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Walk beneath swaying palms in Mauritius
Hike through the Dead Vlei in Namibia
Watch zebras and giraffes in Etosha National Park
Explore the island of Mauritius, including the Chamarel Falls
Watch the sun sink into the Indian Ocean
Relax on the white beaches of Mauritius
Look for rhinos in Etosha National Park
Watch ostriches looking for shade in Namibia
From: UK – Windhoek
To: Mauritius - UK
£4,450
Experience a Namibia Safari followed by a relaxing beach break in Mauritius. Begin your holiday in adventurous Namibia, visiting the red dunes of Sossusvlei and beach town of Swakopmund. Heading north, you’ll have three days of safari in Etosha National Park. Look for leopards and lions relaxing in the sun while giraffes munch on acacia trees and elephants trek across the salt pan. Finish your holiday in Mauritius, where waterfalls, swaying palms and white beaches await.
This itinerary can be tailored to suit your requirements; please contact one of our consultants to start planning your dream trip.
Depart the UK from your chosen airport.
On arrival in Windhoek, you’ll be met at the airport and assisted in picking up your hire car before driving to Sossusveli, where you check into your lodge for two nights.
You’ll have all day today to enjoy the stark beauty of Sossusvlei, the famous red sand dunes where gemsbok and ostriches wander under the morning sun. The spiky, bleached trees in the Deadvlei cast dark shadows over the sands below, creating a picture perfect landscape that you can enjoy for most of the day. We can add in some activities here to give you even better appreciation of this magnificent landscape, including scenic flights or hot air balloon rides to give you panoramic views over the rolling sands.
Leaving Sossusvlei behind, today you’ll drive to Swakopmund on the Atlantic coast. On the way you’ll pass through otherworldly plains like ‘moonlandscape’. These plains are home to the ‘welwitschia’ plants, some of which are up to 1,500 years old. On arrival you’ll check into your hotel for two nights.
Today is yours to explore the seaside beach town of Swakopmund. Wander along the promenade under the palm trees, taste famous Namibian oysters in a beachside restaurant or even try skydiving with unforgettable views of the contrasting orange desert and blue Atlantic Ocean. If you drive half an hour south to Walvis Bay, you’ll find rosy flamingos in the lagoon and you can take a dolphin cruise out into the waves.
This morning you’ll drive north to Etosha National Park, with views of the Brandberg Mountains to the west. It’s a long but beautiful drive. You’ll arrive in western Etosha in the early evening and settle into your lodge for two nights.
Your first day in Etosha will reveal the beauty of this desert national park. Famous for its vast array of wildlife, 4 out of the Big 5 reside in the area so make sure you are on the lookout for bathing elephants and lions drinking at the waterholes. Black rhinos have made a huge comeback and Etosha is now one of the best places in the world to spot these endangered animals. Leopards hide in the undergrowth but you’ll be sure to see herds of zebra and springbok mingling on the plain as well as giraffes wandering from tree to tree looking for a snack.
If you want to book a guided game drive, ask one of our consultants to arrange this for you.
This morning you’ll drive east to the other side of Etosha National Park, past the huge Etosha pan, a vast salt lake that dries into a cracked white sheet each year. After the rains, this turns into a huge breeding ground for flamingos, with up to a million pink birds descending on the pan when it floods. Most of the time when it’s dry, small springs are used as salt licks for the park’s wildlife, so you might see oryx silhouetted against the sun and elephant families trekking from one side to the other.
Arriving on the east side of the park you’ll check your lodge for 2 nights.
With another day to explore the park why not grab your binoculars and go bird watching? Etosha is a haven for birds, from turquoise European Rollers to Scarlet-Chested Sunbirds flitting through the air, sometimes even landing on the backs of the rhinos and elephants around the watering hole. Look out for mighty ostriches, sheltering their stripy chicks from the intense sun or Saddle-billed Storks wading through the rushes.
Leaving Etosha this morning you’ll head south and break your journey back to Windhoek with a night at Okonjima Plains where the Africat Foundation has its headquarters. Okonjima is great place to spot one of the leopards that freely roam this 20,000 hectare nature reserve or visit the Carnivore Care Centre where you can meet cheetahs and leopards who are patiently waiting for their second chance to go back to the wild. You’ll also be able to track the animals on foot, looking out for Spotted Hyaenas, Cheetahs and Wild Dogs along the tracking trails.
Today is your final day in Namibia – after breakfast you’ll drive back to Windhoek Airport and drop off your hire car before catching your onwards flight. On arrival in Mauritius, you will be met at the airport and driven to your hotel, where you will check in for five nights.
Your first two days in Mauritius are yours to spend at leisure, from strolling along the dreamy Indian Ocean shores to enjoying some downtime by the pool. Finish each day with a bowl of fresh local seafood and a glass of wine as you watch the sunset - these few days are purely for relaxation before getting out and exploring the island later in your trip.
After breakfast, you’ll embark on a full day tour of the island. First, you’ll climb to the Trou Aux Cerfs volcano crater, before visiting at the Grand Bassin; a place of worship for Mauritian Hindus, who consider the lake an extension of the Ganges.
Next, you’ll visit the pretty waterfalls and lush mountains of the Black River Gorges National Park where you’ll discover an amazing variety of indigenous plants and birds. After lunch at the Avalon Estate, you’ll visit the Rhumerie de Chamarel where you can see how rum is made from yellow and red Mauritian sugar cane that thrives in the hills. Nearby you’ll stop in to see the ‘Coloured Earth of Chamarel’, where basaltic lava has turned into red, violet, pink and purple dunes – a must-see for any visitor to Mauritius. In the afternoon, you’ll return to the hotel.
Today you’ll go on a half-day hike through the Frederica Nature Reserve. You’ll trek from the Frederica Old Chimney through the river reserve until you come to a waterfall where you can dive into the pool below and enjoy the cooling waters of this natural wonder! We’ve included lunch after your hike, then you’ll return to the hotel and the rest of the day at leisure.
After breakfast, you will be driven back to the airport in time for your onward flight.
Namibia’s climate is generally dry and pleasant. There is a short rainy season between December and March, where some days are humid and there are short localised thunderstorms in the afternoons. Game viewing is generally better in the dry season when wildlife is drawn to the waterholes. Nights are cool and days are often very hot.
Mauritius has a mild tropical climate all year round, with not much variation in temperature. November to April is generally a little more humid with June to September being slightly cooler. The higher you climb into the lush plateau of the island, the cooler it will become, but around the beaches, you can usually expect warm and sunny weather.
This itinerary is purely a suggestion and can be tailor-made to your requirements, so please contact us with your dates and requests, and we’ll put together a bespoke quotation for you.
