N/a'an ku sê Lodge or, for the non-Khoisan speakers, Naankuse Lodge is the Africa of your dreams, the Africa you’ve travelled half way across the world to experience. And it’s just the other side of customs and immigration. Well not quite, it’s about half an hour.
With maximum feel-good factor thrown in for good measure, Naankuse Lodge is a luxury eco-lodge run as a sustainable venture on a 3,200-hectare wildlife sanctuary. Working with the N/a'an ku sê Bushman foundation, the lodge provides training and employment for Namibia’s, nay the world’s, most ancient people - a people left behind by the march of “progress”, a people whose wisdom and kindness should be a lesson for us all.
Part wildlife orphanage, part game reserve, Naankuse offers walking safaris, big game interaction and bush lore outings with the San guides. Game drives are conducted on the private Zannier Reserve, which has free- roaming cheetah and leopards, a host of plains game big and small, and several rescued predators including caracal, lion, cheetah, baboons and hyenas.
And the accommodation is pretty darn swish, we might add. The villas have all the textures and colours of a typical San village and you could probably fit a whole San village inside them. The chalets are somewhat more discreet but no less comfortable. Built of local stone under local thatch all chalets and villas have air conditioning, en suite bathrooms, luxury beds and plenty of privacy, though, surrounded by a small county of African bush, that won’t be a major concern.
On the modest side, 14 bush camps are found at the activity centre. Basic tented accommodation with an en suite toilet and shower. Rustic with its own restaurant and swimming pool and an opportunity to indulge in the activities on offer by the sanctuary.
Note: The tented bush camp has it's own restaurant and swimming pool. Day room rates on request for day visitors.
This is a 3,200ha non-profit game reserve with free-roaming cheetah, leopard, giraffe, zebra, eland, kudu and more offering numerous activities to take it all in and truly experience the work they do.
There's plenty to choose from. Discover the roots of N/a'ankuse, witnessing the feeding sessions of several carnivores. Go behind the scenes to follow in co-founder, Marlice's footsteps. Then there's the cheetah experience, caracal experience, meerkat experience, sunset horse riding, wilderness drives, nature walks, rhino tracking, elephant tracking, carnivore tracking on the adjacent Zannier Reserve, an 8km safari walk or a K9 experience to discover how the K9 dogs are trained and the training centre.
Activity day centre for day visitors.
Naankuse Primary School, established in 2009 at the Naankuse Sanctuary, offers free education with a curriculum focused on wildlife, conservation, and sustainability. Visitors can tour the school and make donations. The Naankuse Helping Hands Project, based in Windhoek, supports humanitarian efforts with two day care centres and a rehabilitation centre for children with special needs. The Naankuse Lifeline Clinic, located in eastern rural Namibia, serves up to 3,500 patients annually, primarily addressing tuberculosis and malnutrition in San communities through both clinic care and outreach services.
"We loved our experience with NTS"
We loved Namibia and its unique landscapes and kind people. It was certainly an adventure and a privilege to get to spend time there.
"We can't wait to return"
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"We had a wonderful time in Namibia"
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"What a wonderful journey we had in beautiful and friendly Namibia!"
Namibia has stolen our travel-heart and you can consider us as new ambassadors of this spectacular country.