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Amazing Night on the Caprivi Strip in Namibia!

Before setting up our road trip to Botswana and South Africa, I had never really considered going to Namibia. How was I to know that one of the best places for viewing wildlife in that country was just a few kilometers from where I’d be driving on trip anyway.

When I found out, it was a done deal. The only problem was we only stayed on the Caprivi Strip for one day. It was not enough. I can’t wait to return to Namibia and do it right.

A blue-breasted bee-eater perched on a dead tree limb is oddly named because it’s mostly green and yellow.
This little bird is a blue-breasted bee-eater even though it’s mostly green and yellow.

Note: Namibia has changed the name of the Caprivi Strip to the Zambezi Region.

Our One Day in the Caprivi Strip

We stayed at the Ngepi Camp near Divundu, so that was where we were heading. The Botswana part of the drive was partially through Mahango National Park, so we saw animals all day long.

The most surprising part was the border crossing. It went very smooth, not taking longer than 30 minutes. But the absolute best part was the view looking over part of the Chobe River bed.

Huge baobab tree and view of the wide, meandering Chobe River at the border crossing between Botswana and Namibia.
A baobab tree and the Chobe River at the border crossing between Botswana and Namibia.

After we crossed over into Namibia, there were many villages along the road. Since it was Sunday, church services were being conducted in many of the town squares. 

On our one day on the Caprivi Strip Namibia we found this Namibian village of thatched huts with people gathered outside.
A Namibian village with thatched huts and people gathered outside.

Where We Stayed in the Zambezi Region

The campgrounds here were clean and neat and nestled in woodlands along the river. Our sleeping arrangements at this camp were in what had only been described to us as a “tree house.” We had no idea what to expect and were completely amazed at what we ended up staying overnight in.

Ngepi Camp Treehouse bedroom in Namibia.
Our treehouse bedroom at Ngepi Camp.

The tree house was a small, open bungalow built in and around a huge tree. It had two floors-one was a sitting room, and the other was a sleeping loft. The sitting area was tasteful furnished and comfortable and had a step-down bathroom off the back with a gorgeously tiled bathroom and open air shower. But the loft was the truly amazing part.

The loft had a comfortable king sized bed and opened out to a view of the river and a beautiful sunrise to wake up to. We sat mesmerized, watching the sun come up over the river as the hippos bathed and swam; and the giraffes frolicked along the shore with the zebras and warthogs–it was a real Lion King day!

Our Ngepi Camp treehouse view of the sunset over the lake in Namibia.
Our treehouse view of the sunset over the lake.

Wildlife in Namibia

I would say that we saw mostly antelope in our 24 hours in Namibia, ones we hadn’t see elsewhere.

Some of the types of antelope we saw were:

  • roan
  • sable
  • gemsbock
  • dik-dik
  • springbok.

Unfortunately in this part of Namibia, we didn’t see any giraffe or swimming elephants, but the zebras were plentiful and playful.

More Photos from Namibia

A pair of wildebeests looking at the camera in the Caprivi Strip, Namibia.
Wildebeests.
A Vervet monkey on a log in the Zambezi Region, Namibia.
A Vervet monkey looking at camera.
Encountered this group of four sable antelope and one zebra during our one day on the Caprivi Strip Namibia.
One is not like the others.
A trio of ostriches in the Caprivi Strip, Namibia.
A trio of ostriches.
A group of four roan antelope in the Caprivi Strip, Namibia.
Roan antelope.
Villagers on the Chobe River in a Makoro, a wooden canoe-like craft.
Villagers on the Chobe River in a Makoro.

But Wait! There are Even More Zambezi Region Photos

Blue-Eared-Starling, Namibia.
Blue-eared starling.
Chacma baboon sitting in a tree in Namibia keeping a lookout for predators.
Chacma baboon at work, watching out for predators.
Zebra walking by us on our Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park safari.
Zebra in Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park.
A sable antelope in the Caprivi Strip, Namibia.
Sable antelope.

Conclusion

Namibia should be on every safari-lovers bucket list. We spent one great day in the country and viewing a bunch of different animals than we’d seen in the surrounding countries. The Caprivi Strip is just a tiny part of Namibia, but it was enough to make us wanting more. Namibia, we’ll be back.

Stay Tuned! If you are enjoying reading all about our road trip through Southern Africa, we’ve got more. You can read all about our next stop, our mokoro safari in the Okavango Delta here.

Author Bio: Jim Vail, is a travel, food, and video creator and a perpetual traveler who has been travel writing for over 15 years. For many years he lived overseas in Germany, Japan, Turkey, South Korea, and the Netherlands, and he’s visited over 90 countries.

Corinne Vail

Friday 2nd of May 2014

Anabel, Thanks for the awesome shout out!

Marisol@TravelingSolemates

Sunday 20th of April 2014

Hi Corinne, Awww...I so enjoyed reading about the description of your tree house accommodation and your experience. Really awesome. Namibia is on top of my list and I'd love to experience this kind of accommodation myself. I can just imagine the thrill of seeing wildlife from up the comfort of your tree house.

Corinne Vail

Sunday 20th of April 2014

Marisol, We loved it. I'm not sure how much wildlife we saw other than birds, but the sunrise was to die for!

Marisol@TravelingSolemates

Saturday 19th of April 2014

Hi Corinne, Namibia is high on my list. Tree house in Ngepi Camp sounds wonderful. Will definitely keep it in mind

Corinne Vail

Saturday 19th of April 2014

Great Marisol! It was a beautiful spot...especially for the sunrise.

MoreTimeToTravel (@MoreTime2Travel)

Thursday 17th of April 2014

Sounds like a wonderful "road trip" - or was it off-road?

Corinne Vail

Thursday 17th of April 2014

More Time, It was mostly on road. There were only a couple of times that we almost lost the track. One time we were chastised for this by a park ranger. It was a blast.

Corinne Vail

Thursday 17th of April 2014

Lila, We crossed by road but the border crossing between the two countries was one of the prettiest I've ever seen.