At Hippo Tours and Safaris, we offer expert-led expeditions across Namibia with a focus on the country’s unique flora, fauna, and cultural heritage. Our team specialises in botany and herpetology, with additional knowledge in fields like entomology, ornithology, and mammalogy. Whether you're a researcher, enthusiast, or curious traveler, we tailor trips to match your interests.
We operate in a range of environments - from the Namib Desert to the Zambezi wetlands - and work closely with local communities and Indigenous guides to offer insight into both the natural world and traditional ecological knowledge.
From permits and logistics to field equipment and expert guidance, we handle all the details. Whether you’re planning a short field trip or an extended expedition, we ensure a smooth and meaningful experience.
Contact us to start planning a customised itinerary that blends science, nature, and culture in one of Africa’s most diverse countries.
We operate in a range of environments - from the Namib Desert to the Zambezi wetlands - and work closely with local communities and Indigenous guides to offer insight into both the natural world and traditional ecological knowledge.
From permits and logistics to field equipment and expert guidance, we handle all the details. Whether you’re planning a short field trip or an extended expedition, we ensure a smooth and meaningful experience.
Contact us to start planning a customised itinerary that blends science, nature, and culture in one of Africa’s most diverse countries.
How planning begins
The first step is a detailed discussion of your aims. Tell us what you hope to observe, record, or study, the regions you have in mind, and the level of fieldwork you expect each day. We use that to shape a draft route and daily schedule, then refine it with you until the plan is practical and focused on what matters most to your work or interest.
Science in the field
For research-led trips, we plan around your methods and priorities — not the other way around. That might mean early starts for survey work, repeated visits to the same site, time set aside for specimen handling or data collection, or a pace that allows careful observation rather than constant travel. We are used to supporting disciplined fieldwork and can help you make the most of your time on the ground, whether your focus is a single species, a habitat type, or a broader comparative study across regions.
Nature across Namibia
The country offers extraordinary variety within relatively short distances: arid desert, rocky escarpments, savanna, and riverine woodland, among others. We help you match habitats to your objectives, advise on seasonal patterns, and build realistic driving times between sites so you are not sacrificing quality time in the field. If your expedition depends on particular conditions - rainfall, flowering, breeding activity, or animal movements -we structure the route around when and where those are most likely to occur.
Culture and place
Namibia is not only a landscape of species and ecosystems; it is home to communities with long-standing relationships to the land. Where appropriate, we can include opportunities to learn from local and Indigenous knowledge holders, visit community-managed areas, and understand how conservation and livelihoods intersect in different parts of the country. These encounters can add valuable context to scientific work and deepen appreciation of how people and environment are connected here.
Timing, access, and conditions
We advise on the best time to visit particular areas, likely weather and road conditions, and how many nights to spend in each location. If your plans depend on access to remote or restricted areas, we work through the arrangements needed in advance so there are fewer surprises once you are travelling.
Support in the field
We can arrange suitable vehicles for rough tracks, camping or lodge stays close to study sites, and meals that fit long days outdoors. We also help with the practical side of staying organised in remote country - fuel stops, water, communication, and realistic schedules -so science, exploration, and cultural visits can sit comfortably within the same journey.
What to send us
A brief outline is enough to start: your dates, group size, main discipline or interest, and any must-see locations or species. If you are travelling with equipment, need particular access, or are working to publication or filming deadlines, mention those as well. We will reply with a proposed plan and a clear sense of how the trip can balance your scientific, natural history, and cultural priorities.
Before you travel
Once the outline is agreed, we confirm bookings, share route notes, and answer any last questions about what to bring and what to expect on the ground. Our aim is that you arrive well prepared and can give your full attention to the expedition -whether that means time in the field, time with local guides, or a combination of both.
Get in touch
Use the links below to email, phone, or WhatsApp us with your initial ideas. We will work with you step by step until your expedition reflects the blend of enquiry, discovery, and place that you have in mind.