Botswana and Namibia Tours & Trips

Dunes, Deltas and Falls was overall a very good highly recommended to anyone wanting to see the wildlife of Africa (especially Botswana) and the landscapes of Namibia such as Dune 45 and the dead trees. However you need to factor into the price the add ons as they truly are the highlights of this trip (especially the Chobe cruise and the regular in the tray back of a Toyota safari). You're also going to need to book something in Swakopmund as there isn't enough to do there on a full free day otherwise. People on our tour did all range of things, I did Living Desert Tours with Charly's Desert Tours. We saw snakes, lizards and a lot of Africa's Little 5. It was really good, a bit of 4WD dune action too. The mokoro canoe experience in the Octavia Delta is also a must do but lets face it a compulsory tip is another payment. Note this is the only time you need actual cash during this entire trip. And since it is a tip even though they really want it, it's a tip so you can pay in US or whatever currency you want. Well some toilets ask for coins too, if you can't hold on for free ones. So don't worry about waiting money withdrawing cash. Unless you like buying from people on the side of the road or something. But if you are going to remember US dollars are the major currency used in Victoria Falls area of Zimbabwe. Naibian dollars are valued and accepted exactly the same as South African rand in Namibia so get South African rand as you'll still have it to use n South Africa. You can't spend Namibian notes there. But honestly I haven't used cash at all in South Afrcia and didn't in Namibia either. I have both a Visa and Mastercard. Sometimes Mastercard hasn't worked and I needed the Visa. You might want a bit of cash if you're going to split an Uber to Tavle Mountain, in Cape Town or something too I guess. Do you really need a sleeping bag? In October didn't really, I just slept on top of mine. But some people used theirs. There are shopping centers we stop at before the camping if you want to just buy one in Africa. At least one person did so on our tour. Be aware you may have most of the other people on your tour having already started in Cape Town as part of a tour under the name Highlights. This means hardly anyone will read the G App message thing if you want to try and organise to meet up before the night of the first day if you are arriving early at Victoria Falls. Also means they are less enthusiastic about seeing some wildlife such as springbox they've seen heaps of already. Cape Town add on worth doing (don't use the G ones they are way more expensive than booking direct or using Get Your Guide etc). Well almost everyone on our tour went to Table Mountain in the afternoon when we arrived. It is well worth going up there. Some of us went to a place called Cheetah Outreach (pretty much the only African animal we didn't see on tour at some stage) and paid extra for an encounter there. Some of us did a shark cage experience. Note the one you can book through G as a separate booking uses the company Marine Dynamics. It is great but G closes bookings a fair few days before so you might have to book direct with them. They provide return transfers to Gansbaai where the boat leaves from. I rang them to make sure I was on the same boat as two who had booked through G as G couldn't tell me or them if they were on the 7am or 11am boat. But do it, you see some huge Copper sharks and other species from both the boat or the cage on the side of it. But be aware Great Whites have all been killed (by humans or orcas) or fled. They have rarely been sighted since 2017. I also did snorkeling from Simon's Town in the Great African Kelp Forrest. You can catch the local train to Simon's Town for 16 rand (yep around $1.40 AUD). Plenty of companies offer tours, I used one called RADD. The train journey is very scenic, with the rails right next to False Bay. You can also walk to the Boulder Beach penguins from there. I also did a tour of Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope, which included Boulder Beach and a few other spots. Plenty of companies do it way cheaper than G's add on. I used Babzus as they include a nice (easy) hike between Point and Good Hope. G stops in plenty of supermarkets during the tour (which is unusual for them usually going to expensive restaurants for lunch in the middle of nowhere). There are a few occasions doing that still, especially for dinner. But it means you can buy big waters or soft drinks and if you keep smaller bottles, pour the beverages into them.

The itenerary was not always followed. The most egregious problem was staying 250 km (3 hrs.) on an extremely rough road from the gate of sossusvlei (dunes). It also made the day before about 150 km longer and the day after 100km longer. Neither accommodation listed on the itinerary was used. We also didn't get a half day in the delta that was on the itinerary. I will send a more detailed evaluation to trip advisor when we finish our trip.

I thoroughly enjoyed my first ever safari experience, and would definitely do another one. The whole organisation of the trip was excellent, and the tour ran very smoothly. From being collected at Walvis Bay airport, to being dropped off at Livingstone Airport, nothing was too much trouble for any of the drivers and guides. I think my only 'complaints' would be that arriving in Namibia is NOT cheap. Although a tourist holiday visa can be dealt with on arrival, it is expensive. I was charged N$1,600.00 for a seven day stay. At least crossing the border into Botswana, and then Zambia is cheaper. They just stamp your passport at immigration control! Also, at our first campsite at Spitzkoppe, although in the trip notes it says, 'guests can enjoy hot showers and there are shared bathroom facilities', where we pitched our tents, there were no hot showers or bathroom facilities. We had two long-drop toilets. At least, if you get out in the night, you can always enjoy the starry night sky and Milky Way! Fortunately, we were only there for one night! As for the safari drives themselves, they were all first rate, and I have many fantastic memories and hundreds of photos to look back on. Some off them were very early starts, (5am at Chobe for example!), but they were definitely worth it. From seeing the sun rise over the Chobe River, to driving close to a pride of dozing lionesses, and seeing elephants, giraffes, baboons and other herbivores at close quarters, was something I'll never forget. Also, the cruise on the Chobe River, was excellent, with very close views of buffalo on the bank sides, elephants, crocodiles, and a large herd of hippos, plus many different bird species. One of the main highlights at the start of the tour was spending a day and a half on game drives around Etosha National Park in Namibia. Again, fantastically close views of all manner of animals and birds, including a very obliging cheetah, who sat and posed on a tree branch for about half an hour, completely oblivious to all the tourists and their cameras! Finally, a big mention to our guide for the tour, Joe, and the ever reliable driver, Harmony. I would recommend both for any awards going. Joe was everything a tour leader should be. Extremely well organised, punctual and efficient, friendly and supportive, and a great cook, ably assisted by those who helped him! Harmony, as driver, was also brilliant. Given the lengths of some of the road trips we went on each day, he never lost his sense of humour, despite, presumably feeling very tired at times. Again, he was always on time in leaving and arriving at destinations, and was very good at assisting people in putting up, dismantling, and packing away their tents, and helping to store them in the truck. He was a very safe and competent driver, and made frequent stops for 'bushy-bushy', toilet breaks along the way! Both Joe & Harmony are a credit to Acacia Africa, and I hope they are used together on future safari tours.