Road trip in Western Namibia

Windhoek is Namibia’s capital and largest city. It is in the geographic centre of the country at an elevation of 1,600m. This is the city where most safaris travelling through Namibia begin, and also the first point of entry in Namibia should you arrive by airplane.

The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is located in the Kalahari regions of both Botswana and South Africa. The park offers a majestic and infinite desert landscape with migrating herds of wildebeest, gemsbok, springbok and eland, cunning predators like lion, cheetah and leopard and unending red dunes with unique flora and a diversity of epic proportions is what draws the visitor to this ancient land of the Kalahari Desert.

Sossusvlei is a salt and clay pan surrounded by the worlds highest dunes, located in the southern part of the Namib Desert, in the Namib-Naukluft National Park of Namibia. Sossusvlei is a common tourist destination in the southern part of the Namib Desert.

The Brandberg is Namibia’s highest mountain. Brandberg Mountain is located in Damaraland, in the northwestern Namib Desert, near the coast, and covers an area of approximately 650 km². The name Brandberg is Afrikaans, Dutch and German for Fire Mountain, which comes from its glowing color which is sometimes seen in the setting sun.

Kaokoland lies in the NW corner of Namibia’s Kunene Region. Today it remains the most “untouched” and remote part of the country, much of it still only accessible by 4×4 on hardcore tracks – not for the faint-hearted! Puros is particularly well-known for its desert elephants which are commonly to be found in the riverbed behind the village – and make regular visits to Puros Bush Lodge and Campsite! Also home to desert lions.

Opuwo is the capital of the Kunene Region of Namibia. It is also the only town of any consequence in the area and therefore an important base from which to explore the Kaokoland area and visit the nomadic Himba people. There aren’t any tourist attractions here, but as it’s the only settlement in the area where petrol and a limited supplies of groceries can be purchased, so it warrants at least a last-minute shopping trip.

Etosha National Park is the 2nd largest of Namibia’s game reserves and it spans 20,000km² in Northern Namibia. The park surrounds the Etosha salt pan, which attracts animals, particularly in the drier winter months, because it is a source of water in a very dry land. Its name means “big white place”, referring to the Etosha Salt Pan.