Must-see attractions in Botswana & Namibia

  • Gobabis Hill

    Chobe National Park

    In the heart of Savuti, Gobabis Hill is home to several sets of 4000-year-old rock art of San origin. The best are the depictions of livestock halfway to…

  • Matsieng Rock Carvings

    Botswana

    Loaded with cultural and historical significance, the Matsieng Rock Carvings are regarded by the Batswana as one of the four ‘creation sites’. According…

  • The Hope

    Walvis Bay

    During the winter, rail services between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay are often plagued by windblown sand, which covers the tracks and undermines the…

  • Aha Hills

    Namibia

    Up against the Botswana border, the flat landscape is broken only by the arid Aha Hills. The region is pockmarked with unexplored caves and sinkholes, but…

  • Baobabs

    Namibia

    The dry, crusty landscape around Tsumkwe supports several large baobab trees, some of which have grown quite huge. The imaginatively named Grootboom (Big…

  • Fort

    Namibia

    The most famous attraction in Uutapi is the former South African Defence Force (SADF) base, which is dominated by an enormous baobab tree. This tree,…

  • Krokavango Crocodile Farm

    Okavango Delta

    It’s difficult to know what to make of this place, not far south of Drotsky’s Cabins (the turn-off from the main Sehithwa–Shakawe road is at GPS S 18°26…

  • Tsumeb Mining Museum

    Namibia

    If you normally skip museums, make an exception here. Tsumeb’s story is told in this museum, which is housed in a 1915 colonial building that once served…

  • Panveld

    Namibia

    Forming an arc east of Tsumkwe is a remote landscape of phosphate-rich pans. After the rains, the largest of these, Nyae Nyae, Khebi and Gautcha (all at…

  • German Fort & Museum

    Namibia

    Historical settler history is depicted here through some fascinating black-and-white photos. The Himba, Kavango and Mbanderu collections of artefacts and…

  • Moordkoppie

    Namibia

    The historical animosity between the Nama and the Herero had its most emphatic expression at the Battle of Moordkoppie (Afrikaans for ‘Murder Hill’) on 23…

  • Trans-Namib Transport Museum

    Windhoek

    Windhoek’s beautiful old Cape Dutch–style train station on Bahnhof St was constructed by the Germans in 1912, and was expanded in 1929 by the South…

  • Third Bridge

    Okavango Delta

    Literally the third log bridge after entering the reserve at South Gate (although First Bridge and Second Bridge were, at the time of writing, easy to…

  • Woermannhaus

    Swakopmund

    From the shore, the delightful German-style Woermannhaus stands out above surrounding buildings. Built in 1905 as the main offices of the Damara & Namaqua…

  • Bahurutshe Cultural Lodge

    Botswana

    Situated about 5km east of the Botswelelo Centre, in Mmankgodi, and 2km off the Gaborone–Kanye road, is Bahurutshe Cultural Lodge, an innovative cultural…

  • Popa Falls

    Namibia

    Near Bagani, the Okavango River plunges down a broad series of cascades known as Popa Falls. The falls are nothing to get steamed up about, especially if…

  • Independence Memorial Museum

    Windhoek

    Opened in 2014, this museum is dedicated to the country's anticolonial and independence struggle. The first floor tells the story of Namibia under…

  • Moon Landscape

    Swakopmund

    If you're on a quest to see weltwitschias, continue east along the Weltwitschia Drive to the Moon Landscape, a vista across eroded hills and valleys…

  • Moremi Gorge

    Botswana

    The approach to steep-walled Moremi Gorge gives little hint of what lies ahead. Once within the site, with its sheer beauty and abundant birdlife (with…

  • Marine Memorial

    Swakopmund

    Often known by its German name, Marine Denkmal, this memorial was commissioned in 1907 by the Marine Infantry in Kiel, Germany, and designed by sculptor…

  • Dombo Hippo Pools

    Okavango Delta

    The drive between North Gate (including Khwai) and Xakanaxa Lediba follows one of Botswana’s more scenic tracks, although the exact route changes with the…

  • Crocodile Farm

    Namibia

    Otjiwarongo is home to Namibia’s first crocodile ranch, which produces skins for export. You can do a worthwhile tour, and there’s a shop which has mainly…

  • Motetane Gorge

    Botswana

    The walls of the Tswapong Hills are riven with deep canyons, and the east–west Motetane Gorge is the prettiest of them. The turn-off to the gorge is well…

  • Bird Paradise

    Walvis Bay

    Immediately east of town at the municipal sewage-purification works is this nature sanctuary, which consists of a series of shallow artificial pools,…

  • Lagoon

    Walvis Bay

    The shallow and sheltered 45,000-hectare lagoon, southwest of town and west of the Kuiseb River mouth, attracts a range of coastal water birds and…

  • Van Zyl’s Pass

    Namibia

    The beautiful, but frightfully steep and challenging, Van Zyl’s Pass forms a dramatic transition between the Kaokoveld plateaus and the vast, grassy…

  • Kaiserliches Bezirksgericht (State House)

    Swakopmund

    This rather stately building was constructed in 1902 to serve as the district magistrates’ court. It was extended in 1905, and again in 1945 when a tower…

  • Gabatsadi Island

    Botswana

    The enormous crescent-shaped dune known as Gabatsadi Island has an expansive view from the crest that has managed to attract the likes of Prince Charles. …

  • Friedenskirche

    Namibia

    In the churchyard and across the road from the 1876 Friedenskirche are the graves of several historical figures, including Herero leader Willem Maherero,…

  • Rhenish Mission Church

    Walvis Bay

    Walvis Bay’s oldest remaining building, the Rhenish Mission Church was prefabricated in Hamburg, Germany, reconstructed beside the harbour in 1880 and…

  • Lake Oponono

    Namibia

    The main attraction in the area is Lake Oponono, a large wetland fed by the Culevai oshanas (underground river channels). After a heavy rainy season, the…

  • Bird Island

    Walvis Bay

    Along the Swakopmund road, 10km north of Walvis Bay, take a look at the offshore wooden platform known as Bird Island. It was built to provide a roost and…

  • Kristall Galerie

    Swakopmund

    This architecturally astute gallery features some of the planet’s most incredible crystal formations, including the largest quartz crystal that has ever…

  • Hamilton Hills

    Namibia

    The range of limestone hills known as the Hamilton Hills, south of Vogelfederberg campsite, rises 600m above the surrounding desert plains. It provides…

  • Alte Gefängnis (Old Prison)

    Swakopmund

    This impressive 1909 structure, on Nordring St, was built as a prison, but if you didn’t know this, you’d swear it was either an early train station or a…

  • Nakambale Museum

    Namibia

    Nakambale, which was built in the late 1870s by Finnish missionary Martti Rauttanen, is believed to be the oldest building in northern Namibia. It now…

  • Naute Kristall

    Namibia

    Call ahead for directions and a one-hour tour of this innovative distillery thats produce NamGin, Namibia's very own, home-grown gin. It's overseen by…

  • Heinitzburg Castle

    Windhoek

    Uphill from Robert Mugabe Ave are the three Windhoek 'castles', including the 1914 Heinitzburg, which today houses a hotel and fine restaurant. The other…

  • Agricultural Museum

    Namibia

    The highlight of Helmeringhausen is the idiosyncratic Agricultural Museum, established in 1984 by the Helmeringhausen Farming Association. It displays all…

  • St Barbara’s Church

    Namibia

    Tsumeb’s distinctive Roman Catholic church was consecrated in 1914 and dedicated to St Barbara, the patron saint of mineworkers. It contains some fine…

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