Namibia Travel Guide

Went there in 2003 with my buddy from Simonskloof. Super weather condition (not too hot) and due of his expert knowledge from the area (he lived in Namibia for 5 years), we had an amazing time.
Namibia is very interesting from a geological perspective and there is a very good chance to see wild animals almost everywhere. It's worth to go there.
The countryside is so beautiful and amazing.
I strongly can recommend Namibia as a holiday destination.
Looking forward to go back in a few years.

Endless desert to endless sea

After driving for days through beautiful but scorching desert-scapes, we crested a dune and were chilled by a breeze coming off the dark blue Atlantic. This is an isolated, beautiful, and rarely-visited part of the world. In Namibia you can see big game as in other African countries, but also explore the desert and drive for miles up the Skeleton coast without seeing another person. They also have the best steaks--wild game or beef--of any other safari destination.

Stretched desertly landscapes. No wildlife boundaries. Beautiful light in the morning and evenings. Strange nature phenomena: petrified forest, Brandberg, Twyfelfontein, Fish River Canyon, Kakoa Veld)

Namibia has a desolate beauty - a land of windswept sand, wild ocean, and vast rocky canyons.

Namibia is such a unique travel experience! Remote outposts house delightful German bakeries. Desert wastes hide elusive elephant herds. Cape fur seals birth pups in a cacophony of noise and stench and life. The vast white pans of Etosha in contrast with lush wetlands of the Zambezi Region offer stunning wildlife encounters.

Community based tourism is flourishing here. Local groups are represented in management decisions, and profit directly from tourism income. There are well-appointed local camps and cultural tours throughout the country. These offer an intimate look at local habitat as well as traditional cultures, rituals and wisdom.

Namibia was an amazing place. The beach, the parks, the people I met and the things I saw - nowhere else was anything like it.

All the convenience of South Africa without the crowds

Namibia is a great destination for either an organised safari or a self-drive holiday. The roads and infrastructure are nearly as good as in South Africa, and everything is just as reasonably priced. Wildlife is just as good as South Africa, with all the big five represented.
Etosha is probably the most famous park in Namibia, and is where most visitors head. However, there are other good parks for wildlife viewing. I like Waterberg Plateau. It is ideally located between Windhoek and Etosha and has a resort feel with a nice pool and good self-catering rooms. Great for unwinding if you don't fancy a trip to the nice seaside town of Swakopmund. The seal colony at Cape Cross north of Luderitz is a nice little side trip.
Overall, Namibia is well worth a visit if you're into your wildlife. I like the fact that you can drive the main roads and spot unfenced wildlife all over the place. You don't have to visit the parks to see beasts.

Namibia is an easy and friendly country to travel in with vast distances to cover and tons to see and experience.

A destination with many different landscapes

For a country that is predominantly desert Namibia is surprisingly well covered with good bush. It is also one of the cleanest countries in Africa with excellent roads. We started our trip in the capital,Windhoek, and first went north to Okonjima near Otjiwarongo. Run by the Hanssen family, this private reserve is home to the Africat Foundation, who specialise in cheetah and leopard conservation. The accommodation is excellent, as is the wildlife viewing albeit in a slightly artificial situation. All the cats are radio collared which makes finding them easier, and it is one of the few places where you can walk close to cheetah.

We then spent a week in Etosha, staying in all three camps inside the park all of which had both good and bad points, but overall were of reasonable standard if quite expensive. But what an experience! Etosha is everything you have ever heard about this world famous park and more. Huge herds of plains animals, and of course their predators, excellent bird life especially raptors, and some special sightings of the beautiful, elusive African wildcat. Each camp has a floodlit waterhole with good viewing offering a very different view of animal behaviour.

From there we moved to Walvis Bay, an unlovely town, for a disappointing sea safari. But the landscape along the coast is breathtaking.

if you go to Namibiaq, see the dunes - they are magnificent and breathtaking.

My first night in Namibia I spent at The Cardboard Box Backpackers in Windhoek. It was cheap, clean, nice, had a kitchen, and a friendly staff – I highly recommend it. I can’t talk much about Windhoek because I didn’t spend much time there. It doesn’t seem like there is too much to do. Also, it is a very modern city – reminded me of home (USA). My first destination was Etosha National Park. We got there by rental car – I don’t think there are buses that go up there, just tours which are really expensive. The drive was beautiful and what is nice about Etosha is that you can use your own vehicle to do a game drive instead of paying for an expensive safari. The problem with Etosha is how expensive it was. The park entrance fee and camping prices are OUTRAGEOUS. More than staying at a hostel – it was really ridiculous, but we had no alternative. The only food options are overpriced snacks like chips or breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffets all very expensive. There are not any grocery stores or other restaurants nearby so either bring your own food and cooking equipment or prepare to be spending a lot of money on food.

Etosha is very big. We spent one night at a campsite on the eastern end of it and the next night at the western end of it. We did our own game drives and saw loads of animals. Apparently, Etosha is a great place to see the Big 5, but unfortunately, we didn’t see any of them in the 2 days we were there. The problem with Ethosha is that although you may not spend a lot of money on paying for a safari (although you certainly can – we didn’t) you spend a lot on gas because the park is so massive. By the time we left Etosha I was very tierd of sitting in the car.

Overall, Etosha was great. Just know that it has pricey food and accommodation and the majority of the trip will be spent sitting in a vehicle – a safari vehicle or your own. Also, it should be noted that the campsites all had very nice, clean facilities and pools.

Extreme beauty

Namibia is one of my all time favorite countries. The wildlife is spectacular, and the views and nature are simply breathtaking. During December it´s dry and hot, but you´ll feel alone as the tourists are a lot fewer than during the months of May to August. Food wise we loved it as we travelled with a guide and he cooked really good food. We travelled in a small group of five in a huge truck with the South-African company Drifters. Highlights were the desert, Swakopmund, Caprivi and Etosha National Park.