Northern Namibia

Waterhole safaris at Etosha Pan, desert elephants and rock art in Damaraland, the Himba people and the Skeleton Coast in Kaokoland, and east to the Kavango and the Zambezi Region.

This region is defined by administrative region and includes Kunene in the northwest (Damaraland, Kaokoland and the northern Skeleton Coast); Oshikoto, home to Etosha; the four regions of the northern Ovambo area (Oshana, Omusati, Ohangwena and others); and the northeast's Kavango East, Kavango West and Zambezi (formerly the Caprivi Strip).

Highlights: Etosha National Park's white salt pan and the floodlit night waterholes at Okaukuejo, Halali and Namutoni, where you can see black rhinos, lions and elephants; Damaraland's Twyfelfontein rock engravings (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), Petrified Forest and desert-adapted elephants; Kaokoland's Opuwo and Himba villages and Epupa Falls on the Kunene River; the shipwrecks and dunes of Skeleton Coast National Park; and, along the Kavango River and in the Zambezi Region, Bwabwata and Nkasa Rupara National Parks, from where you can continue to Victoria Falls and Chobe.

Classic itineraries: Swakopmund–Damaraland (2 nights)–Etosha (3 nights), often combined with the south into a 12–16 day Namibia loop; adventurous travelers can add 3–4 days in Kaokoland.

Getting there: mostly self-drive; Kaokoland requires a 4WD and is best done in a group; the Zambezi Region has Katima Mulilo Airport. Note: visit Himba villages through community guides, and respect people's wishes about photography.

Destinations

Itineraries