NamibRand Nature Reserve

NamibRand is a private reserve of about 200,000 hectares on the eastern edge of the Namib, bordering the national park south of Sossusvlei, formed from former sheep farms whose fences were removed to let gemsbok, springbok and zebra move again. It is a certified dark-sky reserve, one of the darkest places on earth, and stargazing is as much the point as the dunes and mountains. A handful of low-impact lodges and a walking trail run it, and it funds the NaDEET environmental education centre. It is malaria-free and reached by gravel road from Sesriem or Maltahöhe.