Etosha was Namibia’s first conservation area and covers a massive 22,270 km². It is packed with large mammals including elephant, lion, leopard, rhino, giraffe and zebra. Wildlife viewing is excellent – the salt pans offers flat, uninterrupted horizons with sparse vegetation making animal spotting much easier. With 114 different animal species and over 300 bird species there is a lot to spot! There are particularly good viewing points for children as the lodges or camps are usually based around floodlit waterholes. This means you can enjoy watching a pride of lion lap at the water right from your chalet.

At Etosha you can combine guided game drives organised by your lodge with self-drive excursions where you choose your route. There are also private reserves bordering the park. These include Epacha and Onguma, where you can take sundowner and nocturnal safaris. There can be nothing more spine-tingling than catching the glint of a leopard’s eye in your guide’s searchlight!

For some of the most astonishing desert scenery you will ever see, head to the Namib-Nakluft National Park. Here you will discover Namibia’s vast sand sea at Sossusvlei. Ochre sand dunes rise to a soaring 320m and change a kaleidoscope of different hues between sunset and sunrise. This is the perfect place for children to run wild. They can clamber up dunes to look out over this vast desert moonscape. Then race, swoop and roll back down to the valley floor! Try and spot the tip of a snake peeking out from under the sand; follow a desert chameleon across the dunes; witness oryx, mountain zebra and springbok sheltering from the sweltering heat underneath age-old camelthorn trees.

The park is a budding young photographer’s dream. Hand the camera over and let the children snap away. As well as the soaring sand dunes, there are the vleis (white clay pans) which contrast sharply against the red sand and vast blue sky. And amidst all this arid scenery is Sesriem Canyon, a dramatic gorge that is one of the few places in the park that has water all year round.

With palm-lined streets, charming colonial architecture and seaside promenades, Swakopmund is Namibia’s most popular holiday destination. It is also its adventure capital. There are a huge range of activities from sand boarding and quad-biking to skydiving and camel riding.

Explore the local dunes between here and the Atlantic Coast – spot geckos, scorpions, snakes and skunks on a panoramic drive. Head to Walvis Bay where you can cruise or kayak to Pelican Point accompanied by dolphins and seals (and whales between June and November). Pelicans swoop over flocks of resident flamingos.

From here you can head north along the Skeleton Coast. Eerie, desolate, unforgiving – not usually descriptions associated with holiday attractions. However if dramatic coastal scenery, abandoned shipwrecks, bleached whalebones and isolated lighthouses appeals then the wild Atlantic coastline of Namibia is for you.

Okonjima is the perfect place to break the journey between Etosha and Windhoek. It is home to the AfriCat Foundation. This is a family-run concern whose main focus is conservation through education, researching carnivores and rehabilitating captive cheetah. Here children (over 3yrs) will learn firsthand about human-wildlife conflict issues in a fun and informative way. Take a guided drive in search of leopard, track hyena and snap that perfect cheetah shot!

If you are looking for huge, untamed and ruggedly beautiful landscapes then Damaraland and the Erongo Mountains fit the bill. Here spectacular sunsets bathe the desert and mountains in a fantastic red light. This provides an incredible backdrop to herds of endangered desert-adapted elephants.

Take a guided excursion through the Boulder Forest where you can hunt for aquamarines as past miners once did. View the ancient rock paintings at Twyfelfontein or hike Brandberg Mountain (Namibia’s highest). You can also climb Spitzkoppe for views over the spectacular natural formations such as the ‘Organ Pipes’ and Petrified Forest.

Think big – almost the biggest actually. There are too many superlatives attributed to Fish River Canyon but we do know that it is 160 km long and over 500m deep – and absolutely stunning. It lies in the south of the country and is an incredible hiking spot for older families in the cooler months from May-September. Spend 2-5 days trekking down into and along the canyon in the company of baboon, zebra, black eagles and ostrich. Quiver trees and cacti line the route and natural pools offer the chance for a refreshing dip. Camp overnight in spectacular locations and enjoy a stargazing feast. Think the Grand Canyon without the crowds…

Windhoek is usually a necessary overnight stop either on arrival or pre-departure. It’s a pleasant city, situated in the central highlands and spread over a series of hills and valleys. Colonial buildings in pastel hues sit cheek by jowl with gleaming office blocks. There are cosmopolitan pavement cafes spilling out into the street and roadside stalls selling colourful curios and wooden carvings.

The Kalahari Desert is a stunning inland ‘sea of sand’ that is shared between Namibia, Botswana and South Africa. It is every child’s idea of a typical desert with red sand plains dotted with isolated acacia trees. The area is home to wide ranging wildlife including gemsbok, impala, jackal and cheetah. Game drives offer panoramic views across the Kalahari dunes or you can head off on your own along the many hiking trails in search of springbok, zebra and wildebeest.

It is also the last bastion of the San people who still follow a traditional lifestyle in remote pockets of desert. Time spent amongst these communities is extremely worthwhile. You will be shown how to collect wild food, track game and participate in music and dance.

In between Etosha and Windhoek lies another great hiking location and a wonderful contrast to the desert scenery surrounding it. The Waterberg Plateau is a unique flat-topped plateau where the sandstone has been eroded into amazing formations. Surprisingly lush, there are some fantastic walking trails through the ravines and grasslands. White rhino, giraffe and leopard lurk amongst the evergreen woodland whilst Cape vulture, peregrine falcon and hawk eagle rule the sky.