Fun things to do in Namibia

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Namibia's first (and only) UNESCO World Heritage Site covers the rock carvings and paintings at a number of centres. The ones at Twyfelfontein are the largest single place to see them.

You have to take a guided tour through the area, and this will take you the better part of an hour.

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On the road between Khorixas and Twyfelfontein is a protected area of the so named "petrified forest". This is a bit misleading, as there is no forest, but rather a collection of petrified trees that are lying down, in various stages. Largely broken up, coniferous trees were washed down from Angola and were covered up where the wood was slowely replaced by minerals.

If you haven't had a chance to see the Welwitschia plant, there are a number of them growing here as well

If you are in the area of Walvis Bay something you just HAVE to do is to go on a boattrip with Dolphin Tours Namibia. (Visit there lovely webpage). We spent a morning with them on board there very luxurious catamaran. And what a day it was!! We saw dolphins, a humpback whale, seals (even one that came onboard to say hallo), and numerous birds. After all the exitement we endulged in a delicious snack platter, with oysters and sparkling wine!!! Make sure not to miss this trip, it is worth every cent!!

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Namibia is a beautiful country full of unbelievable scenery and friendly people. It is a great place for outdoor and extreme sports with the fantastic weather it enjoys. It is also a harsh desert environment that only sees rainfall about 60 days a year. A licensed tour operator can show you a great time filled with as much excitement and adrenalin as you and your finances can take. An unlicensed operator could get you killed. Please only use businesses that are registered. Namibia is a pretty orderly place and the business listing includes accommodations as well.

The following businesses and establishments are required under the Namibia Tourism Board Act, 2000, to register with the NTB.

If they are not on here – don’t book with them for outdoor activities!

THE OFFICIAL LIST

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This is a very fascinating and free museum. Unfortunately the staff will ask you for a ‘donations' but just ignore them. The Museum is part of an old army garrison that contains lot of interesting Political exhibits from the last century. It shows the struggles of SWAPO (South West Africa People's Organization) to gain independence from Germany. Among the exhibits it shows imprisonment of SWAPO members in South Africa, Independence, and the first elections. It also has exhibits on colonial times and displays of the Constitution, Flag, National Anthem and Coat of Arms.

Please note: Their website is not currently working.

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THE ULTIMATE THRILL! Besides giving you the ride of your life, these guys are first rate! Wow, what a rush! You can jump with or without the cameras. I paid for the whole package and ended up with 3 photographers, a DVD movie and loads of pictures. First you have to sign a form stating that your are at least slightly insane, then they give you a helpful briefing. Next comes the tight fitting ‘Flying Elvis’ suit and then you get onboard a very small plane. The plane goes to 25,000 feet, then descends to 15,000 where you jump out. Don’t worry! You get 2 parachutes and it’s a tandem jump. Also they say they have a 100% success rate of getting people back on the ground. I think they mean alive!

Welcome to 35 seconds of freefall. You travel downwards at 200 kilometres per hour (125 mph) in what is known as TERMINAL VELOCITY. It means you cannot physically travel any faster and if your don’t stop you are about to become terminal.

They have a nice bar with ice cold beers in the hangar when you reach the ground. Boy did mine taste good!

Enjoy!

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Etosha National Park in the northern part of Namibia is the best place in the country to see game animals, although it doesn’t compare to the game parks in some other African countries. You can stay in the park at one of several government-run rest camps (with fairly basic chalet style accommodation) or outside in more up-market lodges – we chose the former.

If you’re staying at a private lodge there’s likely to be the possibility of guided game drives but we drove ourselves. That’s got a few advantages – you’re in control of where you go and how long you stay. On the other hand if you go with a guide they’ll probably be in touch with other guides and know where to go for the best recent sightings.

Anyway, we did pretty well on our own. We saw lots of zebra, ostrich and giraffe, and were also really pleased to spot a rhino. My favourites are the elephants, and towards the end of the afternoon we found a large herd at a water-hole – definitely the highlight of our self-made game drive!

Etosha Game Park was declared a National Park in 1907. It covers an area of 22 270 square km, and while it isn’t as abundant with game as some of the more famous parks on the continent, it is home to 114 mammal species, 340 bird species, 110 reptile species, 16 amphibian species and one species of fish.

Etosha means "Great White Place", and the name suits the landscape, which is dominated by a massive mineral pan. This covers around 25% of the National Park, and was originally a lake fed by the Kunene River. However the lake dried up when the course of the river changed thousands of years ago. The pan is now a large dusty depression of salt and dusty clay which fills only if the rains are heavy and even then only holds water for a short time. But the springs and water-holes which remain along the edges of the pan attract large concentrations of wildlife and birds, and are the prime spots for viewing game.

The game viewing in Etosha National Park is excellent, the best time being from May to September - the cooler months in Namibia (we were there in July). Visitors can usually expect to see antelope, elephant, giraffe, rhino and lions, all of which we saw (though the lions only at night). Apparently some lucky visitors also see leopard and cheetah, but we didn’t here, although we did see the latter elsewhere in the country at Okonjima. There is a good network of roads linking the rest camps and various waterholes and other game viewing spots, all of which are navigable with a regular saloon car.