National park
Etosha National Park
Namibia's flagship park: 22,270 km² around a vast salt pan, where elephant, rhino and lion come to waterholes you can self-drive to.
22,903 km² · 4 gates · 3 campsites · Run by Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT); camps run by Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR)
About the park
Etosha is built around a 4,760 km² salt pan that stays dry most of the year, ringed by mopane woodland, grassy plains and, in the west and around Halali, dolomite hills. The draw is the waterholes: in the dry season you park at one and watch elephant, black rhino, lion, giraffe, zebra, springbok and black-faced impala come and go, and the floodlit waterholes at Okaukuejo, Halali and Namutoni keep it going after dark. It is the easiest big-game self-drive in the region, on graded gravel roads a normal car can handle, with NWR camps at Okaukuejo, Halali, Namutoni, Dolomite, Onkoshi and Olifantsrus, plus lodges just outside the gates. Guided day and night drives run from the camps, and you may only get out of your car inside camp fences. Gates and camps open at sunrise and close at sunset, so you must be in a camp or out of the park before dark.
Highlights
- After-dark rhino and elephant at Okaukuejo's floodlit waterhole
- Halali's quieter waterhole among the dolomite hills
- Driving the edge of the pan around Okaukuejo and Namutoni
- Fischer's Pan in the east for birds after rain
- Rhino near Klippan around Dolomite camp in the west
Good to know
- About 22,270 km²; the pan alone is about 4,760 km²
- Graded gravel roads, no 4x4 needed; 60 km/h speed limit
- Stay in your vehicle outside fenced camps
- Five NWR resorts and Olifantsrus campsite; night drives only with NWR
- Four gates: Andersson, Von Lindequist, King Nehale and Galton
Wildlife you may see
- Elephant
- Black rhino
- Lion
- Giraffe
- Plains zebra
- Springbok
- Black-faced impala
- Blue wildebeest
- Gemsbok
- Spotted hyena
- Leopard
- Flamingo (when the pan floods)
Sightings are never guaranteed.
When to go
Open: Gates and camps open at sunrise and close at sunset; times change weekly and are posted at each gate
Best time: May–October for game at waterholes; November–April for birds and green landscapes
Gates
- Andersson GateOpen: Sunrise to sunset (times change weekly and are posted at the gate)Show a passport, licence or ID and fill in the permit form at the gate; fees are paid at Okaukuejo reception, 17 km in. From 1 Apr 2026, per person per 24 h: foreign adults N$280, children 9–15 N$180; SADC N$180/N$100; Namibians N$60, children free; 8 and under free. Plus N$60 per vehicle (up to 10 seats).Be out of the park or inside a camp by sunset; fines apply. Fuel at Okaukuejo has been unreliable through 2025–26: fill up at the Etosha Trading Post just outside the gate, or in Outjo.
- Galton GateOpen: Sunrise to sunset (times change weekly and are posted at the gate)Show a passport, licence or ID. Fees can be paid here; bring cash in N$ or rand, as card payment is not reliable. From 1 Apr 2026, per person per 24 h: foreign adults N$280, children 9–15 N$180; SADC N$180/N$100; Namibians N$60, children free; 8 and under free. Plus N$60 per vehicle (up to 10 seats).There is no fuel in western Etosha, and NWR fuel at Okaukuejo has been unreliable through 2025–26. Fill up in Kamanjab before you enter and plan your range to get out again.
- King Nehale Lya Mpingana GateOpen: Sunrise to sunset (times change weekly and are posted at the gate)Show a passport, licence or ID and get your permit at the gate. From 1 Apr 2026, per person per 24 h: foreign adults N$280, children 9–15 N$180; SADC N$180/N$100; Namibians N$60, children free; 8 and under free. Plus N$60 per vehicle (up to 10 seats).Northern gate, about 106 km from Ondangwa; Etosha King Nehale Lodge is just outside. Fill up in Omuthiya or Oshivelo: NWR fuel at Namutoni, the nearest camp, has been unreliable through 2025–26.
- Von Lindequist GateOpen: Sunrise to sunset (times change weekly and are posted at the gate)Show a passport, licence or ID and get your permit at the gate. From 1 Apr 2026, per person per 24 h: foreign adults N$280, children 9–15 N$180; SADC N$180/N$100; Namibians N$60, children free; 8 and under free. Plus N$60 per vehicle (up to 10 seats).Eastern gate off the B1 near Tsumeb; Namutoni camp is a short drive inside. NWR fuel at Namutoni has been unreliable through 2025–26, so fill up in Tsumeb.
Gate times change with the seasons: check with Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT); camps run by Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) before you travel.
Campsites
- Campsite Halali CampRest camp4.3N$550 pp/night
- Campsite NamutoniCampsite3.9N$550 pp/night
- Campsite Okaukuejo CampCampsite4.1N$560 pp/night
Park fees
| citizen | N$60 per person day |
| regional | N$180 per person day |
| regional (child) | N$100 per person day |
| international | N$280 per person day |
| international (child) | N$180 per person day |
| any (any) | N$60 per vehicle day |
Per 24 hours, paid at the gate or first camp; accommodation separate. Adults 16+, children 9–15; 8 and under free, Namibian children free; vehicle rate is for 10 seats or fewer; 'regional' = SADC nationals.
Places to see
- Okaukuejo Waterholewildlife spotEtosha's floodlit waterhole, where black rhino, elephant and lion come to drink in front of the camp after dark.
- Olifantsbad picnic sitepicnic spotFenced toilet and picnic stop next to the Olifantsbad waterhole, south-west of Halali.
- Picnic stop near Sonderkoppicnic spotToilet and picnic stop in Etosha's far west, near Sonderkop waterhole.
- Picnic stop near Springbokfonteinpicnic spotToilet and picnic stop on the Halali–Namutoni road, near Springbokfontein and Batia waterholes.
- Picnic stop near Sprokieswoudpicnic spotToilet and picnic stop on the western loop, close to the Sprokieswoud moringa forest.
- Thatch Roof picnic stoppicnic spotToilet and picnic stop on the main Halali–Namutoni road, east of the Etosha Lookout turn-off.