The country Namibia is also known as “Africa for beginners” and is a great destination for a self drive. The landscapes are beautiful, empty and wide, the roads are mostly gravel but of good quality. Let the neighboring countries like Botswana en South Africa can be perfectly combined with Namibia, to complete the experience. There are different types of itineraries through Namibia that can be made depending on the time, regions and neighboring countries you visit.
Also read: Study in Namibia | A blog about universities and student life
Are you thinking of following our footsteps and renting a 4x4 with roof tent or a camper with friends, partner or family? Then ask free of charge and without obligation submit a quote to Travelhome from ANWB. Travelhome offers both 4x4s with roof tents and full-fledged family campers.
- Best way to discover Namibia
- Independent or Customized
- Expert advice from specialists
- Full quote with no hidden costs
Itinerary 1 | 2 weeks roadtrip by Namibia
This roadtrip starts in the capital Windhoek where you can stay for a few days to recover from your flight. Here you can pick up your rented car or camper and leave the city via the south series where you can visit the famous Sossusvlei. Take at least 1 full day to visit Sossusvlei and go as early as possible as it can get very hot in Sossusvlei. Then leave for Swakopmund where you can recover from the first part of Namibia for a few days.
Also read: Top 10 Things to Do in Windhoek
Continue your journey from Swakopmund to the location in the Damaraland Twyfelfontein† Here you can visit the rock carvings of the former Bushmen. Keep your eyes open because you have a good chance of encountering wild elephants here.
On to one of the highlight of the trip, Etosha National Park† You can easily drive through here and look for the big five. Once you've found the big five, you can start on your way back, but not without a stop in Waterberg Plateau National Park. Beautiful walks and panoramic views further on you can drive back to Windhoek. In 2 weeks you have experienced the biggest highlights of the beautiful country of Namibia.
Itinerary 2 | 4 weeks roadtrip by Namibia
Most international flights come in via Windhoek. Stay here for 2 days to get used to the country, pick up your rental car here and start roadtrip via the B1 to keetmanshoop† Visit it here Quiver Tree Forest together with Giant's Playground and enjoy the quiet and beautiful nature of Namibia. After this, continue south to the second largest canyon in the world, Fish River Canyon† Here flows the river Fish, which eventually flows into the large river Oranje. Also visit Ai-Ais where there are natural hot springs rising up and also beautiful hike through the beginning of the canyon.
Take the car and drive on the C13 along the orange river in the south to find the road to Lüderitz to take. Stop in Lüderitz and take a look at ghost town Kolmanskop† Here nature has completely taken over a village.
The road to the far north has begun, stop at Duwisib Castle to continue the road to Sossusvlei. Get here early before it gets too hot and enjoy the beautiful views. In the middle of your tour you will return to civilization in Swakopmund. Enjoy the cooler temperatures and the waters of the atlantic ocean here.
Stop at the rock carvings of the groves of men in Twyfelfontein to drive on to Damarland where nature is still untouched and the desert elephant is still regularly seen. On the way to the Epupa Falls can you stop briefly in opuwo† The Epupa falls are located on the border with Angola and have water all year round. Enjoy all the green nature here after all the sand of the past few weeks.
Pack up the car and go to Etosha National Park, where you can search for the big five! Before you come back to Windhoek you will stay in Waterberg Plateau National Park where you can still take beautiful walks in nature. Take the car back to Windhoek and enjoy the past 4 weeks full of beautiful nature.
Itinerary 3 | 3 weeks roadtrip through Namibia and Botswana
In this trip there is not only going to Namibia but also to Botswana traveled. Pay special attention to the car rental that the car can go to Botswana from Namibia. The best you can do a renting a car via Sunnycars.nl which is known for the excellent conditions and more importantly: solid insurance and Dutch customer service anywhere in the world.
After collecting the car, start the roadtrip in the capital of Namibia, Windhoek. From here you will go to Sossusvlei where you will get acquainted with the untouched nature in Namibia. Wash off the sand in Swakopmund or visit here Sandwich Harbor where the high sand dunes meet the Atlantic Ocean.
Continue your trip north through the rock carvings at Twyfelfontein and the pristine Damaraland† Look for the big five in Etosha National Park and take the time to enjoy this beautiful nature. In the east, exit Etosha again and head for the Capri Strip via rundu and visit the Kwando river and find the hippos and crocodiles.
Take the border crossing Ngoma between Namibia and Botswana and stay in kasane just over the border in Botswana. Visit here Chobe National Park where both aquatic and terrestrial animals can be found. From Kasane you can take a day trip to the Victoria Falls the one on the border with Zambia en Zimbabwe is. Continue slowly into Botswana to the vast salt pans (Makgadikgadi Salt Flats) and stay here for a night and discover how beautiful the starry sky is.
The largest inland delta in the world is next on the schedule, namely the Okavango Delta† To see how incredibly large this delta is, take a helicopter ride, for a smaller budget take a mokoro (wooden canoe) and sail over the delta and see many wild animals and birds that live here. After this, your tour is over and you drive back to Namibia to fly back home via Windhoek or another destination, if you happen to be on a world trip!
Also read: Plan a world trip in 10 steps | Full manual & step-by-step plan
Itinerary 4 | 4 weeks one way roadtrip through Namibia and South Africa
Unlike the previous trips, this is a one way trip where you start in Windhoek and end in Kaapstad, you can also travel the other way around here. From the capital of Namibia, Windhoek you drive north to Waterberg National Park† Here you will get to know the beautiful nature of Namibia before you drive further to the Etosha National Park† In search of the Big Five you drive from east to west through Etosha National Park and afterwards via opuwo to Epupa Falls to go. These are located on the border with Angola and are completely full of water after the rainy season.
After this you go on your way to the still untouched Damaraland with the end goal Swakopmund on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Enjoy the western feel and delicious food here before moving on to Sossusvlei, where you can take beautiful pictures and walk up the dunes.
The road to the south is continued with an extra loop via the Fish River Canyon† The second largest canyon in the world. Then drive through keetmanshoop to the border with South Africa to Kgalagadi Transitier Park located in the Kalahari desert† Here many animals can be found around the riverbeds, including the Kalahari lion and meerkats. Further south we come to the Augrabies Falls, one of the more famous waterfalls in South Africa.
Then you go back to the Atlantic Ocean to the West Coast National Park† After this it will be a long drive all the way to Cape Town. Stay here for many more days before flying back home, there is so much to see and do in this city!
Itinerary 5 | 5 weeks one way roadtrip through South Africa, Namibia and Botswana
This trip goes from Johannesburg to Kaapstad via Botswana and Namibia. This makes a long trip that you can also do the other way around and see the versatility of southern Africa. Start in Johannesburg and after seeing the city head north and drive into Botswana. sleep in Nata and drive the next day to the beautiful Chobe National Park† See the most versatile terrestrial and aquatic animals here and look for the big five. Don't forget from kasane make a day trip to the Victoria Falls which lie on the border with Zambia and Zimbabwe. Go back south to A lawyer to visit the vast salt pans where a colony of meerkats lives in the Kalahari desert. Then you go from desert to the largest inland delta of the world, the Okavango Delta where you can still see many animals.
Then drive past the Delta to the north and enter rundu the next country into Namibia. Follow your route to Etosha National Park to search for the Big Five. The route heads south through the pristine Damaraland to the west Swakopmund† Here, the Atlantic Ocean brings great weathering before moving on to the sandy Sossusvlei† Here you can take beautiful pictures while you walk up the dunes.
Continue south to the Fish River Canyon† The second largest canyon in the world to relax afterwards in the thermal baths of Ai-Ais† You cross the border with South Africa again and drive with a stopover in West Coast National Park to Cape Town. Here you can reminisce about your trip through 3 different countries before you fly back to or you world trip continues.
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Are you thinking of following our footsteps and renting a 4x4 with roof tent or a camper with friends, partner or family? Then ask free of charge and without obligation submit a quote to Travelhome from ANWB. Travelhome offers both 4x4s with roof tents and full-fledged family campers.
- Best way to discover Namibia
- Independent or Customized
- Expert advice from specialists
- Full quote with no hidden costs
