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| Accommodation in the South |
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| The South |
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| The south is surrounded by two
deserts – the world’s oldest, the Namib Desert in
the west, and the Kalahari with its 50 km long dunes and |
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| camelthorn trees in the east.
Between these two deserts the area is mountainous. |
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| The Orange river forms Namibia’s
southern border with South Africa. The highlight of this region
is the Fish River Canyon, the second biggest canyon in the world
after the Grand Canyon in America. The canyon has several vantage
points from where to admire the spectacular view. |
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| The quiver tree forests in the
vicinity of Keetmanshoop, the wild horses of the Namib and Lüderitzbucht
with its surrounding bays are all very interesting places to
visit during a tour in this region. In 1488 the Portuguese discoverer,
Bartolomeu Dias erected a cross at Dias Point and in 1883 Adolf
Lüderitz from Bremen in Germany landed in the Bay of Lüderitz,
then still known as Angra Pequena. Lüderitzbucht has an
old history and many colonial-style buildings are testimony
to this, for example the Felsenkirche (1912) and the Goerkehaus
(1909). |
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| The different bays surrounding
Lüderitzbucht, the ghost town Kolmanskuppe – a diamond
town left desolate after the end of the diamond rush in 1910
–, and a drive to the Bogenfels are some of the worthwhile
activities which can be undertaken in the Lüderitz area.
A much loved destination, of course, is Sossusvlei, where the
Tsauchab river flows through the Sesriem Canyon and ends in
the Sossusvlei surrounded by a breathtaking dune-landscape and
the death valley. A flight with a hot-air balloon at sunrise
is one of the most exciting activities to be done here. |
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| The oldest desert in the world,
the Namib, is also called "The Living Desert”, because
of the interesting ways and means by which the fauna and flora
have adapted to the harsh conditions. |
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| Except for the Namib Naukluft
Park which stretches along the coast from Sandwich Harbour to
Lüderitz, the south has two more nature reserves: the Gondwana
Cañon Park and the Namib Rand Nature Reserve. In the
past these areas were privately owned farms. These farms were
not profitable and were then sold to the private sector and
proclaimed and developed as nature reserves. |
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The Gondwana Cañon Park
borders on the east side of the Fish River Canyon with an area
of about 102 000 ha and has three
accommodation
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| options: The Cañon Lodge,
The Cañon Roadhouse and the Cañon village. |
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| The Namib Rand Nature Reserve
of about 185 000 hectares is one of the largest privately owned
reserves in Southern Africa. It borders on the Namib-Naukluft
Park in the west and the Nubib mountains in the east. Sossusvlei
is also not very far from here. The range of spectacular views
and wildlife makes Namib Rand an excellent place to go to. The
Wolwedans private camp, the Wolwedans dune Camp, the Wolwedans
Lodge, and the Sossusvlei Mountain Lodge are small, private
Lodges in the Namib Rand Reserve. |
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