Arnoud Quanjer Wildlife Photography

When you want to stay overnight in Etosha you have to stay in one of the restcamps. You have the choice of three restcamps: Okaukuejo, Halali and Namutoni. All of these camps are fenced and offer a facilities like a shop, swimming pool, restaurant and filling station. At these camps you can either book a chalet or stay at the campingsite. 

Where to stay in the park

I've stayed overnight in all of the three restcamps. All of them offer good accommodation, and all of them have their own pros and cons. Okaukuejo restcamp offers the best floodlit waterhole of the three camps, but it can be very crowded at Okaukuejo. The area around Okaukuejo is usualy very productive for wildlife viewing.

In the middle of the park you'll find Halali restcamp. Just like Okaukuejo restcamp Halali also has a nice waterhole which is frequently visited by elephants and black rhinoceros. To the east and west of the camp the wildlife viewing area is excellent, probably the best wildlife viewing is done from this camp. At Halali you'll also stand an excellent chance of seeing Honey Badgers at night as they raid the trash bins at night.

The camp I like the least is Namutoni restcamp. This camp is located near the eastern border of the park approximately 12km from Lindquist gate. Like the other two camps this camp also has a floodlit waterhole. When I stayed in Namutoni in October 2007 you had to be an overnight visitor staying in a chalet to get free access to the waterhole. If you were a day visitor or an overnight visitor staying at a campsite you had to pay N$100 entrance to the viewing deck. I've recently (February 2009) been told that the waterhole is now accessible to everybody for free again. The camp had a very unpleasant atmosphere when I was there. There were security guards everywhere and all they basically did was tell you what you could and couldn't do. If you set a foot on the grass they'd be there in seconds to tell you that they could fine you for that. I never felt like I was a guest in Namutoni.  

Facilities you can expect in the restcamps

You can get petrol and diesel in all the restcamps. All the restcamp accepts credit cards and you'll have cell reception in all the camps. The shops are reasonably stocked, but don't expect a huge variety of meat and food in the stores. If you want to cook yourself then bring whatever food you can with you to the park rather than depend on the shops in the park. Alternatively you can eat in a restaurant as all the camps have restaurants which serve reasonable food.

Booking your stay

Make sure you book your stay in Etosha well in advance of your trip. Etosha is a very popular park with limited accomodation. Don't assume that you'll be able to book your accomodation on arrival. You can book your stay in the park through Namibia Wildlife Resorts website (http://www.nwr.com.na/).