South Africa
NAMIBIA: WILDLIFE SPECTACULAR – Sossusvlei, Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, the Hoanib, Etosha and Onguma
Saturday 18th July –
Saturday 1st August 2026 Leader: Virginia Wilde |
15 Days | Group Size Limit 6 |
NAMIBIA WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY TOURS WITH WILD IMAGES
Namibia offers such a rich feast of landscapes and wildlife that it is not surprising that Namibia photography tours are now considered some of the finest in Africa.
As one of the most sparsely populated countries on earth, Namibia is home to a kaleidoscope of landscapes that are home to some of Africa’s most beautiful wildlife and people.
Our Namibia photography tour visits the best wildlife venues in this wonderful , frienfdly and now quite modern yet wild country.
A Breathtaking Landscape Steeped in History
Namibia’s landscapes are dominated by a geological kaleidoscope rivalled by very few countries on earth. Almost around every corner, the colours of the countryside change dramatically, robbing even the most jaded photographer of breath. In Namibia, some of the world’s oldest deserts are breathed into life by beautiful ephemeral rivers, snaking like veins from rocky mesas to the sea, where the cooling Benguela creates a coastal fog unique only to its coast and, oddly, coastal South America.
We explore two of the most spectacular expanses of desert dunes in Africa on our tour. The extraordinary sand sea at Sossusvlei is famous for its endless gigantic red sand dunes hiding clay pans dotted with ancient camel thorn trees. Then we will take an adventurous drive over the huge yellow coastal dunes of southern Namibia to Sandwich Harbour, where we will search for herds of Oryx, migratory birds and the elusive brown hyena while driving the beach where the wild Atlantic kisses Namibia’s coastline.
During our stay in Sossusvlei we will offer an optional one-hour scenic flight by helicopter for aerial photography of the region’s dunes, wildlife and clay pans.
Further north, we will drive into the remote Skeleton Coast region searching for incredibly unique wildlife, including desert-adapted elephants, lions and rhinoceros.
Finally, Etosha, the great white place that is home to a myriad of safari wildlife species, awaits us as a grand finale to our tour.
Namibia’s rich cultural history is ancient and spans centuries before the country was colonised by Germany. During our tour we will visit a site of extremely isolated rock carvings that have been viewed by only a few outside visitors to the country. Dating back to the 9th century, these beautiful arts were created by the country’s Damara people, whose long existence in Namibia is rivalled only by that of the San Bushmen.
Optional Scenic Flight Over Sossusvlei
One of the highlights of visiting the astonishing sand sea of Sossusvlei in the Namib Naukluft National Park is actually seeing this incredible landscape from the air. We offer a one-hour scenic flight in a helicopter with no doors over Sossusvlei, where we search for beautiful Oryx on the dunes and other wildlife. Taking place at sunrise or sunset, this is a perfect chance to gain an unfettered view of the crescent and star dunes of Sossusvlei while the light is soft and the shadows are long. With space for only three guests in each of two helicopters (a total of six guests), the costs of this expensive flight drop considerably if we can fill each helicopter. Due to the sublime photographic opportunities these flights offer, they are very popular with our guests, and we would suggest you register your interest in joining one of these scenic flights at the time of booking.
Africa’s Arid Wildlife
Guided by some of the leading naturalist photographers in the country, our tour will not only take you to see Namibia’s most iconic safari and desert wildlife; we will explore the southern dunes for flocks of wild flamingos and birds while looking for shy brown hyenas.
Namibia’s coastal dune systems might appear lifeless to some, but we will take you on the ultimate ‘sandbox safari’ in search of Africa’s little five – Namaqua chameleon, Peringuey’s Adder, Namib Web-footed Gecko, Namib Sand-diving Lizard and Toktokkie beetles. This fascinating part of the trip gives you the chance to photograph feeding chameleons and tame Tractrac Chats while learning about the geography of Namibia’s coastal dunes first-hand.
We will also visit the world’s largest colony of Cape Fur Seals in the rugged coastal region of Cape Cross. Teeming with life, Cape Cross is thought to be the first place where Europeans set foot in Namibia in 1486. Now it is a wildlife reserve that is home to almost 200,000 seals who spend their days lounging, arguing, fishing, swimming and breeding along rocky headlands and beaches.
It is close to Cape Cross that we will make a brief stop to view the jewel-like lichen fields that are unique to Namibia. These orange landscapes feature over 120 species of lichens that exist here and nowhere else. Each plant is like a tiny desert jewel and they are wonderful for macro photography.
Supported by local experts, we will explore two of the country’s most remote and fascinating ephemeral rivers, the Hoanib and Hoarusib, searching for Namibia’s unique desert-adapted elephants, lions and rhinos. Driving through these ethereally beautiful places, we may see troupes of Chacma Baboons, flocks of ostriches, journeys of giraffes and other desert wildlife wandering between the dunes and these elongated oases of the Skeleton Coast deserts.
In southern Africa’s oldest national park of Etosha, our tour spends four days on safari in open-topped vehicles, waterhole hopping at the peak time of the year when thirsty animals teem around any sources of water to drink. During our safaris, we will search for Africa’s largest wild elephants, prides of lions, black and white rhinoceros, and numerous species of ungulates, including Hartmann’s Mountain Zebras, listed as vulnerable by the IUCN.
What makes our Namibia Photography Tour different?
Given the warm, friendly nature of Namibia and its incredible diversity of photographic subjects, it is hardly surprising that many photography tour companies offer trips of various lengths in this superb country.
Our tour travels the length of this spectacular country at the absolute best time to photograph wildlife. The main rain season in Namibia usually falls between December and April. During this time, water is widely available across the country and the vegetation is lush. During the rainy season and up until the end of May, wildlife photography can be difficult in these conditions. The peak wildlife viewing in Namibia is during the months of June to October, when the waterholes are drying up and the vegetation has been grazed. It is this time you can experience the magical golden light with less obstructed views of an abundance of wildlife congregating at waterholes.
Through numerous visits to Namibia, we have an unparalleled level of expertise in locating the best photographic locations. We don’t just focus on the main tour circuit with all of its iconic destinations; we go deeper into the country to find some of its most precious and hidden wildlife while showing you how to best capture it all in photos.
Our guides stem from the country’s leading natural history family and from extensive photographic visual storytelling backgrounds. While travelling with us, we not only show you the unseen, but we help you to tell a story through your portfolio of the trip.
Accommodation and Road Transport
Accommodation during our Namibia photography tour is a mix of comfortable lodges and hotels.
Travel in Namibia involves long distances. Transport is by custom-built, extended Landcruisers. The vehicle configuration is that each participant will have a window seat. Each vehicle has a pop-top roof in the vehicle that can be opened in Etosha and the ephemeral rivers.
Walking
There is very little walking on this Namibia photography tour as most of it is conducted by driving. A short walk over undulating dunes is required to reach Dead Vlei. A boardwalk is available to view the seals at Cape Cross.
Climate
Namibia and South Africa are both extremely dry, arid landscapes with very few mosquitoes. During the day we suggest you wear neutral coloured clothing while on safari, a broad-brimmed hat and light, long-sleeved clothes to protect you from the sun. At night and on early morning drives a warm fleece is recommended as the night-time desert temperatures can drop to below 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit).
Photographic Equipment
For wildlife photography of the larger mammals and birds, a 200-300mm lens will often be the most useful lens, but we also recommend a focal length of 400-600mm for other bird shots, mammal close-ups etc. (If your budget does not run to prime lenses, high quality 100-400mm or similar zoom lenses can be a great alternative.) For landscape and night photography, we suggest you bring a wide-angle lens from 10mm upwards.
Alternatively, you can get wonderful photography results with a high-quality digital bridge camera with an 18-20x or higher optical zoom and a good wide-angle capacity (equivalent to 24-28mm).
iPhones and iPads are useful on this trip for photographing macro subjects like Peringuey’s adders and also for the tiny lichens we will view in the desert. You may find mobile devices are also great for taking small videos of the wildlife we will encounter during our tour.
If you have questions about what equipment you ought to bring, please contact us.
Photographic Highlights
- A true adventure spanning much of the country
- Our tour is timed to make the most of Namibia's incredible night skies for celestial photography
- The incredible red dune landscapes of the Sossusvlei including golden hour photography in Namibia’s most iconic destination, Dead Vlei
- Optional scenic helicopter flight over the red dune sand sea of Sossusvlei in search of Oryx and other desert wildlife
- The world’s oldest plants, Welwitschia mirabilis in the stunning red granite landscapes of northern Namibia
- A search for Africa’s “Little Five” in the dunes of Swakopmund (Namib Web-footed Gecko, Namaqua Chameleon, Peringuey's Adder, Shovel-snouted Lizard and Toktokkie Beetle)
- Look for prowling Black-backed Jackals in the largest African Fur Seal colony in the world at Cape Cross
- A search for prides of desert adapted lions and other creatures of the red granite desert system of Damaraland, including Black Rhinoceros, giraffes, zebra and the rare desert elephants of Namibia
- Explore the wreck of the Zeila and other ruined structures on Namibia's famous Skeleton Coast
- A thrilling 4WD journey through the desert landscapes of Sandwich Harbour, searcing for elusive Brown Hyena and other desert wildlife
- Etosha's incredible waterholes attract a huge variety of wildlife including Elephants, Giraffes, Zebra, Hartebeest, Springbok, Black and White Rhinoceros, Kori Bustards, Wildebeest, Lions and Cheetah plus so much more
- Enjoy the new and wonderful low-level private hides/blinds at Onguma at the edgfe of Etosha National Park
OUTLINE ITINERARY
- Day 1: Arrive in Windhoek and overnight
- Day 2: Drive a spectacular scenic route to world-famous Sossusvlei and arrive in time for sunset photos in the sand sea
- Days 3-4: Dawn photography in the iconic Deadvlei and the rest of the days visiting the otherworldly dunescapes of Sossusvlei
- Day 5: Final photography of Sossusvlei before driving to Walvis Bay for sunset
- Day 6: Full day sand dune adventure exploring Sandwich Harbour for Brown Hyenas and other desert wildlife
- Day 7: Namibia's Living Desert search for Africa's "Little Five" before an afternoon at rest in the pretty coastal town of Swakopmund
- Day 8: Travel north to the Cape Fur Seal colony at Cape Cross and then into the rugged basalt landscapes of southern Kaokoland
- Day 9: A full day on safari in the Hoanib ephemeral river searching for desert adapted rhinos, elephant, lions and other wildlife
- Day 10: Morning drive into Etosha National Park, arriving in time to enjoy our first afternoon on safari in southern Africa's oldest wildlife reserve. Overnight at Okaukuejo.
- Day 11: Exploring west-central Etosha. Overnight at Okkaukuejo.
- Day 12: Travel through Etosha to the Namutoni area in the east. Overnight at Onguma a private sanctuary bordering the park.
- Days 13-14: Exploring Onguma and visiting its photo hides/blinds, as well as Etosha itself.
- Day 15: After a final photo session at Onguma, transfer to Windhoek airport for afternoon tour end.
To see a larger map, click on the square-like ‘enlarge’ icon in the upper right of the map box.
To see (or hide) the ‘map legend’, click on the icon with an arrow in the upper left of the map box.
To change to a satellite view, which is great for seeing the physical terrain (and for seeing really fine details by repetitive use of the + button), click on the square ‘map view’ icon in the lower left corner of the ‘map legend’.
PRICE INFORMATION
Wild Images Inclusions: Our tour prices include surface transportation, accommodations, meals and entrance fees.
Our tour prices also include all tips for local guides, drivers, camp staff and accommodation/restaurant staff.
Deposit: 20% of the total tour price. Our office will let you know what deposit amount is due, in order to confirm your booking, following receipt of your online booking form.
TO BOOK THIS TOUR: Click here (you will need the tour dates)
2026: provisional price £6490, $8490, €7810, AUD12810. Windhoek/Windhoek.
Single Supplement: 2026: £580, $770, €700, AUD1160.
If you are travelling alone, the single supplement will not apply if you are willing to share a room/tent and there is a room-mate of the same sex available.
This tour is priced in US Dollars. Amounts shown in other currencies are indicative.
Air Travel To & From The Tour: Our in-house IATA ticket agency will be pleased to arrange your air travel on request, or you may arrange this yourself if you prefer.
NAMIBIA WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY TOUR: DETAILED ITINERARY
Day 1
Our Namibia photography tour begins this evening at Windhoek, where we will stay overnight. Home to a population of around 300,000 people, Windhoek feels more like a large town than a capital city. It is a modern city whose architecture is sprinkled with colonial buildings that hark back to the time when Namibia was a German colony.
On the first night of our expedition, we will enjoy a welcome dinner at our lovely lodge overlooking the nearby arid mountains outside Windhoek.
Day 2
Today we will drive southwestwards towards Sossusvlei for a three nights stay, travelling through some spectacular country as we near our goal.
This afternoon will be our first opportunity to enjoy photography in Namibia’s stunning sand sea, the red dunes of Sossusvlei. We stay at a lodge inside the park allowing us to extend our time for photography until sunset.
Days 3-4
On our first morning at Sossusvlei, we will get up early to photograph the iconic Deadvlei at sunrise. This famous clay pan is dotted with ancient camel thorn trees and is probably one of the most photographed locations in Africa, if not the world. We will be there very early in order to capture it in the best light, before the crowds. During the day we will take a break before heading into some more remote dune areas of the park when the afternoon light cast shadows on the dunes.
We will also see our first of the unexplained “Fairy Circles” in Namibia at Sossusvlei.
The second morning we will have an optional aerial flight at Sossusvlei for our guests. Photographers not wishing to take the flight will enjoy a morning of landscape photography in this stunning region.
During the afternoon we will do some more exploration of this extraordinarily scenic plkace.
Day 5
Today we drive towards the bustling coastal city of Walvis Bay where we will spend the night.
This afternoon we will visit some of the lagoons that are homes to flocks of thousands of flamingos and other migratory birds. Our beautiful hotel is on the coast away from the noise of the city.
Day 6
Adventure beckons as we undertake a full day sand dune safari across Namibia’s coastal desert to Sandwich Harbour. It is here we will go in search of the elusive Brown Hyena while exploring these gigantic dunes that fall into the wild Atlantic Ocean. It is here that we will also search for other desert wildlife including Oryx, Springbok, Ostrich and Black-backed Jackals, alongside migratory birds, Cape Fur Seals and reptiles. The drives to Sandwich Harbour are thrilling and the way the light falls on these dunes is mesmerising.
Upon our return from Sandwich Harbour we will drive north to Swakopmund for two nights stay at our comfortable hotel.
Day 7
After breakfast, we will embark on a brilliant journey through the coastal dune systems of the Dorob National Park just south of Swakopmund. Namibia is one of two places in the world where the cold waters of the Benguela current running along the coast cool down the heat of the desert to create a coastal fog that supports an entire ecosystem of its own. The other place this occurs is the Atacama Desert of northern Chile and southern Peru in South America.
The coastal fogs of the Skeleton Coast support such a tremendous amount of life that Namibia’s dune systems are, quite literally, some of the most alive deserts on earth. We will be searching for some incredible reptiles during this excursion like Shovel-nosed Lizards, Namibian Web-footed Gecko, Namaqua Chameleons, legless lizards, and Horned Vipers. Photography opportunities should be excellent. Dorob is also a fantastic place to explore the dunes for uniquely desert-adapted plants like Dollarbush and birds such as the Tractrac Chat.
We will also learn more about the origin of Namibia’s shifting sands in the reserve and the mineral make up of the different coloured sands of the dunes.
Stopping in Swakopmund for lunch, we will then enjoy an afternoon at leisure in this lovely town. It’s a great place to charge batteries, go shopping, explore some beautiful colonial architecture and even enjoy some photography on foot in the town’s gardens.
Day 8
This morning we will make a sightseeing drive north of Swakopmund to visit the town’s saltworks in search of birds to photograph. We will then drive to the wrecked fishing trawler of the ‘Zeila’, stopping there for some scenic photography before driving north to Cape Cross.
Nearly a quarter of a million Cape Fur Seals call Cape Cross home during their peak breeding months of October and November. In the lead up to the season, well over 200,000 are present in this gargantuan coastal colony. To see Cape Cross is a visual spectacular of seals, seabirds and if we are lucky, predatory animals like Brown Hyena which take advantage of young, elderly or unwell seals as prey. It is a seething mass of wildlife that is unrivalled anywhere in southern Africa. It is here we will also stop to photograph the pretty lichens in the coastal rock deserts of the region.
Leaving Cape Cross, we will drive north to Torra before we travel inland to escape the fog of the Skeleton Coast. When the dunes subside, they give way to the incredible red granite landscapes of Damaraland, one of Namibia’s most untouched and spectacular wilderness areas, and a wonderful place for landscape photography.
Our adventure inland begins here as we traverse a rugged 4WD, unmarked trail to reach our destination of Khowarib, near the headwaters of Namibia’s Hoanib ephemeral river, where we will stay two nights at a comfortable lodge. On our drive we will see massive outcrops of Euphorbia Damarana and red mesa type mountains as we search for this region’s uniquely adapted desert wildlife that includes Black Rhinos, ‘Desert (African Savanna) Elephants, zebra, giraffe, Klippspringe, Steinbok and a myriad of birds.
Damaraland is when we get our first taste of the real Africa. It is home to two wonderful tribes of people that are distantly related – the Herero and the Himba – and on our journey into Damaraland we will begin to see the beautiful Herero women in their Victorian dresses and unique cow-horn shaped head dress. We will also begin to see the red-ochre-coloured women of the Himba.
Day 9
Today we will spend a full day searching for the extremely rare and wild ‘Desert’ Lions’of Namibia. Under the advice of local guides we will spend a full day attempting to find prides of desert lions around the Hoanib. While lions roam all of Africa, Namibia’s desert adapted lions are unique in that they have learned to survive in one of the harshest landscapes on earth. There are several prides known to researchers working in this region and we will be attempting to locate one or more in their spectacular desert terrain to photograph them.
It is important to remember that the desert lions of Namibia are completely wild and not living within reserves as the lions that we will see elsewhere on our trip will be. If we find a pride, seeing them in this landscape will be one of the wildlife highlights of our photography expedition through Namibia.
Day 10
Leaving early, we will drive towards Etosha National Park where we will spend the first two nights at Okjaukuejo in the west-central part of the park.
We will arrive in time to enjoy our first afternoon on safari in southern Africa’s oldest game reserve.
Day 11
Etosha, meaning ‘Great White Place’, is dominated by a massive mineral pan. The pan is part of the Kalahari Basin, the floor of which was formed around 1000 million years ago. The Etosha Pan covers around 25% of the National Park. The pan was originally a lake fed by the Kunene River. However, the course of the river changed thousands of years ago and the lake dried up. The pan now is a large dusty depression of salt and dusty clay which fills only if the rains are heavy and even then only holds water for a short time. This temporary water in the Etosha Pan attracts thousands of wading birds including impressive flocks of flamingos. The perennial springs along the edges of the Etosha Pan draw large concentrations of wildlife and birds.
A San legend about the formation of the Etosha Pan tells of how a village was raided and everyone but the women slaughtered. One woman was so upset about the death of her family she cried until her tears formed a massive lake. When the lake dried up nothing was left apart from a huge white pan.
The wildlife viewing and photography in Etosha National Park is excellent, the best time being from May to September – the cooler months in Namibia. Visitors to Etosha Game Reserve can expect to see many antelope species, African Savanna Elephant, Southern Giraffe, White Rhinoceros and Lions. More fortunate visitors will see Black Rhinoceros, Leopard and Cheetah. There is a network of roads linking the camps and subsidiary roads lead to various waterholes.
Today, and much of the rest of our stay in the Etosha area will be spent on photosafari in Etosha National Park, where we will search for the largest elephants in Africa and a myriad of mammal and bird species. Stopping briefly (where allowed) to hop out for photographs, our vehicle-based exploration of Etosha will traverse many of the park’s side tracks and visit many water holes, the epicentres of Etosha’s wildlife activity. Wildlife photography opportunities simply abound here and you are sure to come away with a large number of satisfying images.
Day 12
We will spend the day travelling through the park, with numerous stops for wildlife photography, until we exit at the Namutoni Gate in the east. From there, we continue the short distance to the private Onguma Reserve for a three nights stay at a very comfortable safari camp.
Days 14-15
The biggest attraction at Onguma is the recently-constructed low-level photo hides/blinds that regularly attract drinking animals including Lion, Leopard, Spotted Hyena and many ungulates.
We are sure to want to spend plenty of time at these hides but we will also explore the Onguma reserve and the nearby Etosha National Park as well. These are going to be two wonderful days!
Day 15
After a pre-breakfast photo session, we leave Etosha behind and drive back to Windhoek airport for an afternoon tour end.
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