Those who follow this blog may already know that we are used to plan our travels using satellite images. We don’t use travel agencies and reduce to the minimum the expenses behind the planning of a trip. In this post we speak for the first time about our next travel destination: Namibia!
How did we decide to go to Namibia?
Last year we crossed the Iberian Peninsula from Barcelona to Portugal and did a road trip through a fantastic country, visiting Alentejo, Lisbon, Porto… and Sintra. I say this because it was in Sintra, maybe one of the most beautiful places in Europe, where we realized that the beauty cannot be properly explored among thousands of people. Some places which can be fascinating when isolated may loose their magic when thousands of people are looking at it.
When we came back home and being in that period between the last trip and the need to plan a new one, we saw a documentary in TV about a Catalan family, also the two kids, doing a round trip around the World. One of the places they went to was Namibia and there they did free camping in some of the dreamiest landscapes in the planet. They also planned a strategy to find the desert elephant which can only be seen in some places in that country.
Then we started to look for information and we realized it is a safe country, well prepared for foreigners and that it is the second less dense country in the world, only after Mongolia. Only 2 million people live in Namibia, which has 1.5 the size of France. After reading about Namibia we knew that this destination will boom in the following years, since it has been considered by Lonely Planet as the second best destination in the world based on price-quality for 2017 and thus there was no excuse not to go there this summer!
How are we going to visit Namibia?
We have rented a 4×4 car with a camping tent in the roof with Camping Car Hire and we have planned a round route through the country.
We will start our travel towards the south. The first stop will be in the middle of the Kalahari Desert. Here we will meet the Bushmen and we’ll see our first orange sunrise in Africa! We discovered our campsite in Kalahari by using this kind of images from Google Earth:
We always say: “If something is beautiful from the sky it has to be beautiful on land”. Using this quote we have searched for some incredible features that will make our travel unforgettable.
From Kalahari Desert we will travel towards the dry south to visit the second largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in United States. The Fish River Canyon is a natural wonder that deserves a sunrise and a sunset and we have decided to spend a night at its border.
From here to the West we will go to see the Ghost Town of Kolmanskop. It is an abandoned town that has been conquered by the sand of the Namib Desert, the oldest one in the world. Kolmanskop was once a place full of life and money due to the wealthy industry of diamonds. It is close to Lüderitz, a colorful colonial town with reminiscences of German architecture.
From Lüderitz, which is in the coast, bathed with the cold Benguela current that comes directly from the Antarctica, we will travel inland again towards the most surrealistic landscape of Namibia: Sossusvlei, in the middle of the world’s oldest desert, the Namib Desert, which has the highest dunes in the world. We will climb some of them and also, of course, the Big Daddy, the highest one.
We will climb it before the sunrise to see how the red sand changes its color with the magic light of Africa. And then… why not sandboarding the highest dune in the world towards its feet where the Deadvlei (Dead Valley) is found? The Deadvlei is a dried lake between extremely high dunes, and there are dozens of petrified black trees that have been standing for millions of years.
After this adventure we will do an afternoon horse ride through the Namib desert in order to feel like Indiana Jones. And then, again we’ll go towards the coast to visit Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, where we will fly by a plane above the Namib Desert and the Skeleton Coast. The reason behind this name is that dozens of ships have embarked for centuries and we will use the plane to fly above some of these shipwrecks that cannot be reached by land.
From Swakopmund we will go to Damaraland where we will spend one day trying to find the desert elephant, giraffes and lions. We will be alone with our own tent on the roof of the 4×4… just to be safe! And I am sure the nights will be the starriest ones we have ever seen.
Towards the north we will meet the Himba tribe to learn from their knowledge and share some songs and dancings and finally we will move to Etosha!
Etosha is one of the largest natural parks in the world and one of the best ones to see the Big 5 (rhinoceros, African elephant, African lion, African leopard and cape buffalo). We will cross Etosha from West to East, from one waterhole to another to see as much biodiversity as possible, including one night game view.
And for sure many other adventures will come to find us in this unique adventure travel. And we know that some of the magic we will feel in this trip will be directly related with the fact that we have organized it with no intermediaries. This is a complete adventure!
We hope you will follow us in this fantastic journey through undiscovered landscapes because we will write about it in the blog, of course! Many posts will come about Namibia after this experience. See you!
Namibia is at the very top of places I’d like to visit in Africa. I’ve read more and more about it recently and it’s only increased my motivation to visit! So many stunning natural features. Plus I’ve always wanted to visit a Ghost Town! I had no idea it was so sparsely populated!
Can’t wait to read more about your trip – have an amazing time! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
We neither can wait to be there and start sharing it! 😀 I hope we can inspire you for you future travel to Namibia 😉 Thanks for your comment
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love the perspective of intermixing Google Earth images with your own – what a unique way to plan your travel! When I finally do get to visit Africa, Namibia will be my first stop!
#TheWeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
It will also be our first time in Africa and we are so excited about it. We know that we are going to see many virigin places… Thanks for your comment! 🙂
LikeLike
Wow what an adventure, I barely know anything about Namibia, so really looking forward to reading more. I have heard of the skeleton coast but that is about it. So glad to hear it is a safe place. Thanks for sharing on #TheWeeklyPostcard.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Now we have to make it reallity! It is just planned… We will write about it, of course! Thanks for your comment!
LikeLike
This would be an epic trip! So excited for you! I was in Europe a couple of weeks ago and saw a lot people traveling by campervan or RV. Now, I am looking for info on how to do something similar. Of course, traveling like that on Namibia would be pretty awesome (and thanks for putting there the possibility of doing something similar). #TheWeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
We know we are going to do a kind of trip in Africa that it is not quite common. Most of the people travel to Africa with touroperators. With this travel we want to show that it is possible to do a travel full of freedom, not tied to group dynamics. We want to prove that following some tips it can be organized similar to those trips in Europe or USA, feeling freedom and knowing that plans can be changed during any journey, just because we are free to do that 😊
LikeLike
Wow, I’m really impressed by all these details that you have already planned for this trip. Hope you’ll have a blast in Namibia. I’d like to visit it too. Looking forward to hearing your impressions. #TheWeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yees! We will try to five as much details as possible in the future. We want this travel to be doable for everyone 😊
LikeLike
You have started to inspire me already! I would love to see Ghost Town, Death Valley and of course, a safari experience in Etosha! Looking forward to see your updates on #TheWeeklyPostcard 🙂 Good luck!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Kat! For sure we will give more details in the future. Glad it inspired you! 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such an evocative destination with some truly iconic landscapes! We’re looking forward to going with you from our laptops. 😉 Can’t wait to see your photos from the deserts. Good luck spotting the Big 5, too! #TheWeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey! Thanks! 😊 I am sure we need to buy a new memory card, just in case. We’ll make so many photos… Not al, of them will fit in the blog but we’ll may create an album in our facebook page. Thanks for your comment!
LikeLike
Wow, planning ahead is crucial for seeing those one-of-a-kind places. Looking forward to hearing about this when you get back from that trip! #TheWeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
We agree, planning is needed and crucial for this kind of trip. We have to think about almost everything before landing there. But as always, we will leave timw windows for improvisation 😊 Sometimes the best moments happen when improvising!
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a wonderful and fascinating trip. I’d love to go to Namibia, I’ve only ever heard fantastic things about it. Planning your trips via satellite images is amazing! #WeeklyPostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yees! I have done it for many years… I think I should create a travel agency with this methodology, don’t you think? Haha Since today it has given great results! Thanks for your comment Jo!
LikeLike
Namibia really is an amazing country, so much to see and experience. Etosha was one of my favorites, but I would like to return and see more of the country as we only spent one week. I’m sure that you will enjoy it and it is a safe country to visit. Just make sure to follow common sense and remember to drive on the left. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
We’ll read all of your posts about Namibia to get a better idea of everything and, of course, not to forget to drive on the left! Haha Thanks for the comment 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
This looks amazing, especially the deserted town filled with sand and those stark trees agains the white of the cracked earth. wow! Can’t wait to read about your adventures! #theweeklypostcard
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Hilary! Glad you liked it and for sure you will have a detailed explanaition about our discoveries in Namibia. Thanks for your comment 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow! Namibia has so many hidden gems to discover!! I’ve heard about Kolmanskop before and would LOVE to see it in real life! Can’t wait to read more!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Vanessa! It is nice to read you are interested in Namibia. I hope we can inspire you after our adventure there!
LikeLike
This is going to be AMAZING!!! Can’t wait to read all about your adventure!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes! We can’t wait to take off! I am sure this will be one of those travels you remember during all your life. We promise to write all the details after it 😊
LikeLike
Wow, what an amazing landscape – no wonder you have chosen to visit there. I look forward to discovering if your idea that you will be able to explore the place on your lonesome will happen.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey! Thanks for your comment 😊 There is no other option. We will do it by our own haha. Let’s see if our planning is successful and we don’t have to many unexpected issues like wrong distances calculations, car problems, …
LikeLike
Namibia is right at the top of my bucket list and its exactly because of these kind of places. Can’t wait to hear about your adventures there. #wanderfulwednesday
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey! We’ve been “studying” Namibia for one year till we didn’t have another option than to buy the flight tickets! You will hear from us after this travel, for sure! Thanks for your comment 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person