Southern Cross of Africa
This trip offers you a laid back itinerary with plenty of time to explore, which has easy days, no hard trekking, good roads, game drives and wildlife. However it also guarantees loads of time for outrageous adventure activities and excellent tribal content.
A variety of experiences during the whole journey will perfectly satisfy you!
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Details |
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Price Includes |
(MT-6530-P) |
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Crew: 1 western leader, local guides as necessary. |
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Vehicle: Encounter overland truck, canoes, Meals included |
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Accommodation: Mainly campsites with good facilites, some wildcamps. (90% camping, 10% hotels) |
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Game drives in various places during the journey |
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Wildlife boat safari through Chobe NP, home to thousands of elephant |
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Guided overland tour through Northern Chobe and the Caprivi Strip |
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Guided Visit to the Skeleton Coast's outrageous Cape Cross seal colony |
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2 night makoro dugout safari in Okavango Delta |
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Overnight bushcamp with Namibian bushmen |
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Hiking in the stunning landscape of Spitzkoppe |
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Price Excludes |
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Local Kitty Payment 550USD
The following optional extras are usually available and which cost US$20 or more:
$20 Sesriem - Guide tour of the Namib Desert at Soussusvlei
$360 Sesriem - Ballooning over the Namib Desert
$80 Swakopmund - Scenic Flight, Forbidden Coast / Skeleton Coast
$30 Swakopmund - Sandboard package (full day / incl guide, lunch, transport)
$55 Swakopmund - Quad Bike Trip (2 Hours)
$55 Swakopmund - Fishing Trip (Half Day)
$20 Vic Falls - Upper Zambezi Sunset Boat Trip & BBQ (3 Hours/Incl. Drinks)
$90 Vic Falls - Elephant Game Ride
$45 Livingstone - Walking Safari in search of Rhino
$80 Livingstone - Helicopter Flight over Victoria Falls
$65 Livingstone - Half Day Horse Riding Safari
$95 Livingstone - Full Day White Water Rafting on Zambezi
$85 Livingstone - Full day canoeing on Zambezi
$90 Livingstone - Bungi Jump over Zambezi at Victoria Falls
Please bear in mind that costs do change from time to time and the above are meant as a guide only. Also, some activities may no longer be available, and others may have been added.
Based on the range that previous travellers have spent on this trip, we recommend you allow between a minimum of US$10 and a maximum of US$20 per day. The minimum is the basic amount a budget traveller would spend on limited drinks and
meals when not camping, postcards, laundry, site and museum entrances, etc. The maximum would allow a much more “comfortable†lifestyle as well as covering the cost of optional extras up to US$50.
Kitty price(from 670USD) does not cover food while staying in hotels and hostels or at Livingstone. |
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Countries / Places Visited |
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Victoria Falls, Chobe NP, Ngepi, the Kavango River, N'kwazi Lodge, Namibia, Otjitongwe Cheetah Reserve, Spitzkoppe, dune 45 at Sossusvlei, Fish River Canyon, Cape town |
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Activities Included |
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rafting, bungee, horse riding, boats, elephant riding, walking safari, open top jeep safari, Makoro trips, village visits, canoe, football games with local villagers, bushwalking, tracking and food gathering with Bushmen, quad biking, sand-boarding, sky diving |
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Suitability / Level |
Easy |
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Theme |
Small Group Travel
(Click to Search All) |
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Itinerary
& Highlights |
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Days 1 - 2: South Africa
Cape town
You cannot help but be impressed by the setting of Cape Town. Behind the town, Table Mountain dominates the skyline. You may wish to take a cable car to its summit for views of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Cape Town is built on a bay, which fronts onto the Atlantic Ocean. Dating back some 350 years it has some interesting old buildings, many of which have been preserved in the centre of this thriving city. It is a great place to relax and explore. You should take time to explore as there are some wonderful sights to be seen in the surrounding area including the Cape of Good Hope, and some interesting activities such as wine tasting in Stellenbosch.
Cape Province
Our route through the Cape Province takes in some beautiful scenery with rolling plains stretching from the foot of the Cedarberg Mountains. This is the country's prime agricultural area with products ranging from cereals to oranges.
Days 3 - 6: Namibia
Noordoewer
Noordoewer is a small settlement on the banks of the Orange River and one of the hottest places in Namibia. Fortunately there is an abundance of water which is used to irrigate the fruit trees - in particular grapes. A few kilometres out of town on the Orange River, we can take the opportunity to go canoeing or rafting for for the afternoon.
Fish River Canyon
Fish River Canyon is one of the great natural wonders of Africa. It is one of the largest canyons in the world almost ranking with the Colca Canyon in Peru and the Grand Canyon in the U.S.A. Fish River has its source east of the Naukluft Mountains and from there it flows down into the great Orange River. The river has cut into the escarpment through which it flows to create a canyon more than 150 kms long. The lookout points from the top give breathtaking views, especially at sunset when the canyon walls are bathed in the
orange light.
Days 7 - 10 - Luderitz
The coastal town of Luderitz is a picturesque colonial German town, with the air of a place that the Twentieth century has passed by. Surrounded by beaches and bays it is famed for its beer kellers, coffee houses and seafood restaurants. If there is time you may like to take a boat trip out to Halifax Island (weather permitting) to see the marine wildlife including penguins and cormorants.
Kolmanskop
We visit the eerie ghost town of Kolmanskop. In its day, it was the thriving headquarters of the diamond industry. Today, sand dunes encroach on the buildings and streets. A few of the buildings have been restored, and there is a museum containing maps, photos, and some of the old equipment that was used in the diamond fields.
Aus
Aus is a small settlement perched high up in the Aus Mountains. It is famous in Namibia for the occasional snowfall during cold winters and the beautiful wild flowers which follow the summer rains.
Sesriem Canyon & Soussusvlei
The most famous part of the Namib Desert is its vast dune fields, the most spectacular of which are found near the Sesriem Canyon. This canyon through the mountains, was formed when the Tsauchab River carved a gorge 30m deep into the gravel deposits, about 15 million years ago. It is thought that this river once flowed to the Atlantic Ocean but its course was blocked by the encroaching sand dunes. Now the river flows out to the dune fields that stretch for hundreds of miles up the coast, and dries up in a clay pan at Soussusvlei. The dunes are stunning, with magnificent red/orange tones from the brightly coloured sands. They are in fact the highest in the world and are home to a plethora of animal life. The sight of the graceful oryx wandering along the base of these massive dunes is beautiful to see. We can organise a morning’s guided trek through the desert, which although it may not be everyone’s idea of fun, is well worth while as it provides a comprehensive
picture of the desert. Weather permitting it may be possible to take a balloon trip over the desert. One activity that is definitely worth the effort is the early morning climb up one of the largest dunes, Dune 45, to watch the sun rising over the desert.
Days 11 - 15 Swakopmund
Surrounded by the massive dune fields of the Namib Desert on three sides and the Atlantic Ocean on the other, this town is an example of the extraordinary German culture that is found in all major settlements in Namibia. It is worth wandering around the town to admire the beauty of the Germanic architecture and it has some excellent souvenir shopping. If you are into African artefacts, they have been imported here from all over the continent. You will find stuff from the Tuaregs of Timbuktu, the Dogons of Mali, the Masai of East Africa or
the Bushmen of the Kalahari, to name but a few. Swakopmund has become the adventure capital of the region. This is a place for the adrenaline junky as there are some excellent adventure activities that you
could try your hand at. One of the most popular is an afternoon's quad biking across the beautiful dunes fields. At the end of the day, you will witness the sun setting over the dunes and the Atlantic Ocean. It is a stunning view. Even more exciting is sand boarding down the dunes. There are two ways to do this, the first of which is the same as snow boarding. The second is designed for the non-technical thrill seeker and is extremely exciting. Try out boarding down these vast dunes, lying on your stomach while hurtling down the dune at speeds up to 80 kms an hour. You steer with your feet and keep your head and the front of the board held high. The board is a piece of hard board with the shiny surface polished to an ice like finish. Other activities here include deep-sea fishing, horse riding in the dunes, aerobatic flights, bike riding, dolphin cruises, paintballing,
uranium mine tours, pleasure flights around Namibia or balloon flights along the Skeleton Coast. Finally, perhaps the most exhilarating of all the activities is the tandem sky dive over the desert. Leaving the plane at 10,000 feet, after a thirtyminute flight, you will drop with the chute closed for 30 seconds before drifting gently
down over southern Africa’s most stunning scenery.
Cape cross
At the barren, inhospitable Atlantic coast we visit the seal colony at Cape Cross. As the Portuguese explorer Bartholemeu Diaz discovered five hundred years before us, the cape is a breeding ground for Cape Fur Seals; now with about 200,000 of them. Hyena and jackal wait on the edges of the colony for opportunities to steal pups while their mothers are at sea.
Twyfelfontein
The main attraction at Twyfelfontein (doubtful spring) is its large gallery of rock art, one of the most extensive in Africa. Most of the petroglyphs date back at least 6,000 years to the early Stone Age and are probably the work of San Hunters. Animals, animal tracks and geometric designs are well represented but there are surprisingly
few human figures. Many depict animals no longer found in the area - rhino, giraffe and lion - and a sea lion engraving indicates contact with the coast more than 1,000kms away. Depending on time available, we may decide to stay in the Spitze Kopje region instead of Twyfelfontein.
Kamanjab
The cheetah occupied most of Africa except for the equatorial forests and the true desert (Sahara), as well as much of the Middle East and India, where it became extinct in the early 1950's. It is now extremely rare in the rest of Asia and in Africa North of the equator. It is estimated there are less than 7,500 cheetahs left in the world, and about 6,000 of these are found in Southern Africa. Recent surveys have shown that Namibia has 2000-2500 cheetah, of which 95% are on private (game and cattle) farms. Unfortunately, most farmers have continued to shoot cheetahs because of their tendency to raid stock, particularly where their natural prey species are scarce, or absent. Whilst the current figures do not make the cheetahs endangered in the absolute sense of the word, the extraordinary degree of genetic uniformity that these cats have been shown
to exhibit, raises the possibility that a disease could devastate wild populations. Tollie and Roeleen Nel of Otjitotongwe Cheetah Park, near Kamanjab in northwestern Namibia, live on a farm, which has been owned, by the Nel family since 1931. In 1994 they had an experience, which was to change the course of their lives. In a period of four weeks, wild cheetah killed thirty eight of their goats and sheep. They decided that they had to trap the animals. One of the captured cheetahs was pregnant and gave birth to five cubs. Three of them survived, and were kept by the Nels as pets. This inspired the family to dedicate their lives works to the preservation of this species. To this end, they established the Otjitotongwe Cheetah Park on their family farm. The park has extended an open offer to remove any problem cheetah, whether it has resorted to stock raiding or is likely to do so. For this the farmer is paid from N$2000-N$2,500. If the Nels did not purchase the cheetah, farmers would be more inclined to shoot the animals and sell their skins or to sell the live cheetahs to trophy hunting farms. The captured cheetah is then transferred to the cheetah park, where they are released into an enclosure with other wild cheetahs after they have been in quarantine for 8-12 weeks. The park is now an enclosure of 250 hectares, holding 25 wild cheetah. The ultimate aim is to fence in the entire farm of 7,000 hectares. The expenses of this project are very high, and without support and donations the Otjitotongwe Cheetah Park could not survive. To this end, although the farm is clearly not a community project, we believe it is a very deserving enterprise. Dragoman and Dragoman Overland have therefore been helping with the funding of this fencing. At the park you will usually be able to meet with the tame cheetahs as well as experiencing the wild ones being fed.
Days 16 - 18 - Etosha National Park
Etosha National Park is set in a shallow depression, which is a shimmering white, dried-up lakebed, surrounded by grasslands and bushland. The park became a game reserve about 100 years ago, when the
governor of the then German South West Africa proclaimed an area of nearly 100000 square kilometres as a protected area. Today the park is smaller but is still a huge 23175 square kilometres in area. It is a haven for 93 mammal species and 340 bird species. It is home to a wide range of Southern Africa’s wildlife, including all the big carnivores and five rare or endangered species: Black Rhino, Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra, Black Faced Impala, Roan Antelope and the tiny Damara Dik Dik. The wildlife is prolific and Etosha has every right to
proclaim itself as one of the world's most pre-eminent wildlife areas. Game viewing in the park is relatively easy due to the manmade water holes and the large sparsely vegetated pans. The bushland surrounding
the pans is difficult to see through but there are enough clearings, pans and waterholes to make most visits well worthwhile. Namibia has protected its game reserves against poaching and there are large herds of elephant, antelope and other herbivores. We stay at two different campsites in the park, one of which, aukuejo is particularly spectacular as it overlooks a floodlit waterhole visited by many different species throughout the day and night. We will stay in the park for a couple of days giving us plenty of opportunity for game drives.
Days 19 - 21 - Grootfontein
Grootfontein is a pleasant market town with limestone buildings and tree-lined streets. It is from here that we will visit the Ombili Foundation Bushman community project.
Ombili Foundation
Near the northern town of Tsumeb, we take a few hours to visit a San (bushman) community project. The Ombili Foundation has been developed to help the San people to cope with modern life. With many of their traditional hunting lands fast disappearing, the bushman's traditional way of life is becoming untenable for the
majority of the San people. Ombili gives them a base from which a community with schools, agriculture and craft enterprises has been established. From this springboard some of the San people will be able to find their feet in modern Namibian life and hopefully be able to be a voice for other San communities. This community is self-funding, and the San villagers make all the crafts. Usually we are able to spend some time at the school, including sitting in on classes, visiting the permanent settlements and taking a guided tour around the community. The San bushman come and go from the community, often leaving for months to take their traditional walkabouts through the surrounding bushlands. However, the school and community remain
as a beacon of stability so that the next generation will have sufficient education to protect their tribal values, culture and way of life. If you would like to bring clothes, reading books, pens, exercise books, the community
would be only too please to accept your gifts. They will be given in to the central administration and then distributed fairly throughout the community. Please do not bring sweets, or other gifts to give directly to the children.
Rundu (2 night stop)
In the North of Namibia we camp at the beautiful n'Kwazi lodge, a beautifully tranquil spot set in lush vegetation on the banks of the Kavango River on the border with Angola. Situated 20 km north of Rundu, it is a great place to relax, experience the beauty of the area, go canoeing, horse riding, watch traditional dances, or take sundowner cruises.
Day 22 - 25 - Caprivi Strip
The Caprivi region of Nambia is a land of fertile floodplains surrounded by perennial rivers, this makes for some beautiful scenery. The narrowest part of the Caprivi strip is also a game reserve, with the main road we travel on, running through the middle of the reserve. The Caprivi strip is a classic example of how the former colonial powers shaped the boundaries of modern Africa. The strip is 500km long, with the game reserve only 32 kms wide, at the eastern end it opens up to almost 100kms wide before narrowing to a point on the
Zambezi River where the boundaries of Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia and Botswana meet. During the struggle for independence the Caprivi region was home to the South African Army and Police, and as a consequence no one really knows what went on up there. From the early 1960s until 1990, the region was in a constant state of war. However, today this is all in the past, and we can safely travel through the region, enjoying the stunning views. While we travel through the area, we will take the opportunity to visit a local community and meet the Caprivi people who live there. We will organise a guided tour by local people around a small settlement close to where we are camping and get a glimpse into their daily lives. Most Caprivians make a living from farming and fishing. In the wet season, waters from the Zambezi and Kavango Rivers flood much of the area. During these months, the local people travel through the region using the mokoro canoes that you will use when you visit the Okavango Delta.
Okavango Delta
The Delta is formed by the Okavango River, which flows into a basin on the edge of the Kalahari Desert. The river has no outlet from the desert and spreads out into thousands of small streams to form a wilderness that is totally unspoilt. It is a wonderland of meandering clear waterways, green islands, lush plains and prolific wildlife. This ecosystem is filled with a diversity of flora and fauna that includes hippo, crocodile, elephant, and the big cats. However, it is not for the game that we come, as this cannot always be found. The Delta is about exploring one of the world’s most fascinating ecosystems. We usually live aboard a houseboat but this cannot be guaranteed. Usually we stay for one night on a houseboat in the delta and the second night head out in our marokos (dugout canoes) and camp out on one of the many islands. If the group is too small for a houseboat then we will camp out for both nights. Whichever is the case we use makoros out in the Delta during the day. Each canoe takes two people and is poled along by a local tribesman through the meandering waterways. Reeds and lily pads line the streams, and birds, startled by the makoros, rise out of the long grasses. Punting along, the peace may be shattered by the deep grunting of hippos and the worried expression on the polers’ faces as they inch past the hippo pools - hippos are best not approached by people in dugouts!
Days 26 - 27: Botswana
Chobe National Park
Chobe National Park is the second largest national park in Botswana and covers 10,566 square kilometres. It has an abundance of big game, which occurs in some of the greatest concentration in Africa. The park, created in 1967, was actually the first national park in Botswana. Chobe National Park is famed for its huge
elephant population. This population actually covers most of northern Botswana plus northwest Zimbabwe. There are currently around 120,000 elephants in the area. The elephants have built up over the years since the 1900s and have been relatively unaffected by poachers. They migrate from the saltpans in the south of the park to the banks of the Chobe and Linyanti rivers for the dry season. This is a migration of over 200 kilometres. Chobe elephants are renown for their huge size, but tend not to have large tusks. Other species we may see include giraffe, oribi, roan and sable antelope, waterbuck, hippo and lion. Birdlife along the river is
diverse, including fish eagle, harrier hawk, guinea fowl and carmine bee-eater. For our visit to the park, we remain in the north in the River Front region of the Chobe River. Here we take a boat trip along the river, which allows us safely to get close to the animals on shore without disturbing them. The river is like a magnet to the
wildlife, and this is a great way to do a safari. If you wish to see more animals then it is possible to organise a jeep safari in open backed vehicles further into the park.
Days 28 - 29: Zambia
Livingstone and Victoria Falls
The first white man to see Victoria Falls was Doctor Livingstone. He had been told about the “smoke that thunders†by local tribesmen, but even he was overcome by the majesty of this place. His famous words on first seeing the falls were “on sights as beautiful as this angels in their flight must have gazedâ€. Even these words can only begin to describe the beauty of these waterfalls. On Dragoman Overland encounter style journeys, we stay on the Zambian side of the Zambezi and organise most of our activities from Livingstone, a relaxed and friendly place with a great atmosphere. However, if you wish to visit the bright lights of the town of Victoria Falls, it is very easy to cross into Zimbabwe for a day. We will have time to explore the Zambezi River, the falls and the gorges that make up this fascinating area. Numerous optional activities can be done in the area around the falls. The Flight of the Angels allows you an aerial view of the Zambezi River, the Falls and the gorges either by light aircraft or by helicopter. Another favourite is white water rafting, which can be done from either the Zambian or Zimbabwean side. The companies operating from the Zambian side generally do a few more rapids than those from the Zimbabwe side. White water rafting is sometimes not possible if the river is too high (February to June, depending on the season and the amount of rain.) A new favourite is the guided rhino walking safari, which can be taken in Zambia or horse riding and/or elephant riding safaris in search of African wildlife. Other activities are bungi jumping off the bridge in front of the falls, Upper Zambezi canoe safaris and sunset ‘booze cruises’. It is also now possible to do jet boating down the gorges and rapids under the falls. As you can see there is a huge amount that you can do here and so if you are starting or finishing your trips at Victoria Falls/Livingstone, it is well worth allowing a couple of extra days before or after your trip.
Final day
This brings our trip to a close, but why not stay with us to continue your journey in this fascinating continent. |
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Holidays
Extras |
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