Namibia thread

>>1288659
>I will be travelling through western South Africa before Namibia and i was wondering if overland travelling between the two countries is a thing? Are there legit buses or do i need a car? I dont want to fly.

South African army did it to crush SWAPO back in the day, so there's probably a way around.

>Is there anything in Windhoek? Are there any other cities worth visiting for the city itself?

Depends. I'd say it's pretty much a lame German colonial capitol. Expect white people and German and basically like being a European-style city in Africa. Worst of both worlds, probably. Germans did a shit job.


>Is Namibia better than South Africa for watching animals?

Do you want to hunt them, or just watch them? Namibia might be easier for trophy hunting. SA has Kruger, but Namibia has pretty much all of Namibia. Rhinos in the south, elephants in Zambezi(Caprivi) in the north.

Namibia has a very high HIV/AIDS infection rate. I advise not fucking anyone, and definitely not without a rubber. Warm up a watermelon or something if you really need to nut.

There's a lot of diamonds in Namibia. You might want to figure out a way to get a couple of roughs out for cheap.

Here's some fun facts:
300+ days of sunshine annually
Rain from under-50mm to 600mm+
Steep central plateau @ 2000m, drops back to about 1000m
Sandy desert, gravel inland, bad water retention
11,800 usd per capita but most of the wealth is in windhoek
55.8% live below 2 usd/day
28.1% unemployment 2014 est
most imports are from SA, most exports go to SA
currency is pegged to SA Rand at 1:1

High risk for malaria and water-borne disease so get your shit and whatever.

>>1288660
As for Windhoek, it sounds like a place where you just spend a night, not chill for a few days i guess.

I just want to watch the animals lol. Any idea where the place is to see a few? I dont wanna go animal watching on more than one/two occasions cause it seems fucking expensive.

>>1288660
Going between Namibia and SA is very easy and does not take long. Great roads. Buses. Cars. Flights. Whatever u want. Stay in Saldanha on the way to Cape Town if you want to do it in 2 spurts.

>>1289002
Cool, do you have to go with like an organized tour or are there just local buses operating?
Also, i wouldnt mind doing it in a few days, going on a long bus between Cape Town and Windhoek seems like i would miss alot of stuff.

>>1288729
It's probably cheaper in Zambezi where the amount of currency in the economy is low.

Just try to patronize game reserves/conservancies that (at least try to) use sustainable and ethical management and conservation practices. Maybe you don't have a choice, maybe you do, but at least try. There's only so many elephants and rhinos left, so try to give money to the people who do a good job of it.

>>1288729
>>1289002
I should have mentioned that, by and large, Namib highways are actually pretty good for former colonial Africa. They're only dual lane and the speed limit is like 60kmph, but I also doubt there's any actual enforcement so it's probably "as fast as you feel safe."

The main carriageways in Zambezi look like they're, by and large, in better shape than my local highways here in California.

>>1289265
>Just try to patronize game reserves/conservancies that (at least try to) use sustainable and ethical management and conservation practices.

Fine, fair enough. But how could I tell the difference?

>>1289114
http://www.intercape.co.za/

Intercity buses covering most of Southern
Africa. You're welcome.

>>1289809
Thanks brah

Bumping this cause im planning on going to Namibia next year but i havent really heard that much about it?

>>1289809
Dont yell at me but isnt that dangerous as fuck with hijackings and shit

>>1289792
No clue about that. I read some academic literature about how the Mayuni conservancy in Zambezi is doing good work, though. Elephants and stuff up there.

My GF and I are planning 3-4 weeks self drive next December in Namibia/Botswana. Hoping to camp with occasional stay in a hotel.

We have little experience 4wding however, although talk online suggests it's not an issue. Anyone have insight? Don't really want to get bogged.

>>1288659
I grew up in Namibia and SA. Very easy travelling between the two. You can drive from Johannesburg or Cape Town. Quite a long drive so would stop halfway. Saldanha is waaayy to close to cape town to use as a pitstop and not much to see there. Sossusvlei, Aus (Klein Aus vista is great lodge), Palmwag, white lady lodge, sesriem, Kaokoland, boesmandland, Etosha is a must for game viewing, Swakopmund, Spitzkoppen etc... the list goes on