Desert Rhino Camp

serious tracking of rare desert rhinos

Desert Rhino Camp is located in the Damaraland North area of northwest Namibia.

This lodge has long been one of our absolute favourites in the country. Being pleasantly simple, it attracts a really nice mix of more outdoorsy and experienced safari guests.

It is a comfortable traditional tented safari camp, centred on an open-sided canvas structure containing simple lounge and dining areas, leading out to a campfire. There is also a small swimming pool.

Rooms

Guest accommodation at Desert Rhino Camp is in eight very comfortable safari tents spread out across the rocky terrain.

Activities

Desert Rhino Camp provides the following guided activities …

• Black rhino tracking
• Vehicle safari
• Walking safari
• Bush meals

Despite being the best safari area in Namibia by a distance, Damaraland North unfortunately features in a relatively low proportion of trips, largely due to its accessibility and high cost.

The usual stay duration is 3-6 nights.

Seasonality

The climate in Damaraland North follows the usual pattern for this part of the world, with a long dry season Apr-Dec and a short green season Jan-Mar.

However, being closer to the coast, the area experiences even less rainfall than further inland, so the seasonality is a lot less pronounced and safari conditions are pretty favourable year round.

Getting around

There are three main ways to get around Namibia and visit Damaraland North …

Self-drive

The first option is to self-drive, which is reasonably safe and easy to do. The upside is that it is by far the lowest cost way to get around. The downside is that, for safety reasons, you are obliged to stick to a relatively limited network of main roads locations.

The Damaraland North area is relatively rarely visited by self-drivers, although there is a small selection of roadside lodges which caters specifically to those that do get this far north. Surprisingly it is also possible to access even the most remote camps by self-drive, simply by leaving your vehicle at a roadside lodge and being picked up by a guide and vehicle from the camp. This is a great way to add a big dose of authenticity and quality into a self-drive, but can be pricey.

Flying safari

The second option is to travel around by light aircraft. This is both a great deal easier and enables you to access some wonderfully remote locations. The downside is that it’s much more expensive, as much as three times the price of self-drive.

By far the most common way to access the remote camps in this area is to fly in by light aircraft, which is fabulous and easy, but inherently expensive.

Guided overland expedition

The third option is guided overland safari, which enables you to really explore the truly wild and wonderful parts of the country. The downsides are that this can be quite an arduous way to travel and can become quite costly.

Guided overland expeditions tend to often include the Damaraland North area, this is prime territory for this style of exploration.

Combinations

Many of the very best trips to Namibia combine two or three of these ways of travelling around.

an inherently high cost area