Out & About SA · Namibia

Namibia Nature & Parks

The wild side of Namibia — Etosha, the Namib-Naukluft and Sossusvlei, the Fish River Canyon, the Skeleton Coast, Waterberg and the Zambezi wetlands. Filter by region and type.

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/Ai-/Ais Hot Springs — Fish River Canyon. Natural hot sulphur springs at the southern end of the Fish River Canyon, forming part of the /Ai-/Ais-Richtersveld…
Aba-Huab River Valley — Twyfelfontein. Ephemeral riverbed lined with acacias and a corridor for desert elephants
Ai-Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park — Ai-Ais. Cross-border conservation park spanning southern Namibia and South Africa's Richtersveld, encompassing the canyon and…
Aigamas Cave — Otavi. Flooded cave on Aigamas Ranch, the only home of the endangered golden cave catfish
Auas Mountains & Khomas Hochland — Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary. Rolling highland mountain scenery framing Windhoek and the Naankuse area
Aus Mountains — Aus. Granite range rising above the village, occasionally dusted with snow in winter
Avis Dam — Windhoek. Recreation area on the city's eastern edge popular for walking, running and birdwatching
Avis Dam Nature Reserve — Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary. Small dam and recreation area on Windhoek's eastern edge popular for walking and birdwatching
Baynes Mountains — Epupa Falls. Remote mountain range along the Kunene northeast of the falls
Bondels Dam — Karasburg. Dam built in 1959 on the Satco River about 7 km west of Karasburg
Brandberg (Daureb) — Erongo. Namibia's highest mountain, home to the famous 'White Lady' rock painting in the Tsisab Ravine
Brandberg Massif (Daureb) — Brandberg. Granite dome rising abruptly from the Namib plains, glowing red at sunset and holding Namibia's highest peak
Brandberg Massif (Konigstein) — Uis. Namibia's highest mountain at 2,573m, a granite massif rich in rock art and endemic plants
Brandberg Mountain — Damaraland. Namibia's highest massif, home to the famous White Lady rock painting
Bwabwata National Park — Kavango-Zambezi. A park between the Okavango and Kwando rivers where wildlife and resident communities coexist along a key elephant…
Bwabwata National Park – Kwando Core Area — Kongola. Riverine wilderness on the western bank of the Kwando, reached via the Kongola bridge
Bwabwata National Park – Mahango Core Area — Mahango Core Area. Southern Okavango-river section of Bwabwata famed for wildlife density and big game
Cape Cross Seal Reserve — Cape Cross. Protects one of the largest breeding colonies of Cape fur seals in the world, near where Diogo Cão landed in 1486
Daan Viljoen Game Park — Khomas Hochland. A compact game park in the hills just west of Windhoek where visitors can hike freely as there are no large predators
Daan Viljoen Game Reserve — Daan Viljoen Game Reserve. Scenic Khomas Hochland reserve just west of Windhoek, popular for day trips
Dorob National Park — Central Namib coast. A coastal park running between the Swakop and Ugab rivers, forming part of the greater Namib-Skeleton Coast National…
Doros Crater — Khorixas. Remote volcanic crater and igneous complex in the Damaraland wilderness southwest of Khorixas
Epako Game Lodge & Nature Reserve — Gobabis. Private reserve near Gobabis offering game drives and rhino among its wildlife
Epupa Falls — Kunene River, Kaokoland. A series of cascades where the Kunene River tumbles over a wide rocky gorge along the border between Namibia and Angola
Erindi Private Game Reserve — Erindi Private Game Reserve. Extensive private conservancy in central Namibia east of Omaruru
Erongo Mountains — Omaruru. Ancient granite massif west of town with rock art, caves and scenic drives
Etosha Heights Private Reserve — Etosha Heights Private Reserve. Large private game reserve on the western boundary of Etosha National Park, home to rhino, lion, cheetah and elephant
Etosha National Park — Etosha. Built around a vast salt pan so large it is visible from space, it is one of Africa's premier wildlife-viewing reserves…
Etosha National Park (Andersson Gate) — Outjo. Outjo is the main southern gateway town, roughly 110km from the park's Andersson Gate
Etosha National Park (King Nehale Gate) — Omuthiya. Omuthiya is the gateway to Etosha's northern King Nehale gate and Onkoshi area
Etosha National Park (Von Lindequist Gate) — Tsumeb. Tsumeb is a main gateway to Etosha's eastern entrance and its famous waterhole game viewing
Etosha Pan — Etosha National Park. Enormous ephemeral saline pan that fills briefly in good rains and draws flamingos
Fischer's Pan — Namutoni. Seasonal offshoot of the Etosha Pan east of Namutoni that attracts flamingos and waterbirds when flooded
Fish River — Ai-Ais. The longest interior river in Namibia, whose gorge and seasonal pools define the region
Fish River Canyon — //Karas Region. Often cited as the second-largest canyon in the world, it stretches roughly 160 km and reaches depths of up to 550…
Fisher's Pan — Etosha National Park. Seasonal pan near Namutoni known for birdlife and a scenic loop drive
Galton Gate (Western Etosha National Park) — Kamanjab. The western entrance to Etosha National Park, reached from Kamanjab and giving access to the remote Dolomite Camp area
Garub Pan — Aus. Desert pan and pumped waterhole on the Aus-Lüderitz plains where the wild horses gather
Gaub Pass — Namib-Naukluft National Park. Scenic gravel-road pass through the Gaub River gorge on the route toward Sossusvlei
Ghaub Cave — Otavi. Extensive dripstone cave system on Ghaub farm near Otavi, visited on guided caving trips
Gondwana Sperrgebiet Rand Park — Aus. Private reserve bordering the restricted diamond area, part of the Succulent Karoo that flowers after winter rain
Great Karas Mountains — Karasburg. Scenic mountain range near Karasburg whose highest peak, Mt Schroffenstein, rises to about 2,206 m
Grootberg Pass — Grootberg. Scenic mountain pass on the C40 climbing onto the Grootberg plateau in Damaraland
Gross Barmen Dam & Birdlife — Gross Barmen. Small dam on the Swakop River at the resort that attracts more than 150 bird species in a palm-fringed setting
Hardap Dam — Mariental. One of the largest reservoirs in Namibia, impounding the Fish River and surrounded by a game reserve
Hardap Game Park — Mariental. A 252km² reserve around the dam with black rhino, kudu, oryx, mountain zebra and 9km and 15km hiking trails
Hartmann Valley — Kaokoland. A vast, stark desert valley in far northwestern Kaokoland running toward the Kunene River mouth and Skeleton Coast
Hoanib River — Sesfontein. Ephemeral river valley that is a key habitat for desert elephants and other wildlife
Hoarusib River — Kaokoland. An ephemeral river cutting through Kaokoland to the Skeleton Coast, supporting desert-adapted wildlife and dramatic…
Horseshoe (Kwando) — Bwabwata National Park. Oxbow bend of the Kwando River where large numbers of elephant and other game congregate in the dry season
Kalahari (Omaheke) — Gobabis. Gobabis is the gateway to the red-sand Kalahari savanna stretching east toward Botswana
Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area — Nkasa Rupara National Park. The park forms part of KAZA, a vast cross-border conservation area linking Angola, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia
Khaudum National Park — Rundu. Remote wild game park of Kalahari woodland southeast of Rundu, home to elephant and lion
Khomas Hochland Highlands — Daan Viljoen Game Reserve. Rolling highland terrain surrounding the reserve west of the capital
Klip River Valley — Grootberg. Deep river valley below the plateau, home to desert-adapted wildlife
Kuiseb & Gaub Passes — Solitaire. Scenic canyon passes on the C14 east of Solitaire
Kuiseb Pass & Canyon — Namib-Naukluft National Park. Scenic pass through the Kuiseb River canyon dividing the gravel plains from the dune sea
Kunene River — Epupa Falls. Perennial border river fringed with makalani palms and baobabs
Kwando / Linyanti River — Katima Mulilo. Scenic river system forming the region's wetlands and park boundaries, excellent for game and birdwatching
Kwando River — Bwabwata National Park. Perennial river forming the park's eastern boundary and the focus of the Kwando core area's wildlife
Lake Guinas — Tsumeb. Deep sinkhole lake northwest of town noted for its clear blue water and endemic cichlids
Lake Liambezi — Katima Mulilo. Seasonal lake southeast of Katima Mulilo that, when flooded, becomes an important fishery and birding wetland
Lake Oanob Dam — Rehoboth. Scenic reservoir west of town with a resort offering boating, fishing and watersports
Lake Oponono — Ondangwa. Large seasonal wetland south of Ondangwa fed by the Cuvelai oshanas, good for birdlife
Lake Otjikoto — Tsumeb. Karst sinkhole lake and national monument where German troops dumped weapons in 1915; home to endemic fish
Lichen Fields — Henties Bay. Sensitive gravel-plain lichen fields near town that revive and change colour with the coastal fog
Lüderitz Peninsula — Lüderitz. Rugged coastal drive past bays, coves and viewpoints such as Grosse Bucht and Sturmvogel Bucht
Mahango Core Area — Popa Falls. Wildlife-rich riverfront section of Bwabwata just south of the falls, good for elephant and antelope
Mahango Core Area (Bwabwata National Park) — Bagani/Divundu. Riverine woodland and floodplain park south of Divundu, an internationally recognised birding hotspot
Marienfluss Valley — Kaokoland. A remote grassy valley near the Angolan border famous for its sweeping views and mysterious fairy circles
Messum Crater — Brandberg. Vast ancient volcanic crater in the desert southwest of the Brandberg, home to welwitschia plants
Moon Landscape — Swakopmund. Eroded lunar-like valley of the Swakop River east of town
Mudumu National Park — Kwando River, Zambezi. A riverine park of woodland and wetland along the Kwando River, supporting elephants, hippos and African wild dogs
N/a'an ku sê Private Reserve — Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary. Private conservation reserve surrounding the sanctuary in the Khomas Highland east of Windhoek
Namib Desert Dunes & Fairy Circles — NamibRand Nature Reserve. Red sand dunes, sweeping grass plains and enigmatic fairy circles typical of the Namib
Namib Sand Sea — Namib-Naukluft National Park. UNESCO World Heritage fog-fed dune desert, the only coastal desert shaped mainly by fog
Namib-Naukluft National Park — Namib Desert. One of the largest national parks in Africa, it protects a great expanse of the ancient Namib, considered the world's…
NamibRand International Dark Sky Reserve — NamibRand Nature Reserve. Gold-tier International Dark Sky Reserve, the first in Africa, renowned for exceptionally dark, star-filled skies
NamibRand Nature Reserve — NamibRand Nature Reserve. One of southern Africa's largest private nature reserves protecting Namib dune, plain and mountain habitats
National Botanical Garden of Namibia — Windhoek. Garden showcasing indigenous arid-land plants, including a succulent and welwitschia collection
Naukluft Mountains — Namib-Naukluft National Park. Rugged dolomite massif with springs, gorges and multi-day trails on the park's eastern side
Naute Dam & Naute Recreation Resort — Keetmanshoop. Namibia's third-largest dam, about 45 km southwest of town, popular for fishing, birdwatching and picnicking, with a…
Neckartal Dam — Keetmanshoop. Namibia's largest dam by capacity, on the Fish River northwest of Keetmanshoop
Nkasa Rupara National Park — Linyanti swamps, Zambezi. Namibia's largest protected wetland, a maze of channels and islands in the Linyanti swamps formerly known as Mamili
Nubib and Losberg Mountains — NamibRand Nature Reserve. Rugged inselberg ranges bordering the reserve's plains and dunes
Okavango River — Bagani/Divundu. Perennial river forming the western boundary of the region before flowing into Botswana's Delta
Okonjima Nature Reserve — Okonjima Nature Reserve. 200 km2 private, malaria-free reserve renowned for leopard and brown hyaena sightings
Omaruru River — Omaruru. Ephemeral tree-lined river that runs through the town
Omaruru River Delta — Henties Bay. Ephemeral river mouth just south of Henties Bay where the town's founder discovered the freshwater spring that gave the…
Omboroko Mountains — Okonjima Nature Reserve. Scenic range at the foot of which the reserve lies, between Otjiwarongo and Okahandja
Ongongo Falls — Sesfontein. Spring-fed waterfall and natural swimming pool near Warmquelle, east of Sesfontein
Onguma Game Reserve — Onguma Game Reserve. 34,000 ha private reserve on the eastern border of Etosha National Park
Orange River — Rosh Pinah. Perennial river forming the South African border just south of town, good for canoeing and scenery
Orange River Mouth Wetland — Oranjemund. Ramsar-listed estuary at the river mouth and an important birding site
Otavi Mountains (Otavibergen) — Otavi. Karst mountain range of scenic maize-farming country between Otavi, Tsumeb and Grootfontein
Palmwag Concession — Damaraland. Vast wilderness concession known for desert black rhino and lion tracking
Petrified Forest — Damaraland. National monument of fossilised tree trunks over 250 million years old
Popa Falls — Divundu. A series of rapids and cascades where the Okavango River drops over a quartzite rock barrier near Divundu
Popa Falls Game Park — Popa Falls. Small MEFT-managed park protecting the falls and riverine woodland
Purros Conservancy — Purros. Community conservancy in remote Kaokoland protecting desert wildlife and Himba livelihoods
Quiver Tree Forest — Keetmanshoop. A dense stand of quiver trees (Aloidendron dichotomum) that was declared a national monument in 1955
Ruacana Falls — Kaokoland. A wide seasonal waterfall on the Kunene at the western edge of the region, most impressive during the rains
Sandwich Harbour — Walvis Bay. Remote lagoon and wetland within Namib-Naukluft Park, backed by giant dunes
Sandwich Harbour Lagoon (Ramsar wetland) — Sandwich Harbour. Internationally important coastal lagoon teeming with flamingos and migratory birds
Sesriem Canyon — Sesriem. A narrow gorge up to about 30 metres deep carved by the Tsauchab River through cemented gravel deposits
Skeleton Coast National Park — Skeleton Coast. A fog-bound Atlantic coastline famed for its shipwrecks and desolate beauty, stretching from the Ugab River to the…
Sossusvlei — Sesriem. A clay-and-salt pan encircled by towering red sand dunes, including some of the tallest in the world such as Big Daddy
Spitzkoppe — Erongo. A striking group of granite inselbergs rising sharply from the plains, nicknamed the 'Matterhorn of Namibia'
Spreetshoogte Pass — Namib-Naukluft National Park. One of Namibia's steepest passes, dropping from the highlands to the desert with panoramic views
The Waterberg — Waterberg Plateau Park. Sheer 200m sandstone cliffs and lush springs supporting unusual plant and animal life
Tsau //Khaeb (Sperrgebiet) National Park — Kolmanskop. Restricted former diamond zone surrounding Kolmanskop, accessible only with permits or guided tours
Twyfelfontein Rock Engravings — Damaraland. Home to one of the largest concentrations of rock engravings in Africa, it became Namibia's first UNESCO World Heritage…
Ugab River — Brandberg. Ephemeral river skirting the Brandberg, a lifeline for desert elephants and riverine vegetation
Uniab River Delta — Terrace Bay. Spring-fed delta oasis south of Terrace Bay drawing wildlife and birds
Van Zyl's Pass — Opuwo. Challenging one-way 4x4 pass descending into the Marienfluss valley
Vingerklip — Damaraland. Striking isolated finger-shaped rock pillar in the Ugab valley
Von Bach Dam / Von Bach Recreation Resort — Okahandja. Dam on the Swakop River just outside town supplying Windhoek, with fishing, boating and game in the surrounding reserve
Von Bach Dam Recreation Resort — Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary. Dam and nature resort near Okahandja north of Windhoek offering fishing and boating
Walvis Bay Lagoon — Walvis Bay. A Ramsar-listed coastal wetland that hosts tens of thousands of flamingos, pelicans and migratory waders
Waterberg Plateau National Park — Otjiwarongo. A flat-topped sandstone plateau that serves as a breeding sanctuary for rare species including white and black rhino…
Waterberg Plateau Park — Otjiwarongo. Dramatic red sandstone plateau ~90 km east, a sanctuary for rhino and sable with hiking trails
Welwitschia Plains — Swakopmund. Plains dotted with ancient welwitschia plants, some over 1,000 years old
Wondergat — Khorixas. Large open sinkhole near Twyfelfontein with sheer walls dropping into a subterranean cavity
Zambezi River — Katima Mulilo. Major river flowing past Katima Mulilo, central to fishing, boating and riverfront tourism
Zaris Pass — Maltahöhe. Scenic pass descending the escarpment west of Maltahöhe toward the Namib plains