If you’re going to Namibia, be sure to make it to Etosha National Park. It’s a must because it is one of the few places where you can see so many wild animals roaming free. Better yet, drive through the park yourself! It’s guaranteed to make this safari a highlight of your tour!
Etosha National Park in Namibia
Savannah, bushland, and a huge salt pan make up Etosha National Park. Its more than 22,000 km² makes it one of Africa’s largest national parks.
Namibia’s most important nature reserve is located in the country’s north some 400 km from the capital city Windhoek.
Even just registering at the “Anderson Gate”, one of the national park’s four entrances, we can already feel the butterflies tingle in our stomachs at the thought of what lies ahead: we’ll be traversing the national park today from the south all the way to the ” Von Lindequist” gate in the east.
The Etosha Pan
No, hot as it can get, the Etosha Pan has nothing to do with cooking. The almost 5,000 km² large plain consists of salt and limestone mud.
It measures 130 km by 50 km and is considered the national park’s main feature. Besides its many animals, of course.
During the rainy season (usually from November to February), the rainwater leaves small ponds – the famous waterholes.
During the remaining months, the salt pan mostly dries up and shimmers white – from whence the name “Etosha”, meaning something like “big white place” in Oshivambo, the language that is spoken in northern Namibia.
Wildlife watching by the waterholes
Scattered throughout the park are several natural as well as man-made waterholes. They attract thirsty animals especially during the dry winter season (which in Namibia lasts from May to October).
The dry season is therefore the best time to observe animals in their natural environment.
Lions, elephants, giraffes, zebras, cheetahs, kudus, wildebeest, and oryx are just some of the many species that frequent the park.
No wonder it is one of Namibia’s main attractions – and one of the top safari destinations worldwide.
You can encounter four of the so-called “Big Five” game animals in Etosha National Park.
Missing is the buffalo – the region is too dry for the species. Which majestic animals make up Africa’s “Big Five” and which make it on the less glamorous “Ugly Five” list we tell you here in our Big Five article from Botswana.
Namibia was not our first safari. We already had had terrific encounters with Botswana’s wildlife (see our Botswana Safari tips here).
But back to Etosha’s amazing creatures
Of course, the luck of the draw in part determines which animals you get to see, but it also depends on the variables of season, vegetation, weather, and water levels.
Sometimes it pays to be a little patient and wait by the waterhole: Within a few minutes, all kinds of animals can materialize. Or none at all.
Our luck held up: We saw an unbelievable number of animals, and not just by the waterholes.
Even on the gravel road, we have to stop several times for herds of zebras or elephants leisurely crossing the road – or two lionesses by the roadside attracting attention and causing a traffic jam.
Best time to visit Etosha National Park
The months from May to October are considered the best time to visit Etosha: this is winter in the southern hemisphere and dry season in northern Namibia with hardly any rainfall.
That’s when the animals seek out the water holes and are easily spotted in the dry landscape …
Tips and useful information on Etosha National Park
Getting there
Many roads lead to Etosha: The national park is easily accessible from several directions via well-maintained, asphalted roads (from the east) or on more or less rough gravel roads (from the southwest). You enter the park through one of four entrance gates:
- “Anderson Gate” at the south end of the Park
- “Von Lindequist Gate” when approaching from the east
- “Galton Gate” at the Park’s southwestern end
- “King Nehale Lya Mpingana Gate” located at the Park’s northern approach
Guided tour or u-drive it?
You can explore the park well on your own.
With the sparse vegetation and the many water holes, you can find the animals without a guide.
For that matter, the guides with their (un-airconditioned) safari jeeps are also required to stay on the designated roads. So they have no advantages, except knowing the best spots and the best times to be there.
The roads in the national park and to the waterholes are well marked. However, they are not asphalted! So you wind up driving on gravel roads, which are common in Namibia.
We, therefore, recommend a 4-wheel drive off-road vehicle if you are touring Namibia on your own. Most self-driving visitors opt for a white Toyota Fortuner as we did.
Here Walter has put together a guide to driving in Namibia’s left-hand traffic and for planning your vital gas station stops.
In any event, we recommend that you buy a road map of the Park in Etosha or download it from the Etosha-Website to help orient yourself and plan your day well.
Caution: You are not allowed to exit your vehicle in the park (the photo above of our SUV was taken outside the Park…) except, of course, at the explicitly designated rest areas and camps, e.g. in Okaukuejo, Halali, or Namutoni.
Etosha is no zoo – here the wild animals rule!
Overnight accommodations
The state operates several camps in the Etosha. On the recommendation of friends, however, we decide to bed down in private safari camps outside the park that offer “a little more comfort”.
Before entering the park, we stayed one night at Ongava Lodge south of Etosha Park in the Ongava Private Game Reserve, which lies right outside the “Anderson Gate”.
After the all-day drive crossing the national park we enjoyed two more nights at the Onguma Private Game Reserve, also located right outside Etosha by the “Von Lindequist Gate”.
Opening hours and entrance fees
The opening hours will depend on the sunrise and sunset and can therefore vary with the season.
You are not allowed to drive through the park after dark. For the particulars on opening hours and the entrance fees, please visit the Etosha website.
According to the website, in September 2021 the admission prices were as follows:
- 80 NAD per person (adults) per day (ca. USD 5.40)
- 10 NAD per vehicle per day
Why we ended up paying 340 NAD (about USD 23) is beyond me. But to be honest, we didn’t see the published prices until afterward.
Never mind – we found the total amount a fair price for the spectacular experience it bought us!
