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Okonjima Reserve serves as a convenient stop-over for families en-route to Etosha National Park as it sits halfway between there and Windhoek, Namibia's capital city. This private 55,000 acre reserve is home to top-quality luxury accommodation and the much reputed AfriCat Foundation. Here, you'll have the opportunity for up-close encounters with some of Africas most iconic felines in a relatively natural environment. For those interested in engaging with the important and difficult work of rehabilitation, this is one of the best places to do so. But besides all that, the Okonjima Villa is a stunning, four-bedroom, top-quality offering that comes complete with your own chef and private safari vehicle.
From $830 person/night
See the work of conservation ecologists up close and follow radio-collard cheetah on foot or leopards and hyenas by vehicle. The AfriCat Foundation has rescued over 900 cheetahs and leopards, 85% of which have been released back into the wild.
Take your post-supper night-cap along and pay a visit to the night hide. There you can observe some rarely seen nocturnal animals like honey badger, genet, civet and porcupine.
Be sure to spend ample time in your spacious and sumptuous villa. Take a candle-lit bath in the evening before absolute dark and observe the stunning views onto the bush from your grand bathroom window.
Up to eight guests can enjoy this grand private residence. The villa is sole-use so you'll have it to yourselves - except for your personal chef and hostess, who runs the villa. Sink into the leather sofas in the main lounge with its open fireplace; sprawl next to the pool on the extensive verandah overlooking a waterhole. Sit beneath the thatched sala at the edge of the garden. You'll enjoy many atmospheric fine-dining meals (created to suit your palate) outside at the large dining table.
The villa can comfortably sleep eight adults and four children in its two luxury rooms and two separate private suites. The luxury rooms in the main house have ensuite bathrooms, each with indoor and outdoor showers, and a bath with a spectacular view of the reserve. The two separate thatched private suites are just a 50meter walk to either side of the main house. They also enjoy indoor and outdoor showers and ensuite bathrooms. There are large glass-panelled fold-away doors and each room has a mini-bar, air-conditioning, and wireless internet. Three of the rooms have king sized beds that can be wheeled out on the verandah for a thrilling sleep out under the African sky.
For top-tier luxury and service and excellent conservation ethics, this camp can't be beat. This is not the true-blue wilderness but it does play a significant part in ensuring its preservation.
The main draw to Okonjima is the rare chance to get up close to large African carnivores. Use radio-tracking to follow cheetah, wild dog and hyena on foot and leopard in a vehicle. Guides here do an especially great job of getting you involved in the chase, as well as explaining all you need to know about conserving African carnivores. Visit the informative AfriCat centre for a thorough education on their work. One of the benefits of this relatively tame reserve is the chance to get out on foot on your own - enjoy the solitude of the 8km self-guided walking trail.
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