Serra Cafema

Serra Cafema Review

This astonishingly different and dramatically sited camp in the extreme northwest of Namibia, on the Angolan border, is the most remote camp in Southern Africa. After a dry, dusty, but magnificently beautiful drive from the airstrip, you are guaranteed to gasp with awe as you first catch sight of the camp from a high sand dune. Built amid a grove of ancient albida trees on the banks of the wide Kunene River, it seems like a desert mirage. Only the nomadic Himba people share this area, and a visit to a local village is an eye-opening experience and one of the highlights of a stay here. Another day, ride a quad bike over the billowing sand dunes and spot the Atlantic from a high vantage point. Although tents (on raised platforms) are ultraluxurious and have private bathrooms, don't come here if you aren't tough. The flight from Windhoek is long and bumpy, and the terrain harsh and demanding, but the experience—staying by a wide river in the midst of the oldest desert in the world—is almost surreal. This is one-of-a-kind Africa. Stay for three nights to make the most of the experience: go walking, boating, birding, or quad biking; do a nature drive; or just sit by the rushing river and contemplate.