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Travelling through Namibia is a special experience and there are many tips that I can give you after our 11-day trip through Namibia so that you start your stay well prepared.
Driving in Namibia
Driving is definitely an important topic in Namibia, because in Namibia you spend a lot of time on the road if you want to travel around the country.
Gravel roads in Namibia
Around 50% of the roads (probably more) are gravel tracks, which are sometimes better and sometimes worse depending on the season, rainfall and preparation. For the most part, we actually had quite good road conditions, because despite the rainy season, there was virtually no rainfall when we were travelling, but this can be completely different at other times.
Nevertheless, even with good road conditions, a gravel track is still a gravel track and the probability of having a breakdown here is relatively high. We had already placed bets (and I also let you bet on Instagram) on how many breakdowns we would have. We can hardly believe it ourselves, but we got through completely without a breakdown – and that with 3400 kilometres driven.
Driving on a gravel road is also naturally more strenuous than on a tarmac road, partly because you are constantly jolted and partly because you have to drive much more attentively (and more slowly). The speed limit on gravel roads is 80 km/h.
It is generally recommended not to drive at night in Namibia.
Accidents in Namibia / Safety on the roads
Thanks to the road conditions, accidents (some of them serious) unfortunately happen time and again. This is due to many factors, some of the potential causes of accidents that we noticed were as follows:
- The tarmac roads are often very narrow and usually don’t have a good verge. If you leave the tarmac here, it can certainly end badly relatively quickly.
- Excessive speeds of many drivers / impatient drivers – we mainly noticed this on the tarmac roads
- Crossing animals – rare, but sometimes it does happen, which is why you shouldn’t drive at night in Namibia.
Dangerous speeding manoeuvres:
- Lots of lorries on the tarred roads, no passing places for overheight manoeuvres
- Due to the heat, there is always a shimmer on the tarred roads and even if the roads are straight, there are often crests that you cannot see and if you overtake here, it is relatively easy to miss an oncoming car.
- On gravel roads, there is a lot of dust when a car comes towards you and so you are almost completely blind for a few seconds. If a car overtakes you at this moment, you will simply crash head-on.
How can you avoid accidents?
Avoiding accidents is something I don’t think anyone can guarantee 100%…. But at least the following applies:
- Only overtake in clear places
- Light drivers are more visible – if you switch on your lights, someone overtaking in a cloud of dust may recognise you earlier.
- Adjust your speed
- If a car is coming towards you in a large cloud of dust, slow down and be prepared should it actually happen that this car is being overtaken at that very moment and someone is suddenly in your lane.
- Don’t panic on gravel roads and don’t steer abruptly.
Refuelling in Namibia
In Namibia, as in South Africa, there is a major difference to petrol stations in Europe. You never fill up yourself here, but are always served by a petrol attendant and pay directly to them (in cash or by card) through the window – so you don’t leave the car. Personally, this got on my nerves because you often have to wait a relatively long time until a petrol attendant is free and you always have to have some small change to hand to tip the attendant. A tip of 5 NAD is recommended, 10 or 15 NAD if the windscreen is being cleaned. You can also have your oil checked at petrol stations.
There is usually a petrol station every 200-300 km along the long routes, but we took every chance we got and filled up….
Rental car in Namibia
After our trip, I would definitely highly, highly recommend hiring a 4×4 car with relatively high ground clearance. Most tourists are also travelling in such cars, there are only very few drivers with a standard small car and we really felt sorry for these drivers.
Car rental stations
You can hire cars directly from the providers, especially if you want a 4×4 (with or without a roof tent), you also have to hire directly from the companies, as they are not represented on collective platforms such as billiger-mietwagen.
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to compare prices for renting a car in Namibia, as there are many rental companies and many of them do not provide prices online. In addition, the contracts often differ in terms of insurance, camping equipment, ratings, etc. It makes no sense for me to give you my comparison here, as this will of course have changed in 1-2 years.
We hired our car from Savanna car hire and I have to say that we were very satisfied. The car we had was in top condition, the tyres were obviously in good condition too (no punctures) and the camping equipment had everything we needed. The hire and return were also easy and friendly. The only drawback was our pick-up from the airport. Here we had to wait a long time for other guests…..
We had also seen many other hire vehicles from the Namibia2Go hire company.
Basically, however, it depends a bit on your own taste, which model you want, what equipment you need, etc. Some hire companies are much more modern, some less so…
With the roof tent through Namibia – equipment & campsites
Namibia is a popular country for travelling with a roof tent and almost all car rental companies also offer a roof tent with camping equipment and sometimes sleeping bags (you have to ask, not everywhere).
There are great campsites in Namibia, which are not as crowded as in Europe and where you sometimes have your own toilets/showers at the pitch. I find it difficult to judge how easy it is to get a campsite spontaneously, as we had all booked in advance. We had the feeling at some campsites that we would have got a pitch there spontaneously, but not at others. Personally, I would at least pre-book at certain campsites, especially in Sossusvlei / Sesriem, where there are only 2 campsites directly in the national park with about 15 pitches each and otherwise you have to sleep outside, where you are only allowed to enter the national park 1 hour later in the morning.
In any case, we have had great experiences with the campsites of the Gondwana Group and also with the Sesriem Oshana Campsite.
Cash vs. Credit card
In many places in Namibia you can pay by credit card, but there are also some places where this is not possible and often there are no ATMs available anywhere. That’s why I would personally recommend always carrying at least the equivalent of around 50 euros in cash. For example, we stood at the Fish River Canyon and there you could only pay the entrance fee in cash…. The nearest ATM – 20 or 30 kilometers back…
Sim card in Namibia
When road tripping through a country, I would always recommend buying a SIM card, even if the network coverage in Namibia is an absolute disaster. Nevertheless, if you have a breakdown or an accident, you can at least make an emergency call. There are 2 providers in Namibia: mtc & telecom MTC has better coverage in the country, but for us, getting a SIM card was like winning the lottery. We simply had no chance of getting a SIM card because first at the airport the server was down (for 1 1/2 hours), then in the city there was a minimum waiting time of 1 1/2 hours at the store (and you don’t want to spend 1 1/2 hours in a store on a trip) and then in Swakopmund the same game happened again – at one store there was a 1 1/2 – 2 hour wait and in the other store the server was down again. Unfortunately, Mtc works really inefficiently, even if you sit at the counter, it takes at least 10 minutes to issue the SIM card, scan the passport, etc…. That’s why we chose Telecom, where we bought the SIM card in Swakopmund. Funnily enough, we didn’t have to show a passport there, nor were there any problems. However, we had no reception anywhere outside of the cities, but it is currently difficult for us to judge how MTC compares.
Offline-maps, Offline-music
Not only is the cell phone network (logically) terrible in the country and on the long journeys in Namibia, but also the radio reception. Therefore, my recommendation: be sure to download the Google Maps offline maps before you leave for Namibia (the best offline navigation system for your smartphone) & don’t forget to bring music with you, whether offline on your smartphone or via CD or USB… Even if you’re not a fan of podcasts, it’s worth looking for a few episodes in Namibia, because after a few hours of driving the music was really getting on our nerves. We downloaded the true crime podcast from Bayern 3 and listened to many episodes 🙂
Packing for Namibia
There are a few things you shouldn’t forget to pack when traveling through Namibia.
In general, the less luggage the better. Even if the car has an additional structure on the loading area, it is difficult to store luggage there because sand and dirt get in through gaps and the wind. That’s why we always had our luggage in the back seat and there is a maximum of space for 1 normal-sized suitcase + 1 camping backpack.
But here are things you should bring with you on your Namibia trip:
- Warm clothing for the night. In the desert it can get very cold at night, around 0 degrees is nothing unusual…. So pack a foldable down jacket before you freeze 😉
- Mosquito repellent. We actually only had real problems with mosquitoes one night, but even more so. A good mosquito repellent is worth it
- Cap / hat & sun protection: The sun in Namibia is brutal in summer time. A cap is important here so that at least the face is protected, and of course sun protection for the body (preferably an SPF 50)
- Towel: If you are traveling with the camper, don’t forget that you have to bring your own towels.
- Camping equipment: We included all the camping equipment (sleeping bag, cushions, flashlight and cooking utensils) in the rental car. You have to inform yourself in advance and otherwise bring any things with you if the worst comes to the worst
- Book/games for the evening
- Power bank: We found it very practical to have a power bank with solar function as we didn’t have perfect access to electricity everywhere and so we could charge our smartphones in the tent at night.
- Camera tripod: The Milky Way in Namibia is incredible, if you want to try your hand at night photography, this is the place to be.
