Namibia, Botswana i nad Zambezi z noclegami w lodżach

WINDHUK • SESRIEM • NAMIB-NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK • SOSSUSVLEI • SWAKOPMUND • CAPE CROSS • SPITZKOPPE • ERONGO MOUNTAINS • TWYFELFONTEIN • ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK • RUNDU • DIVUNDU (KAVANGO) PARK VICTORIA NATIONAL WATERFALL PARK (ZIMBABWE)

Get ready for an extraordinary experience in Africa - this is a 4x4 vehicle trip to three different countries: Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Explore the oldest desert in the world - the Namib. Drive along the sinister and inhospitable Skeleton Coast, see the colony of cats at Cape Cross. Travel back in time and stroll through the colonial patch of Germany at Swakopmund. Spend the night in Spitzkoppe overlooking the Milky Way and the Southern Cross. Look for desert elephants in the Aba Huab River. Enter the animal kingdom of Etosha National Park. Cross the border into Botswana to travel down the Chobe River in search of the world's largest elephant population. Enter Zimbabwe to see the famous Victoria Falls. Cut yourself off from civilization and "feel" Africa for a while - in Europe people have watches, in Africa people have time! This version of our trip provides accommodation in atmospheric lodges and is more suitable for you if you attach importance to a comfortable overnight stay. The expedition provides a lot of impressions! Towards adventure, out of range.

1. DAY. Departure from Warsaw to Namibia.
DAY 2. WINDHUK Arrival in the capital of Namibia - WINDHUK. Completion of visa formalities at the airport. Acquaintance with the leader of the expedition. Exchange of currency for a local one, purchase of a SIM card for those willing (no coverage possible in many places). Transfer to the capital. Check-in at the hotel and time to rest. Lunch. The program includes visiting the capital from the resident's side: rich and poor districts. Dinner. Overnight at the hotel. Route: approx. 45 km.
3. DAY. SESRIEM - NAMIB-SCIENCE NATIONAL PARK Breakfast, check out and drive to SESRIEM, a small settlement on the outskirts of NAMIB-NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK. Drive on gravel roads through the desert landscape. Crossing the Tropic of Capricorn - a stop at the commemorative plaque. Stop at the Solitaire settlement. In Sesriem, descent to the bottom of the canyon carved by the Tsauchab River. It is one of the few places around the Namib Desert where water remains all year round. Lunch on the way. Evening drive to the lodge. Accommodation, dinner and overnight. The route is approx. 330 km.
4. DAY. SOSSUSVLEI - SWAKOPMUNDWake up before dawn and depart to admire the sunrise in SOSSUSVLEI. The Sossusvlei dunes are considered to be one of the largest in the world and have the original red color of the sand. Arrival at sunrise to the "dead valley" - one of the most unusual places in Namibia. The bottom of the basin is surrounded by mighty dunes and covered with the dry, dry stumps of acacia trees that have survived in this harsh desert scenery for many centuries. This contrast between the red dunes, the trough and the dry remnants of trees creates a surreal image, making it one of the most photogenic places in the world. Then, climb to the top of Namibia's highest dune and admire the views. Return to the lodge for breakfast. Check out and drive towards Walvis Bay, and on along the Atlantic Coast to SWAKOPMUND. This port town is an excellent example of well-preserved German colonial architecture. Lunch during the day. Check in, dinner and overnight at a hotel in Swakopmund. Route: approx. 500 km.
5. DAY. SWAKOPMUND Breakfast. Walk around the city and free time. A choice of several optional activities (for an additional fee on site): a quad bike ride in the desert, a boat trip in search of pelicans and dolphins or a trip to the Sandwich Harbor. Return to the hotel, dinner and overnight.
DAY 6. CAPE CROSS - SPITZKOPPE - ERONGO MOUNTAINS Breakfast and check out. Drive from Swakopmund along the Atlantic coast towards CAPE CROSS. On the way, a stop at the wreckage of the Zeil minesweeper, which is the last ship to sink on the infamous Skeleton Coast. A visit to a cat colony and a stop at the characteristic cross. The first European to land in this part of the world was the Portuguese explorer Diego Cao (in 1486), who erected a stone cross in honor of King John II of Portugal, symbolically "occupying" the area (today at Cape Cross you can see a replica of the original). Arrival up the mountain SPITZKOPPE, called the Matterhorn of Africa, dominates the flat plain Ending this stage of the journey at the foot of the ERONGO MOUNTAINS - accommodation in a lodge, dinner and overnight route: approx. 360 km.
7th DAY. TWYLFONTEIN Breakfast and a visit to the open-air museum (the so-called living museum) of the San ethnic group. This group, commonly referred to as "Bushmen", is considered by many anthropologists as the last link between modern civilization and the hunter-gatherer culture. They live in southern Africa for over 30 thousand. years, and the evidence of this are the numerous drawings on the rocks in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. The Bushmen lead a nomadic lifestyle, their main occupation was hunting. The natural way of life was disrupted many decades ago by other groups of people settling in. Check-out and departure from the lodge. Drive through the land called Damaraland by the locals - the name comes from the ethnic group living in this area (Damara). A stop in the town of Uis, built near the former tin mine. Lunch. Next stop at the archaeological site - TWYFELFONTEIN, which has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is one of the greatest sites of ancient rock art. A visit to the Damara open-air museum (the so-called living museum), this people together with the Bushmen, is considered to be one of the oldest tribes in Namibia of unknown origin. He is engaged in gathering, hunting and agriculture. Overnight and dinner at the lodge near Twyfelfontein. Route: approx. 240 km.
8th DAY. ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK Breakfast, check-out and departure to the ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK. This is one of the largest and most spectacular African National Parks. Lunch on the way. Accommodation, dinner and overnight in bungalows inside the national park. For those willing to spend the evening and night at the pond while waiting for the animals coming to the watering site. Route: approx. 340 km.
9. DAY. ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK Breakfast and check out. Safari in the ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK to search for animals. This park is home to 114 species of mammals, 340 species of birds, 110 different species of reptiles, 14 species of amphibian animals and, surprisingly, one species of fish. Etosha or "Great White Lake" covers 25% of the park's area. It is now a dry reservoir that was once filled with the water of the Kunene River, the bottom of which is mostly made of salt and clay. The reservoir is filled with water during the rainy season, but for a very short time and only during heavy downpours of rain. In the dry season, animals are fully dependent on man-made waterholes - they gather near water sources, where they are easy to meet. The plan of the dishes - traveling from watering to watering and observing animals. Lunch during the day. Transfer to the lodge, accommodation, dinner and overnight. In the evening, the possibility of waiting for the animals at the pond at night. Route: approx. 150 km.
10. DAY. ROUND After breakfast, morning safari. Check out and departure from P.N. Etosha to the north in the direction of the "thumb of Namibia", which is the easternmost belt of land about 450 km long. We will end the day in RUNDU, located on the Kubango River (commonly known as Okavango). Lunch during the day (depending on the pace of the program implementation) outdoors in the form of a picnic. Accommodation at the lodge. Evening dinner by the fire and overnight. Route: approx. 390 km.
11. DAY. DIVUNDU (KAVANGO) After breakfast and checking out, we enter the area of "Namibia's thumb" - known as Caprivi, or Zambezi. The Zambezi area is part of the KAZA Transboundary Reserve, the areas of which, in addition to Namibia, are in neighboring Botswana, Zimbabwe, Angola and Zambia. The main function of the reserve is to ensure the free migration of migrating herds of animals. We will end the day in DIVUNDU in the lodge located in the vicinity of the Bwabwata National Park. In the local language, the word bwabwata means "the sound of gurgling water." There is a great variety of species in the park. In addition to elephants and giraffes, this area also includes buffaloes, various species of antelope and hippos. The predatory species in Bwabwata are lions, leopards, cheetahs and crocodiles. The species diversity of birds is also impressive - over 350 species live in the Park. Lunch on the way during the day. Accommodation and dinner at the lodge. Route: approx. 410 km.
12. DAY. BWABWATA NATIONAL PARK Breakfast. Transfer to the BWABWATA NATIONAL PARK. A "mokoro" boat trip on the Kubango River (Okavango) in search of hippos, crocodiles and elephants. Afternoon relaxation by the river. Lunch and dinner at the lodge, overnight.
DAY 13. KASANE (BOTSWANA) Breakfast, check out. Drive towards KASANE in Botswana. Crossing the border (should not exceed an hour). Kasane is the largest town in the region on the edge of the Chobe National Park. The park is famous for the largest concentration of elephants in the world. Lunch during the day. Accommodation in a lodge, near the park. Dinner and overnight. Length of the route: approx. 450 km.
14. DAY. CHOBE NATIONAL PARK Breakfast. A boat trip at the CHOBE NATIONAL PARK, on the Chobe River, where you can look for elephants, buffaloes, hippos and crocodiles. Lunch during the day. In the afternoon, return to the lodge and time to relax. Dinner and overnight.
15. DAY. VICTORIA NATIONAL WATERFALL PARK (ZIMBABWE) Breakfast, check out and drive to the VICTORIA NATIONAL PARK in Zimbabwe (the distance to Victoria Falls is not that long, but the formalities at the border crossing may take some time.) Among the natural riches that Zimbabwe possesses, Victoria Falls are a real gem. It is an approx. 1,800 m wide curtain on the Zambezi River, which with a huge boom falls to a depth of approx. 120 m into a narrow ravine. In the rainy season, about 1.9 million liters of water per second fall from the rock threshold. The mist that arises during this decline is visible from a distance of about 60 km. Walk along the Victoria Falls. Accommodation at the lodge, cruise on the Zambezi River, dinner during the cruise. Overnight. Route: approx. 90 km.
DAY 16. NATIONAL PARK OF VICTORIA FALLS Breakfast at the lodge. THE NATIONAL PARK OF WATERFALLS OF VICTORIA offers a lot of suggestions for spending time actively. Optionally (for an additional fee on site) participation in rafting on the Zambezi River, bungee jump, zip-line or a scenic helicopter flight over the waterfall. Return to the lodge, dinner and overnight.
17. DAY. Breakfast, check out. Transfer to the airport. Departure to Poland.
18th DAY. Arrival to Poland.

BENEFITS:15 nights: 3 nights in hotels: (1 in Windhoek, 2 in Swokopmund) • 2-person rooms with bathrooms • 12 nights in 2-person lodges. rooms with bathrooms • meals according to the program: 15 breakfasts, 12 lunches, 15 dinners • entry tickets to national parks according to the program • private 4x4 transfers • care of the Polish-speaking leader from the airport in Windhoek to transfer to the Victoria Falls airport • insurance KL and NW Itaka Complex

NOTES: