Andersson’s at Ongava is situated in Ongava Game Reserve, which was formed in 1991, when shareholders of Ongava converted four unproductive cattle ranches into a highly productive 30 000-hectare private game reserve that is now a haven to large concentrations of wildlife.
This former farmstead has been tastefully rebuilt to modern-day standards. The old farmhouse forms the main area of Andersson's, with 20 elevated tents radiating outwards into secluded mopane woodlands. Tents are a mix of calcrete stone cladding, canvas and wood, with a small veranda.
A real highlight here is the hide, accessed by tunnel and getting you within a couple of metres of a waterhole offering incredible views of the wildlife, and fantastic for photography! The area features almost all of the characteristic wildlife of the area, with plains game such as springbok, gemsbok, wildebeest, Burchell's zebra, Hartmann's mountain zebra, waterbuck, red hartebeest, giraffe, eland and endemic black-faced impala seen, while Etosha itself has elephant to add to the list. In Etosha, large herds of plains game concentrate around the waterholes in the dry season, making for exciting wildlife viewing. Lion move between the Park and the Reserve and both black and white rhino can be seen. 10 of Namibia’s 14 endemic bird species have been recorded in the 340 species on Ongava.
Ongava is particularly notable for the exceptional reintroduction programmes and community work, a successful black and white rhino project has meant that Ongava have become one of the largest rhino custodians for the Namibian government.