Namibia

Namibia is a country with changing scenery from Sand Dunes and Deserts to massive Red Rocks and Mountains that go from the Savannah to the Sky. It has dramatic coastlines from the Atlantic Coast all the way to the Cape of Good Hope and to the Bays of the Skeleton Coast. Namibia is a country of amazing beauty, which will leave you in awe.

Windhoek is the Capital City of Namibia, situated in the very heart of the country. This is quite a unique city with the palm dotted Zoo Park and its well-manicured Parliament Garden to the Bavarian style Towers, which have an old German influence. Then there’s the underprivileged side, where the trials of Namibian life are more emphasised such as Katutura and Okuryangava with its tin shack homes.

Etosha National Park is the ‘one must see place’ when visiting Namibia. This game reserve has a wealth of rare animal life. The area encompasses dry and cracked salt pans and a labyrinthine of valleys around the Leopard Hills. It is the main Safari region in the country where you will find African bush Elephants and Zebras at the watering holes along with rare Black Rhino and Springbok.

The coastal city of Swakopmund lies west of the capital. It has sandy beaches, which face the Atlantic Ocean. The city has half-timbered Saxon façades that line the exterior of the Altes Gefängnis Jail and an incredible European architecture. Due to the German colonists from 1892 the city has a very German touch with Beer Halls and hops scented Pubs that roll out along the sands of the beautiful fringed lined promenade. There are other landmarks like the Lighthouse and the Mole, which reminds you of its colonial past.

Sossusvlei is located deep in the Namib-Naukluft National Park, where the scorching African sun beats down and snakes drift over the undulating sand. Overwhelmed by massive dunes, some of which are the highest in the world, it is a breathtakingly beautiful place. The carved sections of desert shift in the winds and some areas like the colossal mound of Dune 7 are higher than 350 metres above sea level. The best way to see the sites are on a 4x4 tour where you will also have the advantage of seeing Antelope, Oryx, and Springbok, which live in these areas.

There are few landscapes that define the wilds of Namibia as well as the Skeleton Coast Park. This is an area that stretches with endless sand dunes and booming Atlantic waves that run for more than 500 kilometres from top to bottom. It is one of the most dangerous sections of shoreline in the world. Here you will find numerous rusting carcasses of old tankers and skiffs, fishing boats and convoy ships.

Walvis Bay thanks to its position along the Atlantic Coast, has access to one of the finest deep water harbours this side of the Cape of Good Hope. It is a great place to kitesurf along its beaches, has loads of great fishing opportunities, bird rich islands and also where you can go sandboarding on the dunes of the Namib Desert.

The Fish River Canyon twists between the great Mountains of Southern Africa in a truly majestic fashion with Red-hued Rocks that tower above the valley below with quarries of deep sand and colossal boulders dotting the landscape and where the sunsets are a stunning blood-red against the rugged ranges known as the Three Sisters.

Hentiesbaai is the gateway to the National West Coast Recreation area, one of Namibia’s most popular tourist drawcards. Leave behind the city and head to the wind blasted shoreline. Why not take a 4x4 ride over the undulating desert dunes, to break out into the inhospitable wildernesses of the Skeleton Coast and to see the thousands of Seals that pepper the beach banks to the north of town. The town also has a huge diversity of marine life.

The Spitzkoppe is one of the most captivating sites of the Damaraland of Namibia’s backcountry with its twisted mass of granite stone soaring more than 1,700 meters above the rolling desert plains. Ancient rock paintings also adorn the base of the mountain as well as caves, arches and bridges.

Other areas worth a visit are Twyfelfontein known for its fascinating wealth of wildlife and amongst the dusty Kunene region it is famed for its prolific displays of ancient rock art, identified by UNESCO in 2007. Kaokoland is intersected by winding rivers that meander like desert snakes through the rock ribbed Mountains and the great Grand Canyon copying escarpments of the north, this region is remote and untouched. Today though, it’s slowly becoming more open to tourists, who flock in after safaris in nearby Etosha.