Reviews of safaris to Damaraland

"For me, what sets Namibia apart is the rapid change in the extraordinary desert and arid landscapes over remarkably short east-west distances. Plant and animal life has in turn adapted to the varying climatic conditions making a journey here continually fascinating. Driving through this scenery on Namibian roads is a joy and the hospitality and comfort encountered at camps and lodges is first-rate. Our holiday comprised only highlights. I should like to make a special mention of the private safari in Kunene which Expert Africa arranged for us with Conservancy Safaris which is operated for and by indigenous communities in the northwest. This was adventure and education; both provided at the highest of standards.

We were extremely pleased with Expert Africa's knowledgable and professional advice in putting together our trip. They conscientiously ensured they understood our aims prior to giving clearly-justified, thoughtful, well-expressed options for us to consider. It was always a pleasure to receive Martha's mails or calls and all discussions were promptly and usefully followed up. As a result, we had a superb holiday in which all arrangements were executed flawlessly.

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We appreciated all of the elements of Expert Africa's service that we used.

The website is extensive, free of failing links or outdated information and is well-written.

I especially appreciated that all communications were in impeccable and well-formulated English; such unambiguous and literate writing sadly being a rarity in commercial enterprises!

I can not offer much in the way of help regarding suggestions for improvements. I guess your standards of expertise, professionalism and communication have been built on solid foundations and planning which will keep the business on track for many years to come.

It would have been nice if you had been able to help with travel insurance for non-UK residents (because I am not especially happy with what I find on the Belgian market) but that is the only point I can think to raise." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 10 on a Namibia trip

"WE were very lucky to go to Namibia for the fifth time, we visited some new places and some we now know quite well, most lived up to our expectation, only 2 we were disappointed with. We had some amazing animal experiences and traveled though very varied landscapes. The Namibians are such friendly welcoming and polite people , a joy to be with. They are always so thrilled to learn that we have returned again and again. we met many first time visitors who said they would be back.

The only down side was the car, not the one we ordered and not up to the gravel roads very hard and tiring to drive." Read full review: 30 nights in Africa; 27 on a Namibia trip

"Our trip to Namibia exceeded all our expectations. We were bowled over by the beauty and diversity of the country, its people and all of the nature that we were able to experience.

All of the arrangements made for us by Expert Africa worked smoothly. All of the information provided by them before our trip was excellent.

One thing strikes me that I would like to mention. Namibia is a country of wide contrasts and that is one of its glories. One could spend long time there discovering all of its treasures. However, unfortunately time for the average holiday-maker is limited. We spent mainly two nights in one place and then moved on. Because of the contrast in areas, places and types of accommodation, I found that moving on to the next place brought with it something like culture shock, because I had been so charmed with the last place and took a little time to adjust to the new. This is not a criticism and I would not have changed anything about our itinerary which was excellently planned, it's just an observation." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"My husband and I had an absolutely amazing time on this trip.

Everything went smoothly - thank you to Lucy for all the planning! The safari experience was incredible and we met some lovely people and had some amazing meals along the way. We couldn't have asked for anything more!" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 6 on a Namibia trip

"Fantastic experience, top country!

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None" Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 10 on a Namibia trip

"Namibia is an incredible country and Expert Africa organised everything very well and Martha in particular was there at the end of the phone whenever I had a question, her advice was invaluable.

A few negatives that are worth mentioning but should never stop any one from going are:

The gravel roads can be pretty hairy in a 2WD and had we had the funds, we would have much preferred to be in a 4WD as you feel every single bump in the road (so if you have the money get a 4WD). We had to drive extra slow in order to avoid damage to the car (especially the tyres) and the undercarriage (which is uninsurable) - with the gravel sometimes building up so high it's unavoidable to have a rock or two hit the underneath. The gravel roads can make the journeys tiresome, long and stressful. In sum, it is quite miraculous that there was no major damage to the car and in the end we only had a chip on the windscreen, so actually we are testament to the fact that the journey we did was do-able in a 2WD, it's just really not ideal. I felt like the mental stress the roads put on you should be emphasised more by the guide book and Expert Africa as we weren't quite prepared for how mentally exhausting the journeys would be as we were constantly worried we were going to seriously damage the car. When we hit tar roads again on the way to Windhoek we were elated!

Namibia is still very much in transition from its colonial days and much of the effects of colonialism are still present. Segregation of black and white people is still very much a part of life and almost all of the money / businesses are still in the hands of white Namibians. There's not much to be done about that as a tourist except be mindful of it. I felt I should have researched this before travelling so that it wasn't such an unpleasant surprise, it's very hard not to notice it. We came across blatant instances of racism from locals, especially at Bullsport (from a guest) but this is mostly among the older generation who still refer to Namibia vehemently as South West Africa. I feel silly for not having researched the country's colonial history more fully however i expected it to be just that, history, but considering the effects are still so prevalent, I think it should be emphasised more in the book and by Expert Africa, to younger, more naive travellers, like myself, admittedly. In Swakopmund it was most noticeable. We had some great chats to some black Namibians, who were happy to talk about their views on it and the staff at the Tug were so friendly, inviting and a lot of fun to while away an evening at the bar with.

On a Swakopmund note - the local tourist market in Swakopmund was quite overwhelming, they have some great things there and i bought some souvenirs but when we went we were pretty much the only tourists so all of the sellers were vying for our attention, it was difficult to get out of there, perhaps worth noting in the guide book.

As for the positives:

We were the only ones on the road for miles at some points, this country is still relatively un-visited by tourists so you feel like you're uncovering a hidden gem, everything is so pristine.

The different landscapes, the wildlife, the culture and the people are so amazing, i have never been any where like it. I often say I won't go back to the same place as there's too many other places to see but I might have to make an exception for Namibia. . .maybe when i can afford a 4wd!

It seemed mostly visited by retirees but we couldn't see why, this is the ultimate African road trip, everywhere we went was safe and friendly and it's cheap. The safari was first class, we saw every animal there was to see. Okonjima was fantastic and the landscapes second to none. Namibia has mountains, stunning desert dunes, cities, beaches and flat savannahs that stretch on for thousands of mile, it has everything.

I can't recommend this destination and Expert Africa highly enough, it's just a matter of time before the crowds discover it.

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Martha was excellent, helpful, knowledgable and friendly, she helped us tailor our itinerary to our needs and budget, can't recommend her highly enough.

Two small things, there was a mix up at Sossus Dune Lodge where it was written on one of our itineraries that we were on a DBB basis but when we arrived they only had us down as BB so we aren't sure if we ended up paying twice?

The other thing again minor but worth noting, one day I called up to speak to Martha who wasn't available so I chatted to Sabina instead, who was very friendly and informative however, i called up to ask why it was that we couldn't fit Sandwich Harbour into our day seeing the seals and she explained it was because there wasn't enough time, completely fine however she wanted to emphasise the point by informing me some tourists were killed the week before rushing to get to Sandwich Harbour, which was information i probably could have done without having already been a bit nervous about the amount of driving on gravel roads we had to do, a case of too much information!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"Our trip was wonderful, we probably would have liked to have stayed one night less at Nhoma (some of my family would not have agreed with this) and have missed out Huab Lodge. Highlights were Desert Rhino Camp and Mundulea.

Wouldn't have liked to do more driving though, so we missed out most of the country which we will have to visit again. Would have been useful to know rough driving times between camps. I didn't realise the gravel roads were yellow on map until it was too late!

I think would also have preferred to miss out Windhoek completely, Olive Grove was nice but it felt to me as if the holiday hadn't really started until we moved on.

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Sabina was so helpful, we went through a few itineraries before I realised what sort of trip we were looking for and she made some great suggestions that I hadn't seen on the website. It was wonderful to correspond and talk to her, she was extremely knowledgeable and efficient and I really did appreciate her." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"We had a great time on this trip. Namibia is probably the most beautiful country we've ever been.

Our itinerary was probably not the most common for first-time visitors as we skipped some of the more popular destinations. The main goal was to see a variety of desert environments in a relatively slow pace. We also wanted to try self-driving in Africa while not covering too much distance.

Exert Africa came up with a part-fly, part-drive itinerary which took into account our requests and which we enjoyed greatly. The most impressive part was probably that the team managed all this despite our very late trip planning and booking (2-3 weeks before our travel date)." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"We had an amazing time in Africa and loved our trip. All the places to stay were nice and pretty much everything we did was enjoyable.

Most disappointing thing was cancelled balloon flight but that was out of anyone's control.

Thank you for arranging it and we would definitely recommend Namibia and Expert Africa to others. Didn't want to come home!" Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"Namibia is a stunningly beautiful country and from our experience Namibians are universally warm and friendly. We had a fantastic trip and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys active holidays.

With one glitch, (the car being sent to the wrong guesthouse) all the arrangements worked extremely well and the information we were given in advance was very comprehensive and helpful. Nothing important was missing. This will always be one of our most memorable holidays." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip