Africa. It’s on nearly each traveler’s bucket checklist due to its distinctive wildlife, historical past, and cultures.
However the problem to planning a visit to Africa will be deciding the place to start out – Africa, in spite of everything, is a HUGE place; a complete continent made up of greater than 50 very completely different international locations. So how on earth do you resolve which one to go to first?
If I could make a suggestion, I’d let you know to start out in Namibia.
Namibia, positioned on the southwestern coast of the African continent, makes for an important introduction to this fascinating a part of the world with its gorgeous landscapes and ample wildlife.
Not satisfied? Listed here are all of the explanation why Namibia is a superb place to start out your adventures in Africa.
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1. It’s a protected and simple place to journey
Namibia by night time.
Namibia is, basically, a really protected nation during which to journey. It’s politically steady, and ranked at #43 on the 2018 International Peace Index. It’s simple to navigate, has a developed tourism infrastructure, and will be visited visa-free for a lot of nationalities (together with folks from Australia, the US, Canada, and the UK).
Whether or not you’re tenting or staying in lodges all through Namibia, you possibly can count on good, clear lodging with sizzling water and Western bogs – most campsites even have lovely swimming pools and full-service bars!
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2. The landscapes are out of this world
The skeletal timber at Deadvlei.
Lots of people assume that Namibia is simply all desert – however this isn’t actually true. The nation has all kinds of various landscapes, from towering orange sand dunes to salt flats to pink lakes to eerie coastlines.
Listed here are only a few of the wonderful pure locations you possibly can go to:
Fish River Canyon – Enjoyable truth for you: the traditional Fish River Canyon in southern Namibia is the second-largest pure canyon on the planet, second solely to the Grand Canyon in the USA.
Namib-Naukluft Nationwide Park – This nationwide park covers greater than 19,000 sq. miles in central Namibia, making it one of many largest sport parks on the planet. It’s dwelling to the tallest sand dunes on the planet, too, and fashionable spots like Sossusvlei (the place folks climb Dune 45 for dawn) and Deadvlei, the place petrified camel thorn timber stand like ghostly skeletons.
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Walvis Bay – The place you will discover pink lakes and pinker flamingos.
The Skeleton Coast – The place the sand dunes meet the ocean. This stretch of shoreline in northern Namibia will be tough to get to, nevertheless it’s typically a favourite with guests. You possibly can look forward to finding foggy mornings and the stays of ships dashed alongside the sand; there’s a motive that this area was initially given names like “The Gates of Hell” by sailors.
Plus, nearly wherever you’re in Namibia, you’ll be handled to some unimaginable night time skies crammed with stars.
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3. You’ll have wonderful wildlife encounters
Probably the most epic wildlife photograph ever??
Most individuals assume that with a view to go on a “good” safari it is advisable go someplace like Kruger Nationwide Park in South Africa or the Serengeti in Tanzania. However guess what? Namibia is stuffed with wonderful wildlife, too.
Etosha Nationwide Park in Namibia’s northern Kunene area is, for my part, one of many extra underrated sport parks in Southern Africa. It covers greater than 8,600 sq. miles and is dwelling to all kinds of wildlife, from elephants to lions to endangered black rhinos.
A dazzle of zebras having fun with a drink.
The principle characteristic in Etosha is the Etosha pan, a big salt pan that may be seen from house. Through the dry season, many of the pan dries up and Etosha’s animals congregate round quite a lot of watering holes. For those who’ve ever dreamed of seeing a scene straight out of “The Lion King,” that is the place you’ll discover it.
After I visited Etosha, we visited one watering gap that was crammed with a mixture of zebra and wildebeest, one other the place giraffes, elephants, and rhinos got here to drink, and one other the place at least six several types of animals (together with a lion!) had been all ingesting collectively.
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4. You’ll discover distinctive methods to attach with historical past
Like most African nations, Namibia was colonized by Europeans within the 19th century. It was a German protectorate up till 1915, when it fell below South African rule. Namibia is now an impartial democracy (and has been since 1990), however influences from its German colonization can nonetheless be seen at this time in cities like Windhoek and Swakopmund.
However after all Namibia’s historical past stretches again far past the 19th century. Historical historic websites value visiting embrace the Twyfelfontein Heritage Web site, a UNESCO World Heritage Web site with 1000’s of preserved rock carvings, and Spitzkoppe, a grouping of granite peaks that even have a number of bits of San (Bushmen) paintings.
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5. You may get adventurous
Swakopmund Seaside.
Whereas happening safari and climbing up large sand dunes might be lots adventurous for most individuals, these on the lookout for an additional dose of adrenaline can discover it in Namibia.
Swakopmund, a coastal city proper on the sting of the Namib Desert, is the journey capital of the nation (and probably all of Southern Africa). Widespread journey actions right here embrace sand boarding, quad biking, and even skydiving.
Namibia actually does have one thing for everybody, and hopefully you’re satisfied now that it’s the proper place to go to in your first journey to Africa.
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All photos by Amanda Williams.