The Popa Falls are situated in the Caprivi Strip, a few kilometres from the town of Divundu. Do not expect a spectacular vertical drop—the falls are really just a series of cascading rapids.
The main appeal of the area is its wildlife as well as the impressive scenery along the river – the Okavango. The ideal way to see both is a late afternoon cruise.
There are plenty of hippos …
… and also many different kinds of birds.
In early spring—we were there at the end of September—large numbers of carmine bee-eaters arrive from equatorial Africa to breed on the riverbanks, before moving south for the summer.
As you might expect, crocodiles are also a common sight here.
There are several lodges near the falls. The river cruises are also largely run by them.
We stayed at the Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) lodge – possibly not as luxurious as some, but our chalet (pictured below) was spacious, well-equipped, and very comfortable indeed. We were also lucky in that nobody else had booked the cruise for that afternoon, so we had the whole boat to ourselves.
The Popa Falls are a convenient stopping-off point if you are travelling along the Caprivi Strip to Chobe National Park and onwards to Zimbabwe and Zambia, as we were. The main road is tarred all the way and the (inevitable) potholed areas are generally well marked. However, you should do your utmost to avoid having to drive here in the dark—you might otherwise have a wildlife encounter you rather wished you hadn’t had.
