Sample Itineraries for a trip to Namibia

Windhoek has direct flights from many European countries.  A flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Namibia is about 10 hours long.  Unfortunately, Americans need to fly to either Europe or Johannesburg first before catching a connecting flight to Windhoek.  So, you're looking at a 30-40 hour journey.   I would not reccommend a vacation to Namibia with anything less than ten days.

Namibia makes an excellent extension to a South Africa journey.  Ideally, you can squeeze two extra weeks into a trip to Southern Africa, and take in all of the major sites from Victoria Falls Southwards.

One Week

• 1 day Windhoek
• 2 days Sesriem/Sossusvlei
• 3 days Etosha Pan NP
• 1 day travel back to Windhoek

Two Weeks

• 1 day Windhoek
• 3 days Fish River Canyon hike
• 3 days Sesriem/Sossusvlei
• 2 days Swakopmund (quad biking, sandboarding, sky diving)
• 3 days Etosha Pan NP
• 1 day travel back to Windhoek
• 1 day departure

Three Weeks

This is an ideal amount of time to spend in Namibia.  The items below that are indicated with ** are either/or choices.  I would recommend skipping Luderitz and Kohlmannskopp, and wandering up the Skeleton Coast instead.

• 1 day Windhoek
• 3 days Luderitz, Kohlmannskopp and the Orange River**
• 4 days Fish River Canyon hike
• 4 days Sesriem/Sossusvlei
• 3 days Swakopmund (quad biking, sandboarding, sky diving)
• 3 days Skeleton Coast**
• 4 days Etosha Pan NP
• 1 day travel back to Windhoek
• 1 day departure

Four Weeks

• All of the above, plus,
• Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
• Cape Town, South Africa

Six Weeks

Not too many vacationers spend this much time in Namibia.  If you want to, I would suggest that you extend your time in Sossusvlei (as much as you can handle--I had some bad nosebleeds due to the extreme dryness), but take some time to explore other bordering countries.  If you love the desert, go to the Kalahari (Botswana and South Africa).  If you want to see natural wonders, check out Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.  If you want to do some eco-game viewing, then perhaps a canoe trip on the Zambezi river (Zimbabwe), ending in Mana Pools National Park.

Of course, Cape Town is my choice for the most beautiful city on earth, so I would try to rent a beach house in Clifton or Camps bay for a week and relax after a week of climbing the dunes of Sossusvlei.