namibia

Almost every Namibia travel guide embellishes their cover with a picture of the red dunes of Sossusvlei. The area known as Sossusvlei is located in the Namib-Naukluft National Park in the central Namib Desert. Here are the highest dunes in the world, towering up to more than 300 metres high and changing their appearance with every breath of wind and every position of the sun. A fascinating natural spectacle that makes photographers' hearts beat faster, especially at sunrise and sunset. The dunes owe their colour to their age and iron content, as the sand has literally rusted over the millennia. Deadvlei, with its dead trees in the middle of a dried-up marsh (vlei) is surreal and picturesque at the same time and a must see when visiting Sossusvlei.

The Waterberg Plateau Park is a nature reserve in Namibia established in 1972 to protect the eland. It covers an area of 405 km² and occupies large parts of the Waterberg in central north-eastern Namibia. Through reintroduction, the two rhino species (black and white) that occur in Namibia, are present there today as well as the only disease-free population of African buffalo in the country. Other animals that are home in the Waterberg National Park are the rare sable and roan antelope and predators, such as leopards and cheetahs.

Etosha National Park is located in the north of Namibia and covers 22'270 km² with the 5'000 km² white Etosha Pan («etosha» means «big white place») taking up almost a quarter of the area. The landscape consists mainly of grass plains around the salt pan, which turns into a lake after heavy rains and attracts large flocks of flamingos. Etosha is home to one of the largest and perhaps the most stable populations of black rhino in the world, as well as rare and endemic species such as the black-faced impala, the Hartmann's mountain zebra and one of the world's smallest antelope, the Damara dikdik. During the dry season, the waterholes around the pan are crowded with large herds of animals often with predators waiting nearby for a hunting opportunity.

Damaraland is part of the Kunene region in the northwest of Namibia and extends south of the Kaokoveld to approximately the national road between Swakopmund and Usakos and in the west to the Skeleton Coast. It is characterised by rocky and rugged landscapes of rugged, fascinating beauty. The flora and fauna of the region have adapted perfectly to the harsh weather conditions of intense heat and prolonged droughts. Here you will find the desert-dwelling elephants, which roam for kilometres in the dry riverbeds in search of water. The desert lions, threatened with extinction have also managed to adapt to the dry climate.

The Zambezi Region is a 14'785 km² piece of paradise in the far north-east of Namibia. It takes its name from the Zambezi River which flows along its northern border. The Zambezi Region is part of the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), the world's largest transfrontier conservation area in the world. The region is home to a large number of wildlife, including several species found nowhere else in the country. The area, which is flooded during the rainy season, is home to many aquatic animals such as crocodiles and hippos and water-loving antelopes like red lechwe, sitatunga and reedbuck which are present in large numbers.