Etosha National Park is Namibia’s top game-viewing destination, home to elephants, giraffes, rhinos, big cats, and cheetahs. Safe, family-friendly, and malaria-low, it’s ideal for self-drive safaris with excellent photo opportunities at busy waterholes. Stay in lodges inside the park or private reserves offering luxury, night drives, and guided walks. Often combined with Sossusvlei, Damaraland, and even Victoria Falls, Etosha is a highlight of any Namibia safari.
One of the easiest and safest safari destinations in Africa, Etosha National Park is Namibia’s best game viewing destination. Home to savannah animals and desert specialists, Etosha is where elephant, giraffe and zebra mix with springbok, black rhino and the scimitar-horned gemsbok antelope. It’s also a predator paradise: lions, leopards and hyenas are resident in healthy numbers and it’s a top destination for cheetah sightings.
Within easy reach of the capital Windhoek, Etosha is as suitable for families with children as it is for couples and honeymooners. The risk of malaria is low, the climate usually warm and dry, and, thanks to simple logistics Etosha is a can-do self-drive destination.
The relaxed nature of the wildlife means an Etosha safari offers excellent photographic opportunities, especially during dry season. Great numbers of animals are concentrated at water and there are many busy waterholes to watch from the shade. At night you’ll dine under dazzling stars, keeping an eye on a flood-lit waterhole and an ear out for the wavering contralto of the black-backed jackal.
Etosha’s accommodation lies in and close to the park; you’ll join organised game drives into Etosha or, if you are self-driving, you may want to do them yourselves. Etosha has several adjoining private reserves too. Well regarded by discerning safari travellers, these exclusive-use reserves conduct their own game drives as well as night drives and guided walks. Lodges here are more intimate and well-appointed; some are ideal for families, others for honeymooners and there are also private lodges that welcome travellers on self-drive safaris. Several lodges are exceptionally luxurious and romantic.
Etosha is best experienced as part of a larger Namibia overland or fly-in safari. You can choose between packages or tailor-make your own tour that includes Namibia’s other must-see destinations such as Sossusvlei, Damaraland, Swakopmund and the Skeleton Coast. And with Victoria Falls just a short flight away, you can finish your Etosha safari at The Smoke that Thunders. Ask us for more details.
The best time to visit Etosha for game viewing is during its long dry winter from May to October. Animals concentrate in increasing numbers around water sources, presenting opportunities for predators. The risk of malaria is at its lowest and temperatures at their most comfortable. May through August sees warm, sunny days and cold nights; September and October are extremely warm and often humid.
The arrival of the summer rains may deter some travellers but Etosha is an excellent ‘Green Season’ safari destination – especially during the early summer months. Against a green, leafy backdrop, impala and springbok give birth in their thousands, attracting big cats and hyenas while great numbers of migratory birds arrive at once-dusty pans now filled with water.
The Etosha National Park is a destination worth spending several nights; the wide range of Etosha lodges ensures something for all travellers – exclusive, family, honeymoon and self-drive friendly.
Location is key to your accommodation choice. There are several lodges in the park itself, enabling you to be ‘first out and last in’ for game drives. However, we’d recommend the exclusivity and added value of the private camps, set in exclusive-use concessions bordering the park. Here you’ll go on crowd-free game drives in the concession as well as getting access to Etosha. You’ll also enjoy activities not permitted in Etosha: guided walks and spot-lit night drives. The more luxurious ones offer spa services.
All lodges are set overlooking water and you can sit back and watch wildlife come to drink throughout the year but especially during the long dry season. Some lodges are ideal for honeymooners, others for families and groups. Browse our recommended Etosha lodges below or contact us for advice on which would be the best lodge for your needs and budget.
A private setting gives this camp the advantage of offering exclusive game drives as well as full access to Etosha. There are 9 well-appointed suites, built like the rest of the lodge around a productive waterhole which is floodlit at night.
A small, affordable camp in a private reserve setting, Onguma is fenced & has green lawns, a swimming pool & a highly productive waterhole over which you can sit & watch animals drinking. Full-day safaris are offered in next-door Etosha.
With only 3 suites on offer, Little Ongava is ideal as a honeymoon hideaway or a private camp for larger family or group of friends. You’ll track rhino & big cats in the private Ongava Reserve & visit Etosha too.
Explore Ongava Private Reserve as well as Etosha from your comfortable hilltop camp, overlooking the primal savannah landscape. This 14-chalet lodge offers day & night game drives, guided walks, rhino tracking & a photographic hide over water.
An Etosha safari is usually the highlight of a more extensive Namibia tour – and for good reason. Set in the north of the country, the Etosha National Park is home to Namibia’s best game viewing, especially during the dry season when many animals crowd the park’s waterholes. This happily coincides with the best time to visit Namibia’s other must-see destinations such as the Sossusvlei dunes, Damaraland and the Skeleton Coast.
The big choice is whether to fly from point to point, join a mobile safari, or do it yourself in a hire car. Self-drive safaris are very easy to do in Namibia and having the independence to do things your way means an Etosha safari on your terms: stay out all day, stake out a waterhole, and return to your lodge for sunset drinks and safari stories.
Browse our tried-and-tested itineraries below, each incorporating an Etosha safari into a larger itinerary. Alternatively, simply contact us and we’ll create a tour based on your needs and budget.
Our team of destination experts will design a holiday to meet your budget and interests. Let’s start planning your tailor-made African safari today!
An Etosha safari is usually part of a bigger Namibian tour, taking in the country’s famous red deserts, rugged mountain country and haunted coastline too. Whether you choose a self-drive adventure, an overland tour or private fly-in itinerary, make sure you combine Etosha with Namibia’s other must-see destinations. And with easy connections from Windhoek to Cape Town, Johannesburg and Victoria Falls, you can turn your Namibian tour into a Southern African one!
