Etaambura Lodge

Intro

Etaambura — “the place from where you can see the rain” — is Namibia’s only ovaHimba co-owned camp. It sits on top of one of the highest hills above the holy plains of Onjuva, where livestock and springbok graze together. These sandy, red plains are steeped in Himba history, and the guides will share the stories with you — why this area was consecrated by the semi-nomadic herders who live here.

Accommodation

Five canvas-and-thatch chalets built into the hillside, with en-suite bathrooms and a private deck. One chalet is wheelchair-friendly. Solar lights running on lithium batteries (charge cameras and phones), and hot showers fuelled by a donkey boiler. Comfortable beds with reading lamps.

Nature

Etaambura hill is a botanical treasure trove, in a biodiversity hotspot full of endemic trees and shrubs. You might see a klipspringer or, at dusk, a Jameson’s rock rabbit. Tiny footprints are evidence of genets and African wildcats. The calls of a diversity of birds, the whispery rustle of paper-bark and other commiphora trees, bottle trees in bloom, the rich hues of purple-pod terminalia — with unimpeded 360-degree views — make this camp unforgettable.

In the area

Etaambura is ideal for a few days’ stop-over — only four hours’ drive from Purros, five from Opuwo and three to four hours from the Kunene River. Ask the Himba team about daily activities: a guided walk to a Himba village or stock-watering place, a game drive or visit to an old marble mine, a day’s excursion to the Kunene River. Here you’ll be treated as a guest, not a tourist — because local people are proud of their ownership of Conservancy Safaris Namibia, and of their camp.