Damaraland

Damaraland is open, rocky and almost empty, and it holds populations of desert-adapted elephant and black rhino that range across dry riverbeds rather than inside a fenced park. Twyfelfontein carries one of the largest concentrations of rock engravings in Africa and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Wildlife here is a search rather than a sighting, which is rather the point of coming.

Distances are long and the roads are gravel, so this is a place to have a driver or a high-clearance vehicle. Two nights minimum, three if you want a serious chance at desert elephant. Much of the area is community conservancy land, which means your bed night is the conservation funding.