NAMIBIA
Safari 4x4: Namib Edition
DATES
PRICE PER PERSON
Max. 16 participants
4 per vehicle
Namibia
Vast. Elemental. Unforgettable.
Namibia is not a destination you simply visit — it’s one you move through. Namibia is vastness made visible — towering dunes, crashing Atlantic surf, desert light that shifts from deep crimson to gold by the hour. It is home to the oldest desert on earth, some of the darkest night skies anywhere in the world, and landscapes so expansive they recalibrate your sense of distance. We move through it the way it was meant to be experienced: behind the wheel of capable 4x4 vehicles, four per car, traveling together in convoy across open gravel roads, desert plains, and along the Skeleton Coast where mist rolls in from the ocean. At Sossusvlei, the world’s tallest dunes rise and fall in sculpted waves. Along the coast, ancient river systems sustain desert-adapted wildlife in terrain that feels almost otherworldly. Nothing is staged. Wildlife appears when it chooses — an elephant crossing open ground, an oryx silhouetted against red sand — and the land sets the pace.
By night, we settle into carefully chosen safari lodges and remote tented camps, places that honor the landscape rather than compete with it. Long tables, thoughtful comfort, and millions upon millions of stars overhead in true Dark Sky silence. This is an intimate journey designed for friends and family — small, intentional, and built around shared movement rather than spectacle. Namibia doesn’t shout for attention; it expands you quietly, leaving you altered by its scale, its color, and the feeling of having truly moved through one of the most extraordinary landscapes on earth.
*We recommend beginning in Cape Town — an ideal soft landing before turning north toward Namibia. Take a few days to ease into the rhythm of southern Africa: mountain air, long golden light, remarkable food, and mornings without urgency. By the time you cross into Namibia, you’ll arrive grounded, refreshed, and fully present — ready for what lies ahead.
D1 ARRIVAL WINDHOEK
Take a morning flight from Cape Town to Windhoek, where you’ll be met on arrival and transferred to The Weinberg Hotel — your first base in Namibia. After settling in, we’ll head across town to collect our 4x4 vehicles, complete the formalities, sign the necessary waivers, and walk through the rigs together. It’s the first tangible step into the journey ahead — when anticipation becomes real.
The remainder of the afternoon is yours. Wander through Windhoek’s blend of modern energy and frontier history, sample local flavors, or simply ease into the rhythm of the country. As evening settles in, gather at the Weinberg’s Sky Lounge for your first Namibian sunset — glass in hand, watching the light fade across the valley.
Dinner is just steps away at the iconic Joe’s Beerhouse, followed by a well-earned night’s rest. Tonight is about arrival. Tomorrow, the landscape opens — and the expedition truly begins.
Welcome to Namibia.
O/N The Weinberg Hotel, Gondwana Collection Namibia
D2 - OKONJIMA NATURE RESERVE
Afternoon Big cat Safari
Driving Time = 220 km (137 miles) 2.5 to 3 hours
This morning we leave the city behind and begin our first drive north. For now, the gravel waits — this stretch follows one of the few paved highways in the country, an easy introduction before the true 4x4 terrain begins. The landscape gradually opens, the horizon widening with each mile. By mid-morning we arrive ready for something altogether different. Today, we go in search of the big cats — leopard.
Okonjima is a working conservation landscape, known for its pioneering research and long-term commitment to wildlife protection. Set beneath the Omboroko Mountains, it’s a place of open plains, rocky ridgelines, and acacia savannah — once a cattle farm, now one of Namibia’s most respected sanctuaries. Leopard and rhino anchor the reserve, alongside brown hyena, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, eland, and a wide range of antelope. Some species have been reintroduced. Others have endured here for generations.
For our group, the experience is entirely private — dedicated guides, our own vehicles, and a tailored rhythm that keeps encounters calm and unhurried. Tracking here is deliberate. You read the land. You scan the ridgelines. And when a leopard finally appears, it feels earned.
What makes Okonjima powerful isn’t just the wildlife — it’s the intention behind it. Conservation here is active, grounded, and deeply rooted in the land’s history.
For a few days, we step into that story — not as observers, but as participants in a landscape that has chosen restoration over erasure.
O/N Okonjima Nature Reserve & Lodge
After dinner, when the lodge has gone quiet, we may head back out into the reserve — this time in search of one of Africa’s most elusive animals: the pangolin.
The night air cools, the savannah sharpens, and we move slowly with our guide, scanning the sand for subtle signs. Pangolins aren’t “spotted.” They’re found through patience and experience. If we’re fortunate, we may witness one moving deliberately through the bush — small, armored, ancient.
It’s a rare and intimate encounter, and a powerful reflection of Okonjima’s deep commitment to conservation. In the stillness of the Namibian night, even the quietest creature can leave the strongest impression.
D3 - OKONJIMA NATURE RESERVE
After a hearty lodge breakfast — strong coffee, fresh fruit, warm light spilling across the plains — we lace up and step away from the comfort of camp.
Today, we go on foot.
With experienced guides leading the way, we move quietly into the reserve. The pace changes immediately. No engine. No elevation. Just boots on earth and the steady rhythm of walking. The land begins to speak in details — fresh spoor pressed into sand, a snapped twig, dung still warm, the direction of wind across open ground.
Tracking rhino on foot is deliberate work. Slow. Focused. The guides read the landscape like a living map, interpreting signs most of us would step past without noticing. We advance carefully, always aware of wind and distance, adjusting our path with quiet hand signals and measured pauses.
And then, if conditions align, the moment arrives.
A white rhino grazing in open savannah. Massive. Prehistoric. Surprisingly silent. The scale feels entirely different when you stand on the same ground, with nothing between you and the animal but space and respect.
It’s not adrenaline that defines the experience — it’s awareness. Humility. The realization that you are briefly sharing terrain with a creature that has survived against enormous odds.
To track rhino on foot in Okonjima is to step into something real — guided by people who understand both the animal and the responsibility of protecting it. It’s quiet, layered, and deeply powerful.
D4 - AI-AIBA - THE ROCK PAINTING LODGE
Driving Time = 280–290 km (175–180 miles) 5 to 6 hours
We leave Okonjima and turn south, and almost immediately the land changes. Thornveld thins, gravel stretches long and straight, sandstone rises and falls in quiet waves. This is working Namibia now — dry, open, uncompromising. The noise drops away and the horizon takes over.
By midday we step out of the vehicles and into deep time. Dinosaur tracks pressed into exposed rock, nearly 200 million years old. No signage spectacle, no barrier — just stone and history under open sky. Then we roll again, pushing deeper into ranchland shaped by rivers that run only after rain but still dictate the land as if they never stopped.
We follow a remote gravel line through the Omaruru River corridor. It’s a road that feels earned, cutting straight into the interior. Omaruru itself exists because of water — it always has. Long before it became a town, Herero and Damara communities crossed here with cattle and trade. Missionaries and settlers followed. Granite from the Damara Belt — some of the oldest exposed rock on earth — frames everything.
We refuel, then reset properly at Ondjaba Whisky. Mahangu grain, smoked with elephant dung, matured in oak and wine casks beneath the African sun. Smoky, dry, complex. Entirely of this place.
From there, the road roughens and we shift fully into 4x4 mode, heading into the Erongo Mountains. The terrain tightens. The track demands attention. Ai-Aiba Rock Painting Lodge sits inside the Erongo Mountain Rhino Sanctuary Trust, nearly 180,000 hectares where internal fences came down, livestock stepped aside, and wildlife was given room to move again. Black rhino have been reintroduced. Hartmann’s mountain zebra hold the escarpments. The system works because it’s allowed to breathe.
The Lodge
The Ai-Aiba lodge nearly disappears into the terrain. Curved thatched roofs sit among massive boulders, granite hues mirroring the land. Chalets are calm and generous—private patios, big windows, deep bathrooms—designed to pull the outside in.
Meals unfold under open skies beside a palm-fringed pool. Evenings gather naturally around the firepit as the Erongo glows red, then fades into deep blues and mauves. At night, subtle lighting traces the rock without breaking the silence.
D5 AI-AIBA - THE ROCK PAINTING LODGE
On Foot, On Bike, Through History
We spend a full day at Ai-Aiba, set deep in the Erongo Mountains where granite stacks itself into improbable forms and history sits right on the surface. This isn’t just a lodge—it’s a living archive. Scattered across the land are more than 200 San (Bushman) rock art sites, etched into caves, overhangs, and open stone, preserved by time and isolation.
Walking With the San
Here, members of the San community walk with us—people whose ancestors created the art you’re standing in front of, whose language still carries the unmistakable click sounds shaped by this land. This isn’t a guided walk in the usual sense. It’s shared movement, following the same paths their people used for generations.
You learn how they read the landscape—animals, water, weather, survival. The paintings shift from images to instruction. Stories are passed on foot, in place, with the quiet authority of lived knowledge. You’re not observing history. You’re walking inside it.
Riding the Erongo Mountains
Ai-Aiba offers some of Namibia’s most surprising cycling — flowing trails laid across ancient granite landscapes, designed for rhythm rather than punishment. The routes wind through open plains, rocky outcrops, and quiet mountain corridors, emphasizing immersion over technical difficulty. E-bikes are available, making the terrain accessible while still delivering the full sense of movement through this dramatic landscape. Guided rides add local insight, and wildlife — gemsbok, giraffe, kudu, baboons, and occasionally even leopard — move quietly through the background as you ride.
Tonight, we gather for something timeless: a traditional Namibian braai under an open sky. Fire, slow-cooked meat, good wine, and stories carried upward into a ceiling of stars. No city glow. No interruption. Just heat from the coals and the vastness above.
Vehicles & Support
This is a self-drive journey — but not an unsupported one.
We travel in modern, fully equipped 4x4 vehicles, configured for Namibia’s terrain and long gravel distances. Each vehicle carries four to five participants, allowing for shared driving, navigation, and a comfortable amount of personal space.
We move in convoy, staying connected and within range of one another throughout the journey. No one is left navigating alone. Routes are pre-planned. Distances are deliberate. Daily drives are structured with clear meeting points, fuel strategy, and timing.
Vehicles are outfitted appropriately for desert travel, including:
All-terrain tires and proper ground clearance
Satellite navigation and route planning
Recovery equipment
Ample water and emergency provisions
Where appropriate, we also integrate local lodge support and guided wildlife drives within private reserves — allowing us to transition from self-driven exploration to expert-led safari experiences seamlessly.
This is not a rugged survival expedition. It’s a structured, well-considered overland journey designed for comfort, safety, and shared experience.
You drive — but you drive together.
You explore — but you are supported.
You experience Namibia actively — without sacrificing thoughtful planning.
Includes
All transfers according to programme, including airport shuttle
Guided game-viewer safari and wildlife experiences
Spectacular dining in the desert
5 nights with breakfast:
5 lunches, 5 dinners with regional and international fine dining
4 driving days in a provided Toyota or Ford Pick-Up
Excludes
Not included in the price are your individual arrival and departure to/from the airport, the flights as well as additional overnight stays before/after the experience. If you have any questions, let us know.