We had a great tour with Ernst, he was fascinating to listen to and he found a surprising range of critters in the dunes. We highly recommend Charley's Desert Tours. They were pleasant to deal with and responsive to our emails.

We were astounded by our guide's ability to find the Tiny 5 of Africa using the most subtle of tracks. This was definitely a "pinch me moment", seeing the Plamato gecko, Sand-diving lizard; Sidewinding Snake and Namaqua Chameleon. We felt like we were in a David Attenborough documentary. These tiny creatures can only be seen with the services of a skilled guide and we felt privileged to witness them. Highly recommended.

The team really works hard to show the little 5 in the desert and share all the knowledge related to the creature. They also take you on a short ride of the sand dunes. The tour highlights the life of the creatures thriving in desert and their survival techniques.

Wonderful guide , jurgen , shared his knowledge of nature and life in the dunes . Respectful of the environment unlike other operators (sandwich harbour) who tore up the dunes in their 4x4’s . Jurgen made sure to teach us about the delicate wild life . We loved every single moment

From collection to drop off this was an excellent trip. Saw some fascinating animals, sidewinder, chameleon, gecko's and more. The guide Bawden was very knowledgeable about the creatures and the desert. Wine and cheese on the beach was a lovely way to end the trip before returning to the ship.

Initially dubious as we sat waiting for the guide to turn up but once we were on the move a very informative trip in to the dunes with lots of small creatures of the desert to see and lots of information about each creature. A great way to see the smaller creatures of Namibia.

After about three days of "getting to know the sea" by staying in a close proximity from the town's waterfront (at a place in one of the streets branching from the Strand Ave. along the waterfront), there came the time for me to "get to know the desert" which really is also my suggestion for every visitor to this small town (which nonetheless is "naturally blessed" with proximities to both the sea & the desert); and yes this one just being a half-day tour at the site "right outside" the town, I would say, is a good way to getting the "desert experience" before going out on longer tours (in my case just one which is an all-day tour to the Skeleton Coast National Park which I did two days after this). In any case, to break it down into its "5 stops" after entering the Dorob Desert from near the place like a "camel farm" just on the outskirts of this small town, there were: the 1st stop which mainly was a walk-around on the desert (with a nice luck of spotting about two small "sidewinder snakes", each in a different location, although yes not just by luck alone but also by skill of our guide with his stick to remove the sand layers where apart from those snakes were also some other tiny creatures found such as chameleons & beetles); the 2nd stop on the top of what was likely the "highest dune" of the desert from which was a pretty nice view of the "rolling landscape" of the many smaller dunes all around; the 3rd stop as in like the opposite nature to the 2nd stop was on the bottom of a dune where yes I discovered that it was "much easier said than done" trying to go up those dunes with just quite a strenuous task of lifting your foot for each step (although one guy from our group almost made it to the top of that dune!); the 4th stop above a dune with a shallow bottom & like an easy slope for some "sand play" & such (sliding down the slope as seen being done by some from another group that arrived before us) and where there was also something like a small "long-shaped salt pan" seen looking down to another side from that stop; and finally the 5th stop also above a dune but which was kind of unique in a way where you could look to the distance and see both "the desert & the sea beyond" while standing at like right on an edge of the dune where you could also look down to its some "considerable depth". So a nice break from the sea view on the previous days (although also including a day for the town's sites of the Swakopmund Museum & Woermannhaus), this was an enjoyable half-day tour for just about 3 hours in a small group of 5 people including myself with Charly's Tour (as written on the vehicle but my booking done by my hostel as the Living Dunes tour), and yes also much thanks are to the gentleman who was both our guide & driver (for showing those hard-to-see tiny creatures & also for his driving skill taking us on some "thrilling rides" going up & down the dunes).

Picked up on time - informative guides but WAY too many people for one tour. 23 adults cramming round a tiny desert creature just didn’t work - we could hardly see. Unless you were prepared to push in front of people (which we weren’t) it was easier to stand back. One women smoked 3 times and left her butts in the sand…..if the main purpose of this tour is education to conserve this should not have been allowed

This is a great tour to learn more about the animals and reptiles in the area. We'd highly recommend this tour! This was our second tour with Erst, our guide. And we were delighted to have him for a second tour. He's a great storyteller! We learned so much about the animals and geology of the desert. As usual, what made the tour really special was how Erst explained the beauty and wonder of the desert to us. He really has a deep respect and admiration for nature that shows in his tours!

This was an awesome experience which was led by our very knowledgeable guides, Johnny and Ernst. We had such an awesome time and learnt so much. He let all the kids see the animals up close and showed us all cool experiments with magnets and the sand. I highly recommend you do this trip. We saw so many animals and so many beautiful things. Absolute must do for Swakopmund!!

We actually did two tours on the same day: living desert tour in the morning and the moon landscape/welwitschia flower tour in the afternoon. We had Ernst as our guide for both and he was absolutely fabulous! He really knows his stuff and its evident that he is passionate about protecting the environment. We learned a ton and had a great time. He even had good suggestions for a dinner spot that evening. Touring with Charley's was a great decision.

One of the highlights of the holiday. Thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon learning about the desert. Ernst was great, showing us a lot of plants and creatures and explaining the formation of the desert. Great drives and beautiful scenery.

This was one of the best experience we had in Namibia (and we had many great experiences). We went with the guide Ernest and he is very knowledgeable and shared his immense knowledge on animals, plants and desert life in general with us. Ernest is an excellent guide/driver and we were so impressed with the way he could spot tracks of the animals and the way he was engaged in the protection of animals and the desert. We went with three teenagers who were interested in the animals but even though the trip is what you would call slow-moving, and also focusing on fauna and a bit geology, we were all thrilled and coming back form the trip, we have talked so much about all the things that Ernest told us and showed us. We can only give this trip our best recommendations.

We used Charly's Tours to arrange our airport pickup, which included a short tour through Walvis Bay and out to flamingo lagoon, as well as a stop for a covid test (for travel) and an ATM. The price was much lower than other quotes we received and everything went perfectly. Couzette in the office is super helpful and fast with her emails. We also booked the quad bike and sandboarding combo tour through them. It seems like the only company that actually provides the quad biking is Desert Explorers and other tour companies help arrange it. But the price is the same regardless. We had a great time on our 3 hour tour of the dunes. Sandboarding was fun, but be prepared to walk up the huge dune after each run. This is a different dune than the one you would go to if you do the tour that is only sandboarding where you drive there. Something is consider maybe? This one was extremely scenic and very fun to get to.

What a memorable experience! Well trained and knowledgeable guide/ driver. Did not know how secretive the desert creatures can be. Our guide knew exactly where all the little creature's hising spots were. Rest assured that responsible tourism practices are observed. All animals placed back where found. Guide/ driver will collect patrons at residances or holiday accomodation. Wear a hat and apply sunblock! Approximately 3hour tour.