Tours in and around Swakopmund

MARINE EXTRAVAGANZA

Minimum:  2 Pax

Guests are transferred to Walvis Bay Yacht Club.   En route we pass the Guano Platform (bird island), Damara Tern breeding area and enjoy a very scenic drive between the dunes and sea.   The cruise promises exceptional viewing of the Walvis Bay international wetland bird life, such as African Black Oystercatcher, Petrels, Shearwaters, Terns, Jackass Penguins as well as Pelican’s Walvis Bay has one of the best viewing sites to admire the lesser and greater flamingos. 
At Pelican Point a large colony of Cape Fur Seals has established itself.   This is also where we encounter the Heavyside Dolphin, a very social animal that rides the bows of our boat as we continue to explore the area for Sunfish, Leatherback Turtles and Whales which often frequent our shores.   We return to the Walvis Bay Yacht Club and consequent transfer to Swakopmund for a seafood lunch on the beach, whereafter we have a town tour of Swakopmund.
An option is available to experience the dunes of Swakopmund on quadbikes.   The route has been designed by conservationists of the Ministry of Environment & Tourism.

NAMIB DESERT  -  FULL DAY TOUR

Minimum:  2 Pax

Come and discover the life in this desolate landscape with your friendly, experienced guide.   Follow remote tracks and experience interesting adaptations of fauna and flora.   See the White Lady Spider roll down on the dunes to escape and see her dance at the bottom to defend herself to the end.   Discover the elusive Palmetto Gecko, which is also a nocturnal customer.   Come and see this transparent reptile  -  his vertebra and blood veins, his large eyes and his webbed feet.   The Desert Side Winder is also an inhabitant of the dunes.   Come and follow his caterpillar tracks across a dune
slip-face until you find him lying submerged in ambush for an unsuspecting Aporosaura Sand Diving Lizard.   As we are leaving he dunes, we also visit some interesting plants.   We then travel through the gravel plains to the Moon Landscape, Oasis Goanikontes up the Swakop River for about 10 km to view a living fossil, the Welwitschia Mirabilis plant.

Duration of tour:  app 7 hours
Departure:  09h00

CAPE CROSS SEAL COLONY TOUR

Minimum:  3 Pax, inclusive of refreshment drinks

In 1486 Diego Cao landed on the coast of Namibia at Cape Cross.   Here, 115 km north of Swakopmund, he erected a cross in honor
of King John 1 of Portugal.   Today a replica of Diego Cao’s cross can be seen at the Cape Cross.   But that’s not all  -  Cape Cross is one
of the largest breeding seal colonies in southern Africa, fluctuating
in numbers of about between 80 000 – 300 000 seals.   Come and enjoy a trip to Cape Cross with an experienced guide.   En route we visit Mile 4 Salt Pans to view the Flamingos, Wlotzka’s Baken and Henties Bay.

Duration of tour:  app 5 hours
Departure:  09h00, alternatively 14h00

KUISEB CULTURE AND BIRD WATCHING TOUR

Minimum:  2 Pax

Visit the Walvis Bay Lagoon, home to the greater and lesser Flamingo’s, see a wide variety of birdlife in the Walvis Bay environs before driving op the Kuiseb Delta to visit the traditional tribe of the Topnaars and discover the secret of the center of their existence. 
A variety of fauna and flora abounds in this area.

Duration of tour:  app 4 hours

BIRDING AT SPITZKOPJE

Minimum:  3 Pax

We are visiting Namibia’s “Matterhorn”, the Spitzkopje a granite inselberg rising 1784 meters above the surrounding plane which has actually eroded away leaving the “inselberg”.   The waterholes in the mountain attract a large number of birds such as the Herero Chat, an endemic bird, the near-endemic Carp’s Tit, Brad Field’s Swift, Monteir’s Hornbill and White-tailed Shrike.   The Doublebanded Courser, Dusky Sundbird, Rosafaced Lovebird, Yellowbellied Eremomela, Blackheaded Canary, Mountain Chat and Palewinged Starling also occur here.   We will enjoy a picnic lunch at Spitzkopje before we travel along the back road through the Namib Desert to the coastal fishing resort of Henties Bay and then in a southerly direction to Swakopmund.

Duration:  app 8 hours

SWAKOPMOND TOWNSHIP TOURS

Minimum:  2 Pax

Our first encounter is with a visit to EITHER the late Damara chief, Mr. Augustinus Garoeb’s family or Naftaline, a wonderful Herero lady who shares her knowledge on her culture and traditions.  From there we continue on foot through the streets of Mondesa taking the opportunity to chat with the local people and getting a fascinating glimpse into a typical Namibian township.  If we have time and he is available we stop briefly at Mr. Stanley Witbooi’s house to learn about Nama traditions and herbal medicines.  Then we hop back into the vehicle and drive out to the Democratic Resettlement Community (DRC).  Daytime tour stops to visit a local kindergarten (crèche).  Evening tour, we share a cup of fresh mint tea at ERNST & ELSIE’S house.  Time for a drink and culinary discoveries, we stop at a local Shebeen where TASHA & Co will host you, Ovambo style!

Duration of tour:  app 4 hours
Departure:  11h00, alternatively 15h00

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