Our 7-day Self-Driving Trip in Namibia

Why I postponed travelling to Namibia for 10 years and I regret it

By Jess

Nov 1, 2025

Hey there, I’m Jess ✨. On The Signature, I share reflections on beauty, routines, travel, wellness, culture, and everyday life. For those drawn to a calmer, more intentional way of living, I send a free newsletter each month on the 7th. You're welcome to join.

I first landed in Windhoek, Namibia in 2007 after a marvellous few days discovering Cape Town in South Africa. I went there to tend to my ailing mother and help her go to the doctor and translating her medical issues and the doctors' recommendations. I remember her asking me if I was enjoying Windhoek and I replied "you don't enjoy anything else after going to Cape Town". Eyeroll to 20-year-old me!

In the meantime, I used Windhoek as a layover stop between Luanda and Cape Town, with the extinct Air Namibia. When I met my husband in 2015, he mentioned wanting to visit Etosha in northern Namibia one day and I was like "mehhhh, let's go to Cape Town first", always undermining my good old neighbour Namibia to enhance my love for South Africa.

Well, 10 years later, life is giving me the biggest slap in the face whilst on the most incredible self driving trip to Namibia. We had been thinking of doing an southern Africa road trip for quite some time and Namibia was the starting point on the itinerary. It was also a trip we postponed several times because "it is close to Angola, we can do anytime" but decided to give eventually give it a go to both celebrate my birthday and our 10-year anniversary.

My husband meticulously planned the journey with all its stops and accommodations. We grabbed all our safari gear from our honeymoon in Tanzania and took the two-hour flight from Luanda's brand new airport to Hosea Kutako International Airport.

We are still on the trip but I don't want to misremember things if I take too much time to write about them. Namibia is one of the most stunning, safe and welcoming countries we have ever been to. It boasts of the most diverse landscape, from mountains to dunes, from beaches to the desert, from the deep savannah to dead salt pans. People are nice and welcoming at every stop, although a bit surprised - even if positively - to see an Angolan sightseeing their country and not just coming here for shopping. Their love for organisation and cleanliness is of the greatest standards. I can attest to that after visiting several public bathrooms every day.

So keep your eyes peeled for this post as I will be adding to all the chapters to it with the full details of our journey. And I hope you fall in love with Namibia as much as did and give it a go for your next visit!