Category: News

 

Windhoek, 19 October 2022 – Namibia Wildlife Resorts is pleased to announce that the Okaukuejo waterhole live streaming camera is now available on Wild Earths DStv channel 183.

 

This initiative complements the already viral NWR Live YouTube channel launched in April, with viewership reaching as high as 1000 wildlife enthusiasts per day.

 

To enhance customer experience, NWR partnered with Wild Earth to allow for the viewing of waterhole action footage as it unfolds at the most famous waterhole in Namibia, reaching an audience of about 5 million people globally every month. This is an excellent marketing platform for Namibia Tourism.

 

This initiative is a first for Namibia, whereby a live stream camera showcases the wildlife that Namibia offers, complemented with expert commentary from trained naturalists.

 

Using a combination of LIVE broadcasting, expert naturalists, interactivity, community and a point-of-view shooting style, partnering up with Wild Earth will help millions of viewers feel remotely present in nature without increasing their footprint.

 

Viewers return again and again to these LIVE broadcasts from the exact locations. This experience excites NWR as an organisation as it will make wildlife enthusiasts curious to the point where they want to travel to Etosha National Park in particular and Namibia in general.

 

The live waterhole stream broadcasts on the flagship SafariLIVE sunrise for three hours in the morning and SafariLIVE sunset for four hours in the afternoon. SafariLIVE sunrise is available from 6.30 am to 9.30 am CAT, and SafariLIVE sunset is open from 2.30 pm to 6.30 pm CAT.

 

This show discusses the Okaukuejo Waterhole with an expert guide. On the live stream, viewers can watch the wildlife at the Okaukuejo Resort waterhole throughout the day on NWR’s Youtube page.

 

Windhoek, 21 August 2022 – As Namibia’s leading public tourism service provider, Namibia Wildlife Resorts Limited is concerned with the increase in robberies, targeting our tourists in and around Windhoek in particular, and the rest of Namibia in general.

 

Having come from a difficult 2 years, of the Covid-19 pandemic, current tourism arrivals data point to the recovery of the tourism industry and a return to pre-Covid numbers. Throngs of tourists can be seen in some of our popular destinations such as the Etosha National Park and Sossusvlei. Demands for vehicle rentals are astronomical, showing great interest in self-drive tourism. Local guides will testify that there is a great interest in tourists wanting to visit areas such as Katutura and Single Quarters to experience the “Windhoek Life”.

 

With the rise in robbery and theft cases, however, our fear as a tourism company is the negative publicity that these incidences of robbery and pick-pocketing are bringing to our beautiful country. Tourists love experience, and experience would mean engaging with the locals, going out for sundowners, jogging, and strolling through town and all of its wonderful attractions without fear of harassment. Reports of robberies and theft are negative and will only prevent many tourists from coming to our country, thus, in the final analysis hurting employment in the country and the economy.

 

NWR would thus like to appeal to all responsible parties, including law enforcement agencies, and all town and regional tourism officers to put up strong measures that create a safe environment for our tourists.

 

We also appeal to every citizen of Namibia to create a safe environment for our tourists and to be ambassadors of our great country.

 

Windhoek, 8 August 2022 – Namibia Wildlife Resorts Limited (NWR) recently unveiled the newly renovated lighthouse at Shark Island on the banks of the Atlantic Ocean.

Shark Island, a historical site found in Luderitz town and a popular camping spot, was last closed in 2020 to give it a “newer” and “fresher” look.

 

The lighthouse’ rooms and exterior have been completely renovated with its interior décor done by Namibia’s renowned interior designer Olive Rose interiors, bringing taste and tranquil naturals to both the two rooms and the kitchen. The lighthouse has a self-catering kitchen with
cutlery and plates, a kettle, and a fridge, as well as a TV in the sitting room.

 

A one-night stay at Shark Island will cost N$ 1000.00 per person and is self-catering. The view to the top of the lighthouse remains open, where guests can experience panoramic views that stretch over the horizon while spotting seals and pelicans that frequently appear around the site’s rocky areas.

 

 

 

• NWR announces improvements in its 2021 financial performance.
• Announces dawn of new strategy through innovative ideas and new
  customer experiences.
• Shareholder expresses appreciation to the NWR board for setting an
  example by being selfless in cutting board fees

 

Windhoek, 18 May 2022 – Namibia Wildlife Resorts Limited (NWR) announced improvements in its financial performance at the recently concluded Annual General Meeting (AGM) that took place on 17 May 2022 in Windhoek.

While announcing the importance of compliance with the Public Enterprise Act 2019 (Act 1 of 2019), through timely production of Annual reports and the publishing of Annual Audited Financial Statements, the Managing Director of the Namibia Wildlife Resorts, Dr. Matthias Ngwangwama announced that the Namibia Wildlife Resorts reduced its losses from N$ 174 million in the year 2020 to N$ 97 million in the financial year 2021, an improvement of 44% or N$ 77 million.

“We have devised a strategy that will allow us to return to profitability. The strategy involves moving beyond just providing facilities. The launch of our NWR camera at the waterhole has created a huge interest in our resorts. We hope with the new innovative ideas and customer experience initiatives that we aim to implement, such as enhanced digital and online presence, group packages for families and runners’ clubs, and other planned activities at our resorts, will enable us to increase our occupancies and enable us to make greater revenue than currently” Dr. Ngwangwama said.

 

The improved performance is attributed to, amongst others, the reduction in staff complement through voluntary separation exercise and having the senior management and board members to take a 25% cut on their salaries and board fees respectively.

 

“From a cost-cutting perspective, we continued to implement various cost-cutting measures in 2021, including a reduction in employee costs through voluntary separation. I am in no doubt that the company is now in a position of generating a larger profit than that recorded in 2019” said Ms. Janet Wilson- Moore, Vice-Chairperson of the NWR Board.

 

On the same occasion, the Deputy Minister of Finance, Honourable Maureen Hinda-Mbuende expressed her appreciation to the NWR board for setting an example by being selfless in cutting their board fees and for seeing through their two three-year terms which comes an end in June 2022.

 

 

 

Windhoek, 23 April 2022 – Over 300 runners braved the cold weather of Windhoek to take part in the inaugural NWR Bi-Annual marathon.

 

The race, which aims to become one of the country’s largest marathons, had both elite and social runners from all walks of life testing their lungs against the elements. Good times were recorded on the day, with the winner for the 21 Kilometer race coming in at 1 hour 34 minutes, that is Ms. Helena Iipinge. For the Male category, Mr. David Salomo won the 21.1 Kilometers with a time of 1 hour and 15.

 

The 10 Kilometers race was won by Yvonne Shelikita and the male category by Kudumo Mbathera.

 

After the race, the Managing Director of NWR, Mr. Matthias Ngwangwama, expressed his joy in seeing the participants’ huge turnout. “When we started with this initiative, we aimed to work on customer experience. I am glad this is the route we are taking and that we can eventually see more of this,” he said.

 

All the runners got medals for their participation, while all category winners got vouchers for the value of N$80 000.

 

• Fish river canyon hiking season starts
• Route markings to be done by NWR and METF as from 12 April

 

Windhoek, 3 March 2022 – Namibia Wildlife Resorts in conjunction with the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism will embark on a route marking and route inspection exercise in the Fish River Canyon from 12 to 17 April 2022 in anticipation of the start to the famous Fish River Canyon hike.

 

This joint effort between the two institutions marks the beginning of the Fish River hiking season that will see throngs of tourists undertake the 4-5 day guided or unguided hike into the canyon with a total hiking distance of about 86 kilometres.

 

Route inspections in the canyon will make navigation easier for tourists and nature lovers as well as to make sure that the canyon is fit for hiking. Since the rainy season came to an end, one was not really able to determine the amount of water that has flown into the canyon. Inspections will allow NWR to advice tourists on the safest routes and the depth of the pools within the canyon.

 

The hiking season runs from 1 May to 15 September every year and for this year alone, the hiking list is already full. This year we expect more then 4000 tourists to descend in to the canyon.

 

About the Fish River Canyon

 

The Fish River Canyon is the second largest canyon worldwide after the Grand Canyon in the USA. The Canyon forms part of the state-run Ais-Ais Richtersveld Transfontier Park.

 

The Fish River is 800 kilometres long and thus the longest river of Namibia. It has its source in the eastern parts of the Naukluft Mountains.

 

After being retained the Fish River does not carry water continuously, only during the rainy season the river might turns into a torrent. During the dry season sporadic pools supply water to many animals.

 

• NWR launches camera in the Etosha National Park

 

Windhoek, 3 March 2022 – The Namibia Wildlife Resorts on 3 March 2022 launched a 24/7 live webcam at the Okaukuejo Resort water hole within the Etosha National Park in what is termed “virtual tourism”.

 

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The camera that is found at one of the busiest waterholes in the Park aims to allow Namibians and the world at large to experience nature and wildlife within the comfort of their homes by viewing and experiencing first-hand animals within their natural habitat.

 

Virtual tourism presents viewers with an immersive experience of an activity, location, or destination through the use of video technology format to provide an experience of a destination that a user cannot get through images or a website alone.

 

Viewers can access virtual tourism content using a virtual reality headset for the most immersive experience, but they can also usually view the content on a normal computer or even a mobile device through the NWR social media page on Youtube, of course, at no extra cost.

 

The benefit of this innovation is that viewers can see and experience a destination without traveling to it, which means they aren’t limited by available flights, travel logistics, safety concerns, and whether destinations are open.

 

The other huge benefit for viewers is cost. Virtual tourism makes destinations accessible to millions of people who may otherwise not be able to afford to travel to them. Other water holes within the park will be covered soon.

 

 

• NWR condemns the behaviour of a group of tourists in Sossusvlei.
• Calls for responsible tourism from all visitors in our country.

 

Windhoek, 18 February 2022– The Namibia Wildlife Resorts on the 17^th of February 2022, took notice of images circulating on social media, of tourists posing on top of the “dead trees” in the Deadvlei, a tourist destination within the Sossusvlei.

 

The dead camelthorn trees, also known as the Vachellia Erioloba, found in the Deadvlei are known to be over 900 years old and were formed by a change in climate after the dunes encroached the pan, preventing water from reaching the area where the trees are found. Decomposition of this nature’s wonder was however not possible because of its dry climate.

 

Seeing tourists climb these rather symbolic trees is not only despicable, but it goes against the notion of Responsible Tourism. It is required that operators, hoteliers, government, locals and tourists take responsibility and take action to make tourism more sustainable.

 

With this said, NWR would like to, in its strongest terms condemn the irresponsible behaviour of this group of tourists that decided that not only is it enough to pose near these trees but rather a good idea to climb on them and take pictures.

 

Namibia’s beauty is characterised by its well maintained and respected tourism sites. Seeing individuals destroy it through unbecoming behaviours spells what we as Namibians stand against as a tourist destination.

 

We urge all visitors to our tourism sites to please respect all park rules and not to take action that will end up wiping away our beautiful artefacts.

 

• NWR Appoints staff to mitigate complaints and enhance quality of service across all of our resorts.

 

Windhoek, 19 January 2022 – With a growing number of concerns from the public on the quality of service and food at our resorts across the country, the Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) has appointed a staff member, Mr. Karl-Reinhold Risser, to assist with food and beverage menu, customer service training and the enhancement of customer experience at all of the companies resorts.

 

NWR has always pride itself in offering good quality service to its customers. However, the company took notice of an increase in customer complaints across all its lodges. These complaints range from food quality to service delivery amongst others.

 

Dr Matthias Ngwangwama, NWR Managing Director, showed his excitement in welcoming Mr. Risser to the team. “Since we welcomed Mr. Risser to NWR, we have already seen a change in quality of service at Gross Barmen resort, one of our busiest places. Our plan right now is to move him across all of our resorts so that he can assist our resort staff in implementing new ideas and strategies and capacity development”.

 

Mr. Risser has been in the hotel and tourism industry for most of his working career and has worked for several high-profile hospitality companies, both locally and internationally.

 

Globally, Mr. Risser worked at some notable hotels in Frankfurt and Germany such as Hotel Gravenbruch and Atlantic Hotel in Hamburg. He has been employed at the NWR since December 2021.

 

His specific assignment at NWR includes assisting in costs management, customer relationship management and the enhancement of the food and beverage experience. Some notable accolades locally includes having worked at Gocheganas Nature Reserve and Wellness Village as General Manager and Wolwedans Dessert Academy as trainer. 

 

• NWR gives away three Namleisure cards (Family, Plus & Solo cards) to reward its social media followers.
• Online Namleisure special aimed at appreciating the Namibian nation for sustaining NWR.

 

Windhoek, 5 November 2021 – Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) Limited ran a social media giveaway competition from 15 October 2021 to 28 October 2021 on all its social media pages. Participants had to enter by liking NWR’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages, tagging five friends and sharing the post. The giveaway saw Kaarina Esther Muule win the first prize of a NamLeisure Family card, while Jo-Ann Katamila and Elia Mukundu won a NamLeisure Plus and NamLeisure Solo card, respectively.

 

 

Mrs. Elizabeth Johannes, NWR’S Online Media Officer, says, “the social media giveaway was our way of rewarding our social media followers that have been following us over the years. The giveaway assisted NWR in its continuous effort to promote the brand and raise awareness of our Namleisure cards”. Mrs. Johannes further stated that “the giveaway helped us grow our  network and build an audience that boosted NWR’s social media engagement. Our Instagram gained 900 new followers. While competitions post reached 47 000 people on Facebook and had over 56 000 impressions, Twitter reached 26 000 people and had over 2000 engagements”.

 

 

Dr Matthias Ngwangwama, NWR Managing Director, says that “Namleisure cards are created to encourage the Namibian nation to travel and learn more about their beautiful country. With December approaching, we are currently running an online Namleisure special for Namibians and SADC members. With this special, clients purchasing Namleisure cards online will get a 20% discount on the card. The card offers you 50% off on accommodation, 25% off on meals and activities. With Covid-19 still amidst us, this is a way of thanking the Namibian nation for having sustained us during these difficult times”.