27 Unmissable Attractions in Namibia
Desert abundance may sound like an oxymoron, but in Namibia the phrase rings true, with countless spectacular natural attractions spread across the dusty, arid landscape, unique in their beauty and stunning to behold. Here is a selection of Namibia’s most unmissable attractions.
Kolmanskop
Building, Ruins
The Fish River Canyon
Natural Feature
Skeleton Coast
Natural Feature
Namibia’s Skeleton Coast is a harsh and unyielding landscape where only the hardiest of desert-adapted animals survive. It is also notorious for its rough seas and thick fog that has claimed the lives of many sailors over the years. A coastline littered with shipwrecks attests to the treacherous conditions.
Soar through the sky in a plane
Natural Feature
One of the best ways to take in all the scenic beauty that Namibia offers is on a plane ride. Charter flights cover numerous locations in the country and skim the sand dunes while passengers admire aerial views of the vast and solitary Namib Desert; Tsondabvlei, the only known breeding area of the Lappet-faced vulture in southern Namibia; and the highest shifting sand dunes in the world at Sossusvlei. Abandoned diamond mines, Cape fur seal colonies and old shipwrecks can all be included in your itinerary.
Make friends with the dolphins
Natural Feature
The protected waters of the Walvis Bay lagoon offer a gentle and serene boat cruise that is filled with abundant marine life. The excursion begins in the Walvis Bay harbour en route to Bird Island and then cuts across the lagoon to visit large colonies of Cape fur seals. Follow this with a visit to Pelican Point, where schools of bottlenose and Heaviside’s dolphins are endemic to the area.
Desert-adapted wildlife
Natural Feature
Namibia is home to spectacular and unusual wildlife, with many species having made physical adaptations in order to survive in the arid desert conditions. In many cases, the scarcity of water is overcome by drinking droplets of condensed fog from plant leaves.
Take it slow in the Namib Nauklaft
Natural Feature
Taking some time for unrushed explorations is highly recommended in this spectacular area of Namibia where the vast landscape stretches from famous sand dunes to mighty canyons and rugged and beautiful mountain ranges. The enormous park covers approximately 50,000 square kilometres (19,305 square miles) and is one of the largest conservation areas in Africa, comprising stunning and unique desert scenery and amazing and unusual wildlife.
Dead Vlei
Natural Feature
Take a walk through history at the National Museum of Namibia
Museum
This intriguing museum is housed in Alte Feste, the oldest existing building in Windhoek, which was once a German fort. In times gone by the edifice stood as a powerful reminder of the German occupation of the area, but today celebrates Namibia’s varied and rich heritage. After a tour through the past, visitors can admire a collection of rock art that is located nearby the museum.
Take a day trip to Keetmanshoop
Natural Feature
Keetmanshoop is the economic centre of south Namibia and one of the oldest settlements in the country. It has a small museum housed in the Rhenish Mission Church that is also a national monument, and its unique combination of gothic architecture cast in African stone makes it one of the architectural masterpieces of the country. The town is also famous for its quiver tree forest and Giants Playground, a massive collection of amazing Dolerite balancing rock formations piled up on top of each other.
Welwitschia Drive
Natural Feature
This desert route is located in the northern corner of the Namib-Naukluft National Park and includes 13 numbered stone beacons at points of particular interest. The four-hour drive culminates at one of Namibia’s largest, and oldest, welwitschia plants, a strange and highly unique desert species.
Etosha National Park
Park
Kaokoland
Natural Feature
Hoba meteorite
Natural Feature
The Hoba meteorite is the largest on the planet as well as the largest naturally occurring mass of iron known to exist on the earth. It was first uncovered in 1920 and remains in the exact location where it crashed into the earth’s surface over 80,000 years ago.
Namib Desert
Natural Feature
Solitaire
Building, Natural Feature
Rock art
Natural Feature
There are numerous important rock art sites scattered across Namibia, the best-known being the Brandberg Massif in Damaraland that showcases San hunter-gatherer rock art that is over 2,000 years old. Also in Damaraland is Twyfelfontein, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most important rock engraving sites in southern Africa.
Sesriem Canyon
Natural Feature
Cape Cross
Natural Feature
Duwisib Castle
Building
Swakopmund
Building
Caprivi Strip
Natural Feature
Sand dunes
Natural Feature
Namibia sports some of the most spectacular sand dunes in the world, that shift and change shape with the wind, transforming themselves into new visions of beauty every day. Climb them, sand board down them or simply admire them from a distance.
Sandwich Harbour
Natural Feature
Sossusvlei sunset
Natural Feature
Sail your own 'desert ship'
Natural Feature
Camels are synonymous with the desert. They are also supremely adapted to desert life, with large flat feet that refuse to sink into the sand, built-in temperature regulators and the ability to survive for days without any water. Taking a slow meandering camel ride across the magnificent sand dunes of Namibia is a one-of-a-kind experience and gives travellers the chance to admire the fabulous desert scenery and possibly even spot some wildlife of the smaller variety.