19 March 2020 Ongava camps closure April - June 2020
To our guests and valued partners,
For many years our business is built on warm hospitality and memorable wildlife experiences which is at odds with social distancing, a key defense in the global efforts to counter the Coronavirus pandemic: °Public health measures can slow the transmission and spread of infectious diseases. These measures can take the form of personal protective, environmental, social distancing, and travel related interventions.” °Social Distancing saved thousands of lives both during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 and, more recently, in Mexico City during the 2009 flu pandemic.”
By being part of the solution, we hope to accelerate the passage of the contagion in order to rapidly recover post-pandemic. In line with the science, Ongava will discontinue hospitality operations up to June 30th, 2020. Remaining bookings will be accommodated up to 31 March. Our Reservations office will be in contact with bookings affected by camp closure commencing April 1st, guests: °are encouraged to select new dates with our no-fee change / no annual rate increase offer through to 31st of December 2021. As per Ongava communication March 16th, 2020 this offer extends universally to all our partner Naturally Namibia properties, including Namib Sky Balloon Safaris, or, °cancel, and be fully refunded.
The sooner we can work together to get this contagion behind us the sooner we can resume normal service. Our focus is on the well-being of our families, our colleagues and our fellow citizens. We apologise in advance for any inconvenience our decision may create for our guests and partners.
Take Care, Rob, Abigail, Stuart and Karin for The Ongava Team
Enjoy peace of mind when booking a Drifters tour. At Drifters, we go to great lengths to ensure the safety and security of our passengers. Southern African countries are typically portrayed to be volatile by nature; however Drifters still continues to run successful tours to these various parts of Africa with great success, ensuring our passengers the peace of mind that we will always have their best interest and safety at heart. Added to this, in 2019, Drifters, embarked on a program of a Guides driver assessment and training in order to benchmark and enhance our in-house training. The main aim of the program is to assist guides in Driver safety and awareness whilst on the road, in an effort to keep up to date with the latest safety techniques. This exercise has assisted the guides in enhancing their driving skills and building their confidence when behind the wheel and also played a major part in ensuring guest safety and overall experience. Currently all of the guides permanently employed by Drifters have completed the driver assessment and training program as well as a Basic First Aid course. Drifters also have a 24 hour emergency crisis call line that is displayed in each truck, highlighting the protocol for an emergency, whatever the nature. Drifters boast an impeccable track record since its inception, making Drifters your number 1 choice when choosing your overland travel partner in Africa.
#Кейптаун #ЮжнаяАфрика #Dronesberg #SouthAfrica #Haarlem Haarlem wreck discovery, Table Bay, Cape Town, South Africa Раскопки корабля Гарлем на пляже Блауберг в Кейптауне, Южная Африка
18 March 2020 Dear Valued Partners and Friends of MalaMala
We regret to advise you that MalaMala Game Reserve has decided to close its camps in an effort to join the global fight against the spread of COVID-19. This is not a decision we have taken lightly but we believe it is the socially responsible and ethically prudent approach to safeguard the health and wellbeing of our guests and staff. The global trend is towards social distancing, self-isolation and the cancellation of non-essential travel and we don’t believe MalaMala should be any different. MalaMala Camp and Sable Camp will close with immediate effect while Rattray’s Camp will close from 26 March 2020. The delayed closure of Rattray's Camp is to accommodate guests already travelling in South Africa that may not have alternative accommodation. Should those guests decide to change their travel plans, Rattray's Camp will close sooner. All three camps will re-open on 1 May 2020 but we appreciate this is a fluid and uncertain environment and this date may change. To date, the vast majority of our guests have decided to postpone their travels, rather than cancel, and we would encourage others to follow suit. Our reservations team is handling each booking on an individual basis and we will do everything humanly possible to accommodate amended bookings. Finally, these are unprecedented and challenging times for everyone concerned and our thoughts are with all of you who have been affected by this crisis.
Thank you for your patience, understanding and support. Best wishes, The MalaMala Team
Sun Destinations South Africa Camp Closures Coronavirus COVID-19 chronicles Hi, Following the announcement of a lock down in South Africa starting this Thursday and in line with public health advice, our South African camps have taken the decision to temporarily close with immediate effect. All the camps intend to reopen on 1 May 2020 provided that it is safe to do so. Our reservations team will be in touch with bookings travelling in March and April 2020.
We would really encourage you to push for postponements. You can postpone without having new dates and please note our updated terms further below. Postponing will assist in alleviating pressures on all of us as we try to preserve every reservation we have. The camps, yours and ours, number one priority is to protect staff and livelihoods and postponing as opposed to cancelling helps us all.
UPDATED TERMS and CONDITIONS
With the rapidly escalating travel bans we have revised our policies as follows:
Bookings travelling within the next 60 days.
We would encourage all guests booked to travel within 60 days and unable to travel due to travel bans to consider postponing their booking to a later date. °We would encourage guests to postpone their booking to travel on or before 01 May 2021 at no extra cost. °Should guests rebook to travel on or before 01 May 2021 and wish to make further changes to travel dates, this would be accommodated subject to availability. °Should guests not wish to travel on or before 01 May 2021, we will extend postponement to 31 December 2021, subject to a 2021 rates. °Should clients wish to cancel for travel within the next 60 days then standard cancellation policies will apply.
Bookings travelling more than 60 days out
Considering how quickly things are changing on a daily basis as regards COVID-19, we would encourage guests to delay any decisions to cancel or postpone these bookings at this stage.
For bookings travelling more than 60 day out, our standard terms and conditions still apply. HOWEVER we are always willing to be flexible should you have any issues in applying the standard terms and conditions to guests bookings. We are happy to work on a case by case basis. Just as the pandemic is not the guests fault, neither it is the camps, or Sun Destinations or our valued agents and some reasonability needs to applied to all cancelled bookings.
REFUNDS
Please may I ask that there is some patience shown as regards refunds. Just as I am sure you all inundated with cancellations and refunds, there are only so many emails one can get through in a day. Ensuring that all refunds are processed correctly will take some time.
Here is hoping that by the 16th April 2020 we will all have a clearer idea of where this nightmare is going, and I just want to wish everyone the best. Our industry is the not only one affected and I hope that we can all somehow emerge on the other side safe and sound and livelihoods intact.
Thank you for supporting the camps, it is very much appreciated, and the camps look forward to welcoming guests again in the future.
The unique Chundukwa Package includes the following: - Livingstone Airport return transfers - 1 x Sunset Cruise - with sundowner snacks and drinks - Falls Day Trip - Guests' bespoke day out with personal guide and vehicle - All meals at the lodge - House wine, beer and soft drinks - Wifi in Lounge - Laundry services - Vat and Tourism Levy Excludes: Vic Falls entry fee of $20pp, premium drinks, additional optional activities and transfers.
STAYS OF 3 DAYS AND MORE: Choose 1 activity per day from day 3 onwards - Tracking the White Rhino in Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park (2-3 hour walking safari) – min age 12 yrs - Sunrise or sunset cruise - Visit to a local village and community preschool - River picnic - Drop off/pick up from Livingstone or the Falls - Horse ride (hour and a half) - Guided wilderness walk on our property - Guided mountain bike ride on our property - Fishing in our dams with a guide - for kids - For our younger visitors: a visit to our stable yard to meet the horses, donkeys and other animals, and feed them carrots. Kids can also be led out on horse-back for half an hour with our groom.
Did you know Chundukwa's stable yard has more than 30 horses, just a 3 minute walk from the lodge. Guests are welcome to ride - or simply stretch their legs and wander over to the stables and explore the farmyard.
KAZA Univisa A reminder to advise your clients to request a KAZA Univisa, when purchasing their visas on arrival into Zambia.
This visa will allow visitors into Zimbabwe with no need for a separate visa, and also allows them back into Zambia after a visit to either Botswana (for Chobe National Park) or Zimbabwe (if they wish to see the Falls from both sides), without additional visa costs on their return to Zambia.
Baines Camp Overlooking the Boro
River and a permanent lagoon teeming with wildlife, Baines' Camp, sister to
the renowned Stanley's Camp, is a new and exclusive lodge tucked into the
remote wilderness of the Okavango Delta. Named after the 19th century explorer
and artist whose work is displayed throughout the camp, Baines' lies in a
private concession bordering the Moremi Reserve and offers guests excellent
and varied game viewing from land, water and sky.
At Ndhovu Safari Lodge we are blessed to offer guests an island experience, as the water rises and form an estuary right around the lodge. The reception has been moved to higher ground before the entrance to the lodge and 24 hour security is provided for vehicles parked at the new reception area, while guests and their luggage are transferred across to the lodge by boat at no additional cost.
Campsites are blocked off for the month of March, April and May, and will only open again when water level subsides starting 1st of June 2020 or earlier.
Furthermore, Ndhovu Safari Lodge is excited to reintroduce the Morning Village Walk, starting right after breakfast and last for 2 hours. At present all activities will still be available as normal.
Kunene River Lodge It is that time of the year where the water from southern Angola flows down into our rivers and provides us with the much needed water in Namibia. Although a huge blessing, with it comes certain challenges that we have managed to overcome over the past few years.
At Kunene River Lodge, we have seen our first challenge with all 4 sluices of the Dam opening which resulted in flood of the entire property. In the past 2 weeks we have managed to get almost everything up and running but are tormented with rumors of sluices opening again.
As most bookings have been cancelled until mid March 2020, we are opening the Bar, restaurant, campsites as well as the A-Frame bungalows from Friday the 13th of March 2020. The Deluxe rooms will not be available for occupancy until the start of May 2020.
Garub Railway Station, located in the south of Namibia, a popular sighting spot for wild horses of the Namib was vandalised by group of self-drivers recently. Garub not listed as an official heritage site, however it is protected under the National Heritage Act because it is in a conservation area, the Namib-Naukluft Park, which includes part of the desert.
Holidaying vandals who posted film of themselves spray painting graffiti from Cape Town to northern Namibia on Instagram have allegedly been identified and shamed following some thorough investigation by locals. The defacing of a colonial-era railway station in the world’s oldest desert so incensed Nrupesh Soni, 37, that he set about tracking down the culprits via their social media. By matching the tags daubed on the abandoned Garub station, in the Namib-Naukluft Park in south-western Namibia, to hashtags and check-ins on Instagram, he claims to have uncovered the gang’s trail. After Mr Soni, a travel consultant, posted his detective work on Facebook last week, word soon spread and reported sightings of the visitors and evidence of their alleged activity began flooding in. Hospitality Association of Namibia stressed that Namibians should take a stand against vandalism to show they care for the environment and the country's heritage. The main body representing the hospitality industry in Namibia is appalled at the disrespect shown by foreign tourists who sprayed graffiti on one of the country's historic buildings,The Namibian newspaper reports.
Level Two response to the novel Coronavirus COVID-19
The Naturally Namibia Level Two response is implemented where the key source market countries and / or Namibia is subject to Government travel restriction. For Level Two, the Naturally Namibia Partners have resolved as follows:
1.Hygiene standards That each of our lodges, properties, offices and related services operate to the highest hygiene standards as communicated by The World Health Organisation (WHO) Technical Guidelines.
a.The health and safety of our guests, colleagues, families and members of staff are our priority. Adjustments to staff and guest interaction are in place including no direct contact and maintaining between 1 and 2 meters social distance.
a.That our Operations are flexible and prepared for all eventualities including isolation.
a.We will endeavour to maintain the extremely high standards that our businesses offer to our guests but under these very difficult circumstances we ask that our tourism partners and guests be understanding that our operations may be compromised marginally.
1.Boosted Flexibility: Group Substitution As previously communicated, per Level One, cancellation fee would be waived if a reservation was moved to a new date within 12 months. This flexibility is available up to 14 days prior to arrival. Any rate variation for bookings moved to 2021 would be for the Guest account. This ‘no cancellation fee option to change date’ policy is now expanded in the following manner:
a.The increased flexibility allows change of travel dates be selected up to 31 December 2021. The Group has resolved to honour 2020 rates for confirmed bookings that are moved up to the travel date of 31 December 2021.
a.The boosted Naturally Namibia flexibility for a ‘no cancellation fee option to change date’ can now be placed with any Naturally Namibia property including Namib Sky Hot Air Balloon Safaris. Where the preferred new dates are not available at the original property, the new booking dates can be substituted at any other Naturally Namibia property and qualify for cancellation penalty waiver. This provides Agents and guests greatly increased options to arrange their new itineraries with the Group’s 216 Guest Rooms and Namib Sky Balloon Safaris.
a.Notes: For bookings that are moved to another property, the substitute property’s rates, and terms & conditions apply. Once the Guest has checked in to the substitute property then the original property will waive the cancellation fee.
i. Accounts Holders: Applicable Cancellation Fees will be billed in line with existing cancellation policies to the rebooked booking as per above in point 2) a. and b. ii. Pre-Paid Bookings: We offer the option to travel the rebooked booking until 31 December 2021. If the new booking date has not been received within 2 months of the cancellation date, the difference between the fully paid booking and cancellation fee in line with existing cancellation policies will be refunded the operator or client. As the owners of properties and safari service providers we share your concerns in this difficult time and will endeavour to work with you and your guests in managing the situation as it unfolds. Please feel free to contact myself or any of the Partners for all your questions.
This interim Coronavirus cancellation policy and Level Two rate negotiation will be reviewed at any time to our discretion. This interim cancellation policy and Level Two rate negotiation will fall away once the situation returned to normal business practices, therefore standard terms & conditions, and rates will apply.
This Level 2 Coronavirus cancellation policy will remain in place for as long as Government travel bans are in place.
Video Himba Namibia People of Namibia: http://www.namibweb.com/people.html Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/himba.group Namibia Himba people singing & dancing/Намибия: танцы и пение племени Химба Himba, the ancient tribe of semi-nomadic pastoralists occupied Damaraland and Kaokoland of Kunene Region of the country. The Himbas (who are relatives of Herero) are an extraordinary people who have resisted change and preserved their unique cultural heritage. The Himbas were impoverished by Nama cattle raiders in the middle of 1800's and then forced to be hunter-gatherers. Because of these events they were called the Tjimba, derived form the word meaning aardvark, the animal that digs for it's food. Many Himbas fled to Angola where they were called Ovahimba, meaning "beggars". They left with their leader called Vita ("war"). After World War One he resettled his people in Kaokoland. Since these events the Himbas were living their nomadic pastoralist lives. But now more and more they have to reconcile traditional ways with European values. One of most interesting rituals of these people is that of the ritual fire, the "okoruwo". The fire provides contact between the living and the dead, which is necessary for harmonious living and keeping the ancestors happy. It is kept alive until the death of the headman. When this happens, his hut and the fire is destroyed. His family dance in mourning throughout the night. Before his burial everyone says to him: "Karepo nawa" ("keep well"). Later a fresh mopane tree is lit from the embers of the old fire. Video Himba Namibia:
The Mont d'Or Swartberg Hotel is tucked away in the heart of Prince Albert, a small town with big character in South Africa. The hotel is a national monument with over 150 years of fascinating history cloaked by the expansive natural beauty of Great Karoo.
Offering comfort, warm rural hospitality and delicious local fare, this slice of Karoo life has everything - from G&T on tap at the Green Prince Gin Bar, to a luxurious spa, to a glass-smooth pool for those heat-hazed summer afternoons.
Choose from standard rooms with either three-quarter or double beds, three large luxury rooms with a king size bed and private balcony or super-sized bathroom and a selection of two-bedroomed garden cottages, one of which is self-catering.
Prince Albert is a quirky town with plenty of local history to explore in the form of art galleries, museums and viewpoints. A highlight is taking the hotel's Unimog - a large high clearance jeep that takes 4 passengers - up the Swartberg Pass, where you'll stop frequently to enjoy the panoramic views and end off with a scrumptious champagne breakfast.
FEATURES & FACILITIES Spa Gym | Swimming Pool (Salt Water) Historical Walks | Trail Running Farm tours Secure Parking Behind Remote Gate Night Security Mountain views | Spectacular Scenery Guest Lounge | TV Lounge Bar | Free WI-FI throughout Credit cards accepted: American Express, MasterCard, Visa Conference venue Up to 25 people Health and beauty treatments
Namibia is safe coronavirus-free heaven According to Namibia's health minister Kalumbi Shangula no cases of coronavirus COVID-19 have been confirmed up to now. Shangula said Republic of Namibia is well prepared to any possible scenario. All 14 regions have participated in the training for Covid-19 preparedness and the training was done with collaborative efforts from other stakeholders for trainers to be deployed to train the health workers. Personal protective equipment was also dispatched to the regions and the emergency operations centre is ready and operational. A toll-free number, 0800 100100, has been set up.
Bushlife Safaris - Camp Refresh for Vundu Camp & Little Vundu in Mana Pools, Zimbabwe
In preparation for the new season Bushlife Safaris’ Vundu Camp and Little Vundu will benefit from a camp refresh and soft refurbishment.
Vundu Camp will be adding another 6-seater game drive vehicle (3 rows of 2 seats) and a soft refurbishment to the camp and its 8 chalets is planned.
Little Vundu’s camp refresh will consist of improvements to the main area such as a soft refurbishment, new flooring and bar refrigeration. For increased guest comfort, thatched roofs will be added to the 5 tents together with improvements to their en-suite bathrooms.
Camp Kwando Bush Camp Nestled on an island in the flood plains of the Kwando River amidst palms and lush large trees.
Location Driving on the Trans Caprivi Highway (road B8) between Rundu and Kongola, turn south about 5 kilometres before Kongola, turn-off is signposted. Accommodation Camp Kwando Bush Camp offers four private camp sites in this lush tropical paradise with each their own braai (barbecue) facilities under thatched roof. Each camping site also has electricity (generator times), their own ablution, toilets and hot and cold running water for showers. Firewood is available for purchase at the campsite.
Activities Fishing, self-guided nature trails, self-drive game drives. Facilities Deck overlooking the Kwando River.
