SAFARI - 5 Day
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The Desert Express train has 24 compartments, each accommodating one, two or three passengers. The compartments are fully air-conditioned and heated and have en-suite facilities.
Passengers have access to an elegant lounge, unique bistro bar and spacious restaurant that serves the best in Namibian cuisine.
Uniquely shaped large windows throughout the train include the traveller in the wide open spaces.
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Includes: Airfare Johannesburg-Windhoek and Walvis Bay-Johannesburg or Cape Town-Windhoek and Walvis Bay-Cape Town on SA Express,
transfers,
accommodation in Windhoek and Swakopmund on a bed and breakfast basis,
Desert Express train including dinner, breakfast and two excursions as per itinerary
Excludes: Visas (if required), travel insurance, health requirements, optional excursions, gratuities, all items of a personal nature and any service not specified.
Important Note:
All prices quoted are subject to change due to airfare increases or any other unforeseen circumstance.
Please ask for details of safaris to Etosha - also on board the Desert Express.
Optional Excursions in Swakopmund (per person, minimum 2 persons unless otherwise specified)
Namib Desert tour (half day excursion, minimum 3 persons). View the moon landscape, Welwitschias (endemic to the Namib desert) and drive in a 4x4 down the Swakop River canyons. To round off the day climb the unique linear dunes that border the coastline. Refreshments included.
Cape Cross seal colony (half day excursion, minimum 3 persons). The biggest and best known of the 23 colonies of Cape fur seals can be found at Cape Cross. Entry fees and refreshments included.
Swakopmund Sundowners (+- 1.5 hours).
We set up a table on the beachfront with dunes rising behind you or, depending on wind conditions, travel 10 km into the desert. Champagne, soft drinks and an oyster platter included.
Quad biking (1 hour)
Dune Boarding (for as long as you want to!)
Sossusvlei Pleasure Flight. Bookings on arrival only through Pleasure Flights, Swakopmund.
Prices on request.
ITINERARY:
Day 1 - Thursday - Morning departure on SA Express from Johannesburg or Cape Town to Windhoek. On arrival you will be met and transferred to the Windhoek Country Club Resort. Afternoon free to explore the town or play a round a golf at the hotel. Overnight at Windhoek Country Club Resort on a bed and breakfast basis.
Day 2 - Friday - Midday transfer to Windhoek train station. Depart on an overnight journey to Swakopmund on Namibia's unique rail experience, Desert Express. Mid afternoon arrival at a game ranch for a game drive that ends with a sundowner on a hill overlooking the beautiful surrounding countryside. Upon returning to the train relax in the Spitzkoppe lounge. Dinner is served in the Welwitschia restaurant as the train makes its onward journey to overnight at a quiet secure siding. Overnight on the train on a dinner, bed and breakfast basis.
Day 3 - Saturday - Early the next morning Desert Express leaves the siding and continues on its westbound journey. The train will travel through the Namib Desert past Swakopmund and finally behind the dunes between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay, where passengers will disembark for a walk on these really unique dunes. The train will then proceed onto its final destination, the picturesque Swakopmund, arriving at approximately 10h00. Transport will be provided to your hotel. Overnight at the Swakopmund Hotel & Entertainment Centre on a bed and breakfast basis for 2 nights.
Day 4 - Sunday - At leisure to explore the town with its German architecture and atmosphere, go quad biking, dune-boarding, or enjoy a day trip to the Namib Naukluft Park famous for its prehistoric Welwitschia plants. A pleasure flight over the Sossusvlei dunes, the highest in the world, is another popular adventure.
Day 5 - Monday - Transfer to Walvis Bay airport for SA Express flight to Johannesburg or Cape Town.
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NAMIBIA SKELETON COAST SAFARI - 6 Day
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The Skeleton Coast conjures up mysterious visions of mist-enshrouded beaches strewn with bleached whalebones and rusted shipwrecks.
Stretching form the south of Namibia up into Angola, the Skeleton Coast and its hinterland is a landscape of haunting beauty, a vast area of rolling sand dunes, expanses of uninhabited desert plains, fossil beds, unique geological formations, desert-adapted animals and strange vegetation.
The area is covered in a unique and dynamic 4 day fly and drive safari with the Schoeman family, using Cessna 210 aircraft and custom-built Land Rovers. |
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Guests are lodged in exclusive, privately owned and fully equipped tented camps - a different camp for each night of the safari. Each one is situated in a spot carefully chosen for its beauty. The accommodation is comfortable and serves all basic needs. All safaris are hosted, flown and driven by a member of the Schoeman family who grew up here and had the very secrets of the Skeleton Coast etched on their souls. This is a unique experience you will always remember.
Includes: Airfare Johannesburg-Windhoek-Johannesburg on British Airways / Comair, transfers, accommodation in Windhoek on a bed and breakfast basis, 3 night Skeleton Coast Safari by light aircraft including tented accommodation, all meals, all drinks and land excursions as per itinerary, services of a professional pilot-guide.
Excludes: Visas (if required), travel insurance, health requirements, gratuities, all items of a personal nature and any service not specified.
Important Note:
All prices quoted are subject to change due to airfare increases or any other unforeseen circumstance.
A maximum of 10 kgs per person, packed in soft, flexible travelling bags is allowed. This excludes camera equipment of approximately 2 kg.
A group consisting of a minimum of two and a maximum of eight people may be assembled on this safari.
The cold Benguela Current along the Namibian coast ensures prevailing moderate weather at the coast and adjacent desert year round. Subsequently there is no 'preferred' or 'ideal' period during which to undertake this particular trip.
Due to the fog belt, which is often present, the climate at the coast tends to vary considerably.
Temperatures never drop below freezing point but it is essential that clothing adaptable to both warm and cold temperatures (6-36 degrees Celsius) is brought along. It should be noted that even in summer cool temperatures, rather than hot, are the norm.
Although several game species occur in these regions, it must be kept in mind that the prime purpose of these safaris is not to view game, but to experience the freedom, beauty and strange solitude of the area. Seeing game should therefore be considered a bonus.
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What to pack:
Bring only safari-type clothing and personal toiletries.
T shirts
Long sleeved cotton shirts
Shorts
Trousers/jeans
Sweater/jersey
A warm jacket eg anorak/windbeaker is essential.
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Other essentials include:
Good quality sunglasses
Hat
Walking shoes (No extensive hiking on this trip)
Sandals/slops
Suntan lotion
Camera and spare film / batteries.
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This area is a photographer's paradise, therefore camera equipment and lots of extra film is a must. Because wilderness areas are far from civilisation, purchasing extra film whilst on tour in unfortunately impossible.
Please ask for details of extended safaris combining the Skeleton Coast with Sossusvlei, Etosha National Park or Luderitz- also with the Schoeman family.
ITINERARY:
Day 1 - (Daily departures) Morning departure on British Airways/Comair from Johannesburg to Windhoek. On arrival you will be met and transferred to Hotel Pension Palmquell, a homely bed and breakfast establishment on the outskirts of the city. Afternoon free to relax under palm trees at the swimming pool or investigate the attractions of this charming town. Overnight on a bed and breakfast basis.
Day 2 - Transfer to Eros Airport after breakfast for a 10h00 departure to the Skeleton Coast via Conception Bay. The Kuiseb Canyon and adjoining red dunes are a spectacular view from the air. The flight also includes (weather permitting) an aerial view of the famous Eduard Bohlen shipwreck at Conception Bay. After landing and refuelling at Swakopmund, we continue with a low-level flight north along the Skeleton Coast over the seal colony at Cape Cross. Thereafter we fly east, over the desert, to the Ugab formations - a nearly lifeless moon 'landscape' of numerous black ridges that stand out in stark contrast to the white desert floor - before landing at Kuidas Camp in the Huab Valley, Damaraland, where we stay for the night. Your pilot-guide will arrange for a light picnic lunch to be served en route during the day's itinerary.
Day 3 - After breakfast we depart by Land Rover to explore the colourful red lava and yellow sandstone of the Huab River formations and to be introduced to the ecological aspects of this environment with its wide diversity of flora and fauna. This includes the Welwitchia mirabilis, a tree that has been dwarfed by the rigours of the desert climate. We have lunch at Kuidas Camp before flying towards the coast in the Skeleton Coast Park. The most prominent shipwrecks along this part of the coast are the Montrose and Henrietta, still relatively intact. At the coast we access the roaring dunes by Land Rover, which always proves to be a stimulating experience. We also visit the beach with its profusion of multi-coloured pebbles consisting of different varieties of agate, lava, granite and other stones. Interesting to see are old bleached whale bones scattered along the beach above the high tide mark. We return to the aircraft and continue north to Purros Camp in the Hoarusib Valley in Kaokoland, where we stay for the night.
Day 4 - After breakfast a scenic drive along the Hoarusib Valley to visit a settlement of the nomadic Himba tribe. We might be lucky enough to come across the desert-dwelling elephant which frequents this valley. A planned encounter is unfortunately not possible. From here we continue north along the Skeleton Coast by aircraft to the Kunene River on the Angolan border. The Kaiu Maru shipwreck and pieces from old sailing vessels lie scattered along this part of the coast. From the airfield we take a scenic drive by Land Rover to our favourite lunch site. After lunch we continue through the mountains and dunes of the Hartmann Valley, which extends to the Kunene River, reaching our Kunene River Camp where we spend the last night.
Day 5 - An early morning boat trip on the Kunene River as it flows through scenic desert landscape, observing birdlife and possibly some crocodiles. Birds vary from aquatic species on the perennial waters, to endemic desert varieties and those than inhabit dense riverine vegetation. After lunch at the camp, we fly back to Eros Airport, Windhoek, arriving in the late afternoon. Bid farewell to your pilot-guide who, by now, has become a great friend. Transfer to Hotel Pension Onganga on the eastern outskirts of Windhoek. Enjoy views of the Auas mountain range from the bar - the perfect place for a sundowner. Overnight here on a bed and breakfast basis.
Day 6 - After a generous and healthy buffet breakfast you may like to take a stroll to the nearby Avis Dam, a popular recreation spot. Late morning transfer to Windhoek International Airport for your British Airways/Comair flight to Johannesburg.
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Reservations and Enquiries |
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