Skeleton Coast and Beyond...

[JLS13]

Next year will be my Dad's 65th birthday and retirement. Being as fit and able as ever, my Mother and I have planned to send him on holiday. I thought of the idea of flying him over from Canada meeting him in Glasgow and flying to South Africa from there.

The plan I've come up with is to rent a Land Rover, to expensive to kit-out and fly over my own... :( , and drive up into Namibia. I would like to spend a month or so doing this as this is the place he's always wanted to see and I wouldn't be to rushed to get back home either.

Does anyone have any information the could pass on to me at all about the area, renting a Landy or just some general words of advice? Anything would be appreciated. I've been to various parts of Africa a few times now so I'm starting to feel comfortable travelling there. I think that September would be a good time of year to go but please let me know otherwise.


Asante Sana, James

[Marc Lurie]

Next year will be my Dad's 65th birthday and retirement. Being as fit and able as ever, my Mother and I have planned to send him on holiday. I thought of the idea of flying him over from Canada meeting him in Glasgow and flying to South Africa from there.

Asante Sana, James
Hi James,

That's a great birthday present for your dad, and a really good idea.

The best person to speak to on this forum is Frank (His forum name is "El Stiemo"). He lives in Namibia, is an ardent LR fanatic, and he's involved in tourism.

You'll love Namibia. It is truly beautiful and diverse.

Of course, if you fly into Johannesburg, Brigid and I would love to show you around if you have time. There's plenty to do here, and plenty to see.

Regards,
Marc

BTW, "Asante sana" is meaningless in this part of Africa :D . You're going to have to learn a bit of Zulu, Afrikaans, Sesotho, and Xhosa :p

Zulu: Ngiyabonga ka khulu (singular) / Siyabonga (plural)
Afrikaans: Baie dankie
Sesotho: Ke a leboha
Xhosa: Enkosi kakhulu
:) :) :) :) :)

[K&S]

Hi Marc,

Sorry to hijack this thread but must let you know about the Land Rover Owners Club get away this weekend. If you are free and want a bit of off roading up the mountain there on Saturday and a trial and Sunday let me know. We will be going Friday night to get a bit more camping and fire side talk :)

[Marc Lurie]

Hi Marc,

Sorry to hijack this thread but must let you know about the Land Rover Owners Club get away this weekend. If you are free and want a bit of off roading up the mountain there on Saturday and a trial and Sunday let me know. We will be going Friday night to get a bit more camping and fire side talk :)

Sounds like a good weekend Kevin. Unfortunately (or perhaps, fortunately) I'll be in jolly-old-England this weekend, at the Billing LR Show. I cashed in some Voyager miles, and I'm going for the weekend. :rolleyes:

Cheers,
Marc

[K&S]

Wow sounds great. I'm jealous, especially about the LR show at Billing.

[El Stiemo]

Hi James,

I must apologise firstly for not geting back to you sooner, I have been up to my eyeballs in work these couple of last weeks and have only found your thread now.

A couple of infos firstly. There are numerous car rental companies in Namibia, but only two that rent out Landys and at quite expensive rates I must add (too many accidents with them). So as far as availability goes, it would be a better idea to rent the vehicle in South Africa and drive it up with a cross border permit into Namibia. The rates are less expensive in South Africa than here. Consider however that there will be a large one - way fee to add on at the end of the trip if you leave the vehicle in Windhoek or Livingstone. I can help you with the names of those companies if you'd like.

September is one of the best months for visiting Namibia, however please take note that it is in fact the touristic high season which means that you need to book well in advance to be able to get space.

You mention the Skeleton coast - please be aware that with very few places excepted the Namibian coast is not accessible to the public. The southern part is the Diamond area, Sperrgebiet, a no - go zone. Unfortunately. Further north there is the Namib Naukluft park which is closed on the coastal side, there is only one operator who has a concession to take people through the 450 km of dunes to Walvis Bay, an experience of a lifetime, by the way. Further north is the central part of our coast that is indeed accessible, and north of the Ugab River mouth comes the Skeleton coast National Park which is very inaccessible and no off road driving is allowed here.

Namibia is a very diverse country and not only about the Skeleton Coast, there are many attractions like the Fish River Canyon, Sossusvlei, the Kalahari Desert, Bushmanland, Etosha National Park, Kaokoland and Damaraland to see. If you PM me, we can work out a detailed itinerary for you that corresponds to your needs.

You should be quite safe travelling in Namibia.

Let me know if you need any help.

Mooi bly.

Cheers, Frank

[JLS13]

Hey thanx for all the info.

Let me take a look at some of my maps again and I can give you a good idea of some of the places we plan to visit. Is there anywhere you recommend as a "must-see"? Off the beaten track preferred. I mean I know in places of Africa it's difficult to just explore due to restrictions,but anywhere paticularly rich in wildlife and scenery that's not flooded but camera-happy tourist would be ideal.:D

Thanx again and I'll PM you after I have another look.

Cheers, James.