Kulala Desert Lodge is located on a private reserve with exclusive access into Namib-Naukluft National Park and its spectacular desert scenery, including towering red sand dunes.

Guests at the camp have exclusive access to the 104-square-mile (270-sq-km) Kulala Wilderness Reserve, which was created from land previously used for subsistence goat farming and is now a rehabilitated oasis for desert wildlife. The reserve borders Namib-Naukluft National Park and offers spectacular desert landscapes and some of the region's best wildlife viewing.

The private reserve has its own exclusive-use park gate, so guests avoid the long drive to the normal public-access gate used by the other camps in the area.

Wildlife seen around the camp includes springbok, oryx, bat-eared fox, Cape fox, aardwolf, porcupine, black-backed jackal, ostrich, spotted hyena, and sometimes brown hyena. The endemic dune lark is a bird that is restricted to the sand dunes of the Namib desert, where this species is often one of the few birds present.

Activities offered at Little Kulala include nature drives into the national park to explore the towering red sand dunes (including climbing 'Big Daddy' dune) and the incredibly photogenic Deadvlei, guided walking trails from camp, informative outings to learn about the geology of the region, drives to look for wildlife, and fat-tire pedal biking. Hot-air balloon rides are a great way to see the vastness of the 'sand dune sea'.

Kulala Desert Lodge offers 23 spacious brick and canvas tents under thatching, two of which are double units that are ideal for a family or couple looking for more space. The guests units are built atop wooden platforms and have a veranda with views of the dunes and a small roof-top deck for optional sleeping under the stars.

The camp's main area includes an open living space with lounge, dining, and bar areas, as well as an outdoor deck that often used for dining, relaxing, and enjoying the views. A flood-lit waterhole in front of the camp often attracts wildlife. There is also a pool with partially-shaded deck and loungers.

The camp is well suited for self-drivers, families, large groups, or couples and offers an excellent value.

Wilderness Safaris are one of Africa's leading safari operators and they strive to minimize energy consumption at all their camps. Kulala Desert Lodge uses a combination of solar  and generator power. Purified drinking water (through reverse osmosis) is supplied. Strict eco-friendly environmental standards are maintained so that no harmful chemicals or waste is allowed to enter the ecosystem of this untouched wilderness.

In the ancient Namib Desert, rainfall is rare and never certain. In a typical year, the Sossusvlei area receives around 3.9 inches (100 mm) of rain or less. More often than not, rain storms leave as quickly as they arrive.

In January 2021, the area received unusually significant rainfall, with the onset of the year bringing an unexpected delight for all who were lucky enough to experience it. Guests and staff immersed themselves in the life-giving rains that brought a rare freshness to the normally dry desert land.

Watch the video below for a look at this special event.

About the Namib Desert

The Namib Desert is between 55-80 million years old and stretches along the western coast of Southern Africa from southern Angola, through all of Namibia and into northern South Africa, a distance of more than 1 200 miles (2 000 kms). The Namib is the only true desert in Southern Africa, averaging less than 1 inch of rain per year throughout most of its range.

The sand sea of wind-swept dunes along Namibia's coast spans a distance of 425 miles (680 kms) from Swakopmund in the north to  Lüderitz in the south and inland for 90 miles (150 kms) in some places, including the Sossusvlei region.

Other than some scattered small settlements and the sparse population of semi-nomadic Himba and Herero people, the Namib is essentially uninhabited by humans. The dune-dominated areas of the Namib are also practically lifeless, with only some arthropods and other small organisms able to survive with almost no water.

Large animals are present in the areas not covered by the sand dunes, including antelopes like springbok and oryx. Other species present on the plains include desert-adapted elephant, Hartmann's mountain zebra, red hartebeest, ostrich, black-backed jackal, lion, brown hyena, meerkat, and some other species.

A large portion of the Namib Desert is protected as nature reserves and national parks, including Skeleton Coast National Park, Dorob National Park, and Namib-Naukluft National Park. Namib-Naukluft is the largest national park in Africa and one of the world's largest, covering an area of 19 215 sq miles (49 768 sq kms) and includes the popular Sossusvlei and Sesriem area, where many of the tourist lodges are located.

About Sossusvlei

Technically, Sossusvlei (also written Sossusvlei Vlei) is one of many small, clay-encrusted pans that only fill with water in rare rain years and are otherwise bone-dry and surrounded by the reddish-orange sand dunes of the sand sea. The name "Sossusvlei" also refers to the rater large region that surrounds the Tsauchab River, the tiny town of Sesriem, all the towering sand dunes, including "Big Daddy" and "Dune 54", and all the pans, including "Dead Vlei".

The Sossusvlei area is characterized by massive sand dunes, open grassy plains, and ephemeral rivers that rarely flow. It is accepted that the massive sand sea of dunes here originated some 3-5 million years ago further south in present-day South Africa's Kalahari Desert. The sands were carried east by the Orange River and were dumped into the Atlantic Ocean, where they were carried north by the ice-cold Benguela Current offshore and deposited on Namibia's coast. Winds then blew the sand inland to form the huge sand sea.

The reddish color of the sand here is due to the high iron content and resulting oxidation. The redder the dune the older it is, whereas the younger dunes are more yellow in color. The dunes in the Sossusvlei region are spectacular to behold, some reaching height of over 1 000 feet (300+ meters) above the plains.

The very popular 'Big Daddy' dune at Deadvlei is about 1 066 ft (325 meters) high. Many of the oldest and tallest dunes around Sossusvlei are stabilized by some vegetation, which obtains moisture from the common morning fog that blows in from the Atlantic Ocean coast. Climbing Big Daddy or any of the other impressive dunes in Sossusvlei offers incredible 36--degree vistas from the top.

The Tsauchab River flows west from the Naukluft Mountains but only on occasion, with several years sometimes passing between flooding and even when it does flow, it rarely reaches all the way to the actual Sossusvlei Vlei pan.

Deadvlei, also located at the terminus of the Tsauchab River, is certainly the most popularly visited of the Sossusvlei pans owing to its amazing appearance with many long-standing skeletons of dead camelthorn trees.

The Tsauchab River used to flow into Deadvlei and eventually, a good number of camel thorn trees grew there, but at some point, the river's course changed and the pan stropped receiving any water, so the trees all died. The dead trees, white crusted pan, and surrounding red dunes makes for some absolutely incredible scenery, so don't miss it!