Within the vast landscape of the Namib Desert, by the Hoanib River and between the Palmwag and the Skeleton Coast National Park in Namibia, the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp is settled. A sense of blending into the earth lies about the place, which is surrounded by the rolling hills of the desert and affords the eye an endless view of the arid earth. This is a safari designed by a team with 30 years’ worth of experience, and is a haven for wildlife researchers and enthusiasts. It provides its guests with an exclusive and unparalleled experience of the beauty of the isolated area and its variety of wild animals. Presented the distinguished ‘Most Out Of This World’ Tatler Travel Award of 2015, the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp is visually magnificent.
The camp is accessed by a light aircraft, and accommodates a small number of guests in luxurious en-suite rooms that open up onto outside decks. The deluxe design of the camp is created by glass screens and gigantic tents with a neutral palette that adds to the essence of an oasis. The Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp is unique in that the area is home to a variety of large mammals that have adapted to the desert, with guests commonly seeing elephants; oryx; giraffes; gemsbok; and springbok, as well as the more remote lions, shaggy brown hyenas, and the black-backed jackals. Regular game drives, nature walks, and day trips to Klein Oase and Auses Spring, allow one to get as close to the wild animals as is safely possible, and are a photographer’s dream.
The Skeleton Coast of Namibia borders the Atlantic Ocean and is famed for its shipwrecks and stories of bones – so named because of the many whale and seal bones scattered along the beach-front. A heavy fog falls over the coast throughout most of the year, and strong tides hitting the off-shore rocks have been the cause of the many shipwrecks. These can be viewed during scenic flights arranged by the team at Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp. The tragedies that occurred here earned the place the nickname, ‘The Land God Made in Anger,’ by the Bushmen, and the ‘Gates of Hell,’ by the Portuguese, and became the setting for a popular novel by John Henry Marsh, which told the factual story of the Dunedin Star, a British ship that crashed and was stranded on the Skeleton Coast in 1942. Nowadays, the shipwrecks act as a harbour for the colonies of seals that are seen along the coast.
The Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp is dedicated to maintaining the sustainability of the wildlife and its surrounds. The camp was designed so as to have a minimal effect on its surrounding environment, with a system that is completely powered by solar energy, and one that uses waste-water to benefit the plant life. The camp aids the conservation of the Namibian desert lions, and supports the ongoing project that attempts to bridge the conflict sometimes caused by the lions’ presence near the local community. Whether one travels to Namibia for a sensual and secluded getaway or is in search of an African adventure, the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp has everything to offer, and nothing to forget.