But while others lean into the excitement and energy of traditional safaris, AndBeyond’s lodge leans into the overwhelming quiet-yes, even on ATVs. Namibia as a whole is experiencing a boom in new and refurbished luxury lodges: the Hoanib Valley Camp in the north and Shipwreck Lodge on the Skeleton Coast opened in 2018, and AndBeyond Sossusvlei Desert Lodge’s neighbor, Little Kulala, is expected to reopen after renovation in mid-2020.
(If you’re hoping for a truly stellar turnout, be sure to avoid a stay during a full moon, when the flashlight-bright moon reduces the number of visible stars.) Turndown service in the room also includes opening the in-room skylight, which offers a view of the Milky Way from bed. You’ll find Swanepoel there most nights, answering interstellar questions. Abutting Africa's first and only International Dark Sky Reserve, the lodge leans in on astronomy, with an on-site observatory, magnifying telescope for a view of surrounding planets and far-off galaxies, and red lights surrounding the lodge, so as not to obstruct the starlight. is yours to do with as you wish.Īt night, Sossusvlei Desert Lodge shines, too. That heat will have you moving slower than you had ever thought you ever would (ditto the insects, oryx, and every other living being in these parts).
Since temps in the summer reach some 95 degrees by 10 a.m, most activity is relegated to early 5:30 a.m. Regardless of what you chose, the can't miss activity is the half-day excursion to the otherworldly Namib-Naukulft National Park, to hike the blood-orange dunes at sunrise then explore the stark Deadvlei, a river basin now cut off from its water source by the sand, filled with bright white clay and dead, preserved trees, now 900 years old. Since there’s no formal schedule, you may end up as the only guests on your chosen activity, with a private guide for the morning or evening. The only activity that requires pre-booking is the early morning hot air ballooning.
Instead, the choose your own adventure-style menu has opportunities for e-biking around the lodge’s 12-mile path, hiking up to rock paintings in surrounding caves, driving quad-bikes over the dunes, or taking a sunset nature drive through the reserve. At each meal, the lodge’s activities manager Vernon Swanepoel will stop by your table to check in on what you want to do that day, as there’s no set schedule for guests. The lodge’s stark surroundings, filled with seemingly endless valleys and mountain-sized, five-million-year-old burnt orange sand dunes, is a playground for extreme outdoor adventure in southern Africa-a region generally thought of only for safari or wine and city breaks in and around Cape Town.Ībout a 1.5-hour charter flight to the lodge’s private airstrip from Windhoek, Sossusvlei Desert Lodge doesn’t have the Big Five, but that's not why you come here anyway. Which may be what we love most about the sleek, newly reopened AndBeyond Sossusvlei Desert Lodge in southwestern Namibia.
Sometimes it takes the right hotel to teach travelers how to best experience a destination.