This post is a recap of the two weeks we spent driving around Namibia in October 2015. See links to galleries throughout for additional photos from each destination.
While we were in the planning phase back in Denver (which feels like years ago...), a few people mentioned Namibia, recalling the eerie mist of the skeleton coast and off-roading on striking sand dunes. After doing some basic research, we had seen enough to know that we wanted to check it out. But still, we hesitated when it came to booking. Going with a tour group would probably be the easiest option, but that's simply not our style.
Luckily, we discovered a wonderful company based in Namibia that has been helping travelers plan self-guided trips for more than 20 years. They got their start as the first backpackers hostel in Namibia and grew large enough that they opened The Cardboard Box, a separate travel shop.
Allison at The Cardboard Box is a total rock star. She put up with multiple emails from us asking basic questions and changing our schedule. When we landed in Windhoek, the capital, we still didn’t know exactly where we were going. And we definitely didn’t understand how awesome the two weeks that lay ahead of us would be.
On that first day in Windhoek, we went through customs and picked up our rental car. Now, we’ve both driven rental cars before, but never with the steering wheel on the other side of the car, while driving on the other side of the road. Oh, and the cars are only manual, which I (Grace) cannot drive. I also wasn’t covered as a second driver under our already expensive rental car agreement.
So, Mike did all the driving in Namibia. Like a boss.
And it was quite a bit of driving. In total, more than 2,280 km, which is 1,415+ miles! Starting in Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia, we drove southwest to Sossusvlei. Then, we continued driving clockwise, hitting Walvis Bay and Swakopmund on the coast, then Brandberg, then Etosha National Park, and finally Waterberg before ending up back in Windhoek.
All of the places we saw were amazing in their own way. While we could have had more time (you can always have more time), two weeks was the perfect amount to see the variety of destinations that we did and get a taste of Namibian history, food, people and culture.
Oh, and we saw a bunch of exotic animals, too!
Here are the highlights by destination:
Like I said, Windhoek is the capital of Namibia and the busiest city we stayed in, although it's still small enough to see by car in about 30 minutes. To put it in context, the population is around 300,000 (the total population of Namibia is only 2.3 million). We used Windhoek as our entry and exit point, spending our first and last night there. Although we didn't do too much in the city, we were still able to eat some great food (check out our Joe's Beerhouse review if you haven't read it already) and explore a bit. One of the best parts about Windhoek was meeting Allison on our last day and telling her all about our experiences and newfound love for Namibia.
Sossusvlei is one of the most striking landscapes we've ever seen. We were honestly amazed when we arrived at Desert Quiver Camp after six hours of driving on bumpy, unpaved roads. There were small "tents" or cabins, lined up in a semi-circle with nothing but sand and the occasional tree as far as the eye could see. It was 40+ degrees celsius, which is HOT, but luckily the resort had a pool (of which we immediately took advantage).
It was kind of freaky how quickly we adjusted to life on the Namibian road. That night, we even had a little braai (Afrikaans for barbecue) of oryx meat that we ordered from reception. The highlight was the next day, when we got up early and drove into park, spotting springbok, gemsbok, a fox and an ostrich. We hiked Dune 45 and went all the way to Deadvlei, which we loved until a sand storm rolled in. No one would go to Sossusvlei and not go into the park but, just to be clear, it is breathtaking and not to be missed. Had we had another day in the area, we would have gone back in for more exploring.
Driving from Sossusvlei to Walvis Bay was going from one extreme to its polar opposite. Sossusvlei was hot and dry, and Walvis Bay was cold and wet.
Before getting to Walvis Bay, though, we stopped in Solitaire. Even though it was only an hour-long detour, it was one of our favorite parts of the trip. Solitaire is nothing more than a "town" of less than 100 people built around a gas station and legendary German bakery. We stretched our legs, took some photos and feasted on apple pie and other baked goods before continuing on toward the coast.
Walvis Bay and Swakopmund are coastal cities 40 km apart. We stayed in Swakopmund (at The Alternative Space, a unique hostel turned B&B with the coolest owners ever) but drove back down to Walvis Bay one morning for a boat tour of the harbor. Don't underestimate how much there is to do in Swakopmund. We chose sandboarding, since we had never done it before, but other options were skydiving, ATV tours, camel rides, off-roading... the list goes on. There are also plenty of cute restaurants and coffee shops. If you have time and money to burn, spend a week packed full of activities and I guarantee it will be one of the best vacations of your life.
On our way out of town, we stopped to see one of the shipwrecks that contributes to the nickname "Skeleton Coast," given to Namibia's foggy, rocky and treacherous shoreline.
The highlights of our time in Mt. Brandberg were seeing the White Lady cave painting (disclaimer: it's sort of a check-the-box thing if you're not a history geek) and encountering our first elephants. Oh, and hanging out with Carlos the suricate, who the B&B calls "everybody's darling." I still laugh every time I think about him. The Brandberg White Lady Lodge also puts on a fun buffet dinner capped off with lively singing by the kitchen staff, which was a blast.
The nicest place we stayed in Namibia was arguably Palmwag. It was too bad that we only had 24 hours to enjoy the multiple swimming pools, outdoor bar and waterhole directly behind our room! While there, we went on a swanky evening game drive (wine and blanket-ponchos make it swanky) and saw a bunch of animals for the first time, most notably giraffes and zebras. On our way out, we encountered a large bull who we had heard about from the hotel staff. He walked directly in front of our car, less than four meters away from where we sat. It was a crazy moment and we got some great photos.
Good thing we went to Brandberg and Palmwag before Etosha National Park, because it blew them both clean out of the water. Etosha is a safari mecca, especially in October, the driest month right before the rainy season is supposed to start. (I say "supposed to" because the area is currently experiencing one of the worst droughts in the last 100 years.) The land is so dry that animals must go to a few main waterholes for water, and you can drive your own car right up to them. We saw four of the "Big 5" and got some ridiculous animal photos there. It was awesome!
Our last stop, Waterberg National Park was nice, but we wouldn't have wanted any more than the one night we had. Hiking to the top of the plateau was cool, but it only took us 30 minutes and after that we just relaxed in our room. The one plus-side of stopping here is it breaks up the drive from Etosha to Windhoek, which would be about five hours otherwise.
Getting Lucky (a Public Service Announcement): it's amazing that we didn't get a flat tire while we were there. Nearly all roads other than four major highways are unpaved, so be prepared to take it slow and deal with hours of bumpy terrain.
What We'd Do Differently: we wish we would have driven from Etosha National Park straight to the Okavango Delta and into Zambia from there, since we were going there next anyway. We flew from Windhoek to Livingstone, connecting through Joburg, because we didn't know any better, thus missing the Delta, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa. Of course, if you're not going anywhere else in Africa from Namibia, you could still drive to the Okavango Delta and then fly out of Sir Seretse Khama Intl. Airport (in Gaborone, Botswana) or do what we did and circle back to Windhoek to fly out. Other than that, we wouldn't change anything about our road trip.
In conclusion (phew!), when it comes to seeing Africa, you're looking at a huge continent made up of 54 countries and just over a billion people. It would take years of heavy travel to feel like you’d seen most of it. That said, you have to start somewhere, and it’s surprising that Namibia isn’t on more American travelers' radar. It's an excellent country to visit and even better if it's your first introduction to the diverse, culturally rich place that is Southern Africa. It's accessible, easy to navigate, English-speaking, and typically very safe. So, have we convinced you to start planning your own trip yet? If not, we still have nine months of travel to go...