Learn traditional bushcraft skills from the Zu’/Hoasi San People at Jack's Camp. (© Jack's Camp)
Engage with the OvaHimba people in northern Namibia. (© Okahirongo Elephant Lodge)
These locations, which you can visit on your safari to Botswana or Namibia, touch the soul and will stay with you for years to come. Here are my most treasured desert retreats where you can find authentic interactions with Southern African cultures and tribes.
An Intimate Encounter with the Zu’/Hoasi San People – Jack’s Camp, Botswana
One of the most transformative aspects of staying at Jack’s Camp in the Makgadikgadi Pans is the opportunity to become immersed in the living heritage of the Zu’/Hoasi San people, who graciously share their profound desert knowledge. The camp is named after Jack Bousfield who came to the Makgadikgadi Pans seeking the vast nothingness, and comprises just ten traditionally furnished tents.
You can spend time with the San people and listen to stories of their origins which can be traced back 30,000 years. Through the initiative with Jack’s Camp, the community works together and shares knowledge with each other and guests, allowing the older generation to pass the knowledge on to the next generation. The hope is that the younger children will then carry the traditions of their ancient culture into the modern world with a sense of pride and personal empowerment. Ralph Bousfield is the most amazing guide for this experience and will reveal this fascinating world to you.
The Zu’/Hoasi offer a glimpse into their semi-traditional lifestyle and a culture that spans millennia. Learn about traditional hunting techniques, crafts, and food-gathering skills – see how the women prepare their meals and sample a variety of their local food. Watch a trance dance (a free-spirited, traditional dance which represents the joyful celebrations of a successful harvest), observe how they make jewellery from ostrich eggs and porcupine quills, and which plants the San use to heal themselves. You’ll also gain insights into the complex political and social challenges they are facing in the 21st century.
From the camp, other fun activities include visiting a family of habituated meerkats, taking quad bike excursions into the heart of the pans, and seeing flamingos and pelicans when water fills the pans in the rainy season.
Explore the Kalahari Desert and Makgadikgadi Pans with members of the San near Jack’s Camp.
Spend time with the women of the Nhoma tribe, learning their beading and food gathering skills.
Meet the OvaHimba tribe of northern Namibia whilst staying at Okahirongo Elephant Lodge.
Take a walk with the hunters of the Nhoma tribe in Namibia and learn how they live and preserve their traditional skills.
Visit the Ju/’hoan San people at Nhoma Camp, Namibia
Nhoma Camp is a tented camp situated near the San village of Nhoq’ma in Namibia. The camp is owned and managed by Arno and Estelle Oosthuysen, who have worked with this community since 1999. The tents all have shade from lovely Zambezi teak trees, and the thatch and poles were bought from the local community who helped build the camp. Members of the community also work in the camp – this is the real reason for staying here, the cultural experience centred on the San people and the village.
The camp and village are within a conservancy which allows the Ju/’hoan San people to hunt for food using their traditional methods and tools. You can join the San as they set off on a hunt, accompanied by a translator. They will show you how they lived in the past and how they utilised the bush for food and medicine. In the afternoon, the entire community participates in traditional games, followed by giraffe or elephant healing dances. If you’re lucky, you may see one of the participants fall into a trance where he or she believes their ancestors are speaking to them.
The village lies just a five-minute walk from the camp. You are invited to visit any time you like – simply sit on the ground and watch the daily goings-on. You’ll find this experience amazing, and even life-changing, if you put your inhibitions aside.
Learn about the enduring culture of the OvaHimba People at Okahirongo Elephant Lodge, Namibia
Overlooking the scenic Hoarusib Riverbed, surrounded by vistas of rugged mountains and sweeping sand dunes in Northern Namibia, is Okahirongo Elephant Lodge. Reopened recently following an extensive refurbishment, the lodge has been designed to harmonise with the otherworldly terrain and features seven exquisite suites, a two-bedroom private villa, and an inviting infinity pool. This boutique lodge offers an extraordinary retreat in Namibia’s wilderness and provides a wonderful opportunity to visit the OvaHimba people.
With origins tracing back to a migration alongside their Herero cousins in the 15th century, the Himba settled in the remote Kaokoland region, adapting to its unforgiving environment. Known for their striking, red-tinged skin, a result of rubbing their bodies with a protective mixture of ochre and animal fat called otjize, the Himba are semi-nomadic pastoralists who revere their cattle as the cornerstone of their livelihood and identity. Their beliefs centre around ancestor worship, with the sacred fire, okoruwo, symbolising a vital link between the living and the spiritual world. This fire, carefully tended by the headman and his wife, embodies the spiritual heartbeat of the Himba community.
Himba traditions are deeply intertwined with their daily lives. From the circular arrangement of huts—where only the headman’s doorway faces the sacred fire—to their complex marital and social structures, every aspect of life is meaningful. Marriages are alliances that spread wealth, with women joining their husbands’ villages, and men often maintaining multiple homesteads. Child-rearing is a shared responsibility, embodying the proverb, ‘it takes a village to raise a child.’ Despite their challenges, the Himba remain a symbol of Namibia’s cultural heritage, offering a rare glimpse into an ancient, yet enduring way of life.
After an enriching day with the Himba tribe, unwind in luxury at either Okahirongo Elephant Lodge or the exclusive Wilderness Serra Cafema, a tranquil desert oasis with just eight private suites in the Kunene Region.
(© Ongula Village Homestead Lodge)
(© Ongula Village Homestead Lodge)
Visit the Ovambo people at Ongula Village Homestead Lodge, Northern Namibia
Ongula Village Homestead Lodge, located north of Etosha National Park, offers more than just a place to rest – it invites guests to connect with Namibia’s ancient cultural heritage. Staying in one of the traditional rondavel-style chalets or rooms, you gain an authentic glimpse into the daily lives of the Ovambo people, experiencing their traditions and stories firsthand. However, Ongula’s mission extends far beyond hospitality, serving as a cornerstone for impactful community initiatives that uplift the region.
Ongula leads transformative projects like the Restoring Girls’ Dignity Project. This initiative provides washable sanitary pads to rural teenage girls, ensuring they can attend school uninterrupted, addressing a critical barrier to education. Equally inspiring is the Skills Up Project: Catch Them Before They Fall, which equips low-income students with pre-vocational training in fields such as tourism, agriculture, and clothing production. By fostering skills and self-reliance, this programme empowers young people to envision brighter futures, even outside traditional education systems. At Ongula, each stay contributes to meaningful change, blending cultural discovery with participating in impactful community initiatives.
