Safarihoek Lodge

• CCR of R275pp per night (subject to change): A non-refundable per person per night Conservation, Community and Reserve Fee (CCR) is added to each bed-night booked at Natural Selection properties. The CCR is crucial for protecting wildlife, securing and managing wildlife habitats and uplifting communities in the areas in which theyoperate. The CCR is not applicable to children aged 0 - 5 years but does apply to children 6 years and older as well as to pilots and guides.
• Transfers to the lodge
• Fully comprehensive Travel Insurance, which guests are required to take out
• Any transfers not listed under inclusions
• All items of a personal nature (laundry, gratuities etc.)

• There will be a 40% single supplement (contact [email protected] for a quote if travelling solo).
• Children of all ages are welcome.
• Children 0-5 are free of charge
• Children 6 - 18 years are charged at 50% of the adult sharing rate. Please request a quote from [email protected]
• Children 19 & older are classified as adults and a single supplement applies if in their own room
• Families travelling with children aged 9 years and younger are required to book and pay for a private vehicle. 
• Parties of 6 will automatically get a private vehicle at no extra charge.

Safarihoek is a serene and stylish lodge in an exclusive private reserve, close to the celebrated Etosha National Park, in Namibia’s most game-rich area.  Spend time in the unique photography hide. Not just for photographers, it offers camera-busting close-ups of Namibia’s extraordinary wildlife. Enjoy encounters with endangered black and white rhino. Experience the silence and solitude of a truly remote corner of Namibia; Safarihoek is a place for escapism, in a vast swathe of perfectly-private wilderness.

In the centre of camp, you’ll find a large lounge area, wine cellar, dining area, and a small curio shop all under thatch. On the chilly evenings of the dry season you’ll probably eat inside, watching the wild through the large glass windows, then in the warmer months, it’s all about the alfresco dining on the outdoor deck. There’s also a cosy outdoor seating area complete with roaring fire, and a perfect spot for keeping an eye on passing four-legged creatures. Drinks are served from the outdoor bar and can also be taken to the swimming pool, a cooling space with the same infinite views of the plains below.

The 11 chalets are elegant and well-equipped with 180-degress vistas of the landscape and waterhole. Eight have outdoor showers-with-a-view. Wildlife-watch from the comfort and privacy of your room. Raised high above the savannah on wooden platforms, each of the chalets look out over the ambling zebra and romping elephant on the plains below. Take a seat on your private deck and watch wild Africa wander by, or escape the heat inside; the view is just as spectacular wherever you choose to sit. Under the thatch roofs of the chalets, you’ll find large double or twin beds, and a small writing desk, minibar and coffee station. All rooms have air conditioning and are ensuite (with indoor showers), and if you can’t bear to tear your eyes away, some have outdoor showers with a view too.  

The different seasons bring very different experiences to Etosha Heights, and each has its own charms and challenges. The summer months of October to April is officially the rainy season across most of sub-Saharan Africa, but actual rainfall is scarce in Etosha Heights. When it does rain, it’s brief and dramatic, and spectacular thunderstorms transorm the landscape into bright shocks of green. Higher grass and fuller waterholes make game viewing a little harder during this time of year, but you can still expect to enjoy a diverse cast of the animal kingdom.  

Landscape

Safarihoek is set amongst an epic wilderness of vast savannah dotted with scatterings of mopane woodland and dolomite hills. This beautiful piece of Namibia is Etosha Heights Private Reserve, situated close to Etosha National Park’s southwestern border in northern Namibia, and in fact shares a 70km border with the Etosha National Park, ensuring you will be able to enjoy a Etosha Wildlife Experience within a private concession. It’s a dry and dusty yet totally captivating land, and the silence and solitude that pervades is poignant. Down here, the wildlife is as magnificent as it is in the national park, and there’s one key difference too. Access to the reserve is carefully restricted (to humans, not animals!), making for exclusive and totally private wildlife experiences, free from tourist crowds and bulging 4x4s.

Enjoy morning and afternoon game drives in the Etosha Heights Private Reserve, and look for the elusive black and white rhino amongst large concentrations of plains game. Wrap up warm and hop in the vehicle for a night-time game drive to explore the magic of the Namibian bush after dark. Dust off your camera, charge those batteries, and spend the morning or afternoon in the unique, double-tiered photography hide. Even if you’re not a keen photographer, the hide will get you closer than ever to Namibia’s giants. Bush meals and picnics can be arranged with a little advance notice.

Wildlife

The impressive 60,000 hectares of classic Etosha landscape around Safarihoek Lodge is dominated by vast, flat savannah interspersed with thickets of mopane woodland, riverine forest, and scattered salt pans. The dolomite hills offer cover for elusive mountain zebra, kudu and lion – make sure to have your cameras ready! – and the numerous waterholes attract large numbers of game and their feathered counterparts. The reserve is also home to numerous species of antelope including sable and black-faced impala, as well as giraffe and other plains game. In winter, aardvark and elephant sightings are not infrequent. The Etosha area is rated one of the best places on the continent to view rhino, and Etosha Heights is home to both white and black rhino. A morning spent tracking their footprints through the dust before eventually coming nose-to-horn with one of the endangered beasts is a memory not to be forgotten.

Fly in guests: Fly into Windhoek's Hosea Kutako International Airport. From there you can rent a vehicle (a minimum of 2x4 is recommended) and make your way North to the Etosha Reserve. The drive will take approximately 7hrs. Please plan to reach Namibia as early as possible, or spend the night in Windhoek before making your way to the lodge. Driving directions can be emailed in addition.

Alternatively, a transfer can be arranged at an additional cost.