General: Namibia > Reviews > Overview and opinion

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money
Shopping
Nightlife
Ease of getting around
Family Friendly

Advantages:	Space is too small !
Disadvantages:	Far away !  That's pretty much it !

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I've already written pieces for some of the individual places, so I'll try not to go over old ground etc etc, but here's the basics.

During my GAP year in 1997, myself and two friends from school backpacked and hitchiked from Kenya through all the countries in between to SAfrica over a period of three months. Transport methods varied wildly, but generally we got from A to B, although sometimes with a whole lot of other letters strung in between as well!

Namibia is a country I knew pretty much nothing about until we arrived and I read parts of the Lonely Planet, but this all changed, this country most people have never heard of, and has a population of around 1.6 million, despite being 4 times the size of the UK (UK pop around 60 million).

It's very unlike all the other parts of Southern Africa. In places like Swokupmund and Luderitz for example you've got very typical German architecture, and the streets are called things like 'Kaiser Wilhelm Strasse' - you'd never think you were in Africa. But then you go places like Etosha National Park, and when standing in what many believe to be THE national park in Southern Africa, you could be nowhere else. Moving south to my favorite place, and the most stunning scenary and emptiness you will ever see, you got places like Sossusvlei and the rest of the Namib desert. Miles and Miles of sand dunes reaching 300m high, almost barren of life save some amazing plants that can live over 3000 years, and specially adapted antelope, elephants and a few others. If it's hiking your after then, Fish River Canyon down towards the SAfrican boarder near Ai-Ais has got it all with thermal waters at bath-water temperature filling up a large bating pool for after the hike.

Namibia is a country, as is the whole region, but specifically Namibia, that I fell in love with, have already returned to once, and plan to again soon.

Any questions, email.