Swakopmund and Around

8/8/2019 Swakopmund and Around

1/6

tripwolfworldwide travel guide

My Personal Guide


2/6

3 www.tripwolf.com worldwide travel guide

city / town

Swakopmund andaround

calling code

064 Surrounded on three sides by the arid Namib Desert and on the west side bythe cold waters of the South Atlantic, Swakopmund is surely one of the mostunusual and fascinating colonial towns in the whole of Africa. In a period of alittle more than 25 years the German Imperial Government built a successionof extravagant buildings, which today represent one of the best-preservedcollections of German colonial architecture still standing. When approachedfrom the desert, especially during the morning fog, the turrets, towers andpastel-coloured buildings on the skyline appear as a hazy mirage, and thequirky town comes as quite as surprise on the barren coastline.

Today, because of its olde-worlde charm and relaxed atmosphere,Swakopmund is Namibias premier holiday resort, with a steady flow ofvisitors all year round, culminating in December and January when thousandsdescend from the hot interior to enjoy the temperate climate of the coast.Increasingly, its attracting international visitors and probably got its biggestever dose of worldwide publicity in 2006 when Brad Pitt and Angelina Joliechose the town to have their baby Shiloh. There are lots of things to do, a widechoice of hotels, guesthouses and pensions, and several good restaurantsand coffee shops

by Footprint

www.tripwolf.com worldwide travel guide 4

by Elisen


3/6


HighlightsSwakopmund

and around

Eatingvoted for by the tripwolf community

The Tug

restaurantStrand St, by the iron jetty

Out of Africa

restaurantDaniel Tjongarero Av

Napolitana Pizzeria

restaurantNathanael Maxilili St

Caf Anton

restaurant1 Bismarck St

The Raft

restaurantEsplanade

Customize your trip and get all the infos you need:Create your own trip on tripwolf.com!


4/6

Authors

Footprint

Content provided by

FootPrint


Essentials

The travel info for Swakopmund and around

getting there

Ins and outs Getting there Swakopmund, the principal town on the coast,features on just about every itinerary of a trip to Namibia, so if you areon an organized tour, at least a couple of days in town will be included. Itis easily reached from Windhoek along the tarred B2 via Okahandja. Thisroute, which can be covered in half a day, is well served by the regionaltowns of the Hinterland with plenty of shops and petrol stations along the

way. However, there are more scenic approaches from the interior to thecoast on the gravel roads. From Windhoek the C28 goes to Swakopmundthrough part of the Namib-Naukluft Park, and this is a very scenic drive thoughyou will require a permit for part of it. Another route that goes through thepark is the C26 and then the C14 from Windhoek to Walvis Bay, 30 km tothe south of Swakopmund; this route goes over the Gamsberg and Kuisebpasses and again offers a wonderfully scenic drive. Intercape Mainliner andTown Hoppers buses run a daily service from Windhoek to Swakopmund,Air Namibia has flights between Windhoek and nearby Walvis Bay, and thereis also the option of taking the luxury (expensive) Desert Express train fromthe capital to the coast. Tourist information The Ministry of Environmentand Tourism (MET) (Bismarck St (upstairs from NWR), T064- 404576,www.met.gov.na, permits can be obtained Mon-Fri 0800-1500, Sat and Sun0900-1200, though the service is erratic at weekends when the staff maydecide not to come in) is the place to get permits for the Welwitschia Plainsdrive if you are driving independently and not on a tour. Most other permits areavailable at the gates of the parks. The exception is the Kolmonskop GhostTown near Lderitz in the south, which can be obtained once in Lderitz. Thedesert is well patrolled by MET staff, make sure you observe all the regulationsand respect the fragility of the local environment. Do not litter (that includescigarette butts). There is no excuse for not having a permit. If you are caughtwithout a permit the fine is US$65 per vehicle.

dangers & safetySafety On the whole Swakopmund is fairly safe, though, like Windhoek,tourists have been targeted by muggers and robbers in the past. Make use of

Authors

Footprint

Content provided

by

FootPrint


hotel safes and try to avoid carrying valuables around. At night always take ataxi or walk home in a large group. Ensure that room windows are locked atnight, especially in self-catering accommodation that is known to be let out totourists. Always lock your car and do not leave any valuables on show. Makeuse of the car guards in the street who usually wear yellow work vests and anID badge. Theyll watch your car and when you return to it, a N$2 tip is aboutright (more at night and if you leave your car for a lengthy period of time). Since

the car guards were put in place, theft from vehicles in the town is reported tohave been reduced by 90% (the system also provides well-needed jobs). Tryand ensure that your accommodation has secure off-street parking.

best time to go

Best time to visit Although the town lies in a true arid desert, the cold BenguelaCurrent that flows from south to north along the coast acts as a moderatinginfluence. The climate on the coast is temperate, with temperatures of15-25C. The sea temperature is 14-18C, too cold for swimming for anyperiod without a wet suit. Swakopmund receives less than 15 mm of rainper year as the rain clouds have to travel all the way over Africa from theIndian Ocean. As you walk about the town note how most buildings have

no gutters or drain pipes; on the rare occasion the town gets a lot of rain itfloods. The only moisture comes in the form of a sea mist that can reach upto 50 km inland . Swakopmund is fairly quiet at the weekends. Except for thelarge supermarkets and tourist shops, other businesses close from 1300 onSaturday until Monday morning and most restaurants are closed on Sundaynights.

getting around

Getting around Swakopmund is entirely negotiable by foot, although at nightit is advisable to catch a taxi back to your hotel even over short distances .The town is dissected neatly in a grid pattern and signposts are clear. Themain road that runs from east to the coast on the west and is the extensionof the B2 is Sam Nujoma Avenue (formerly known as Kaiser Wilhelm Street).Many streets in Swakopmund and Windhoek have undergone a chance ofname in order to reflect contemporary figures in Namibias history rather thancolonial ones. To reach the outlying regions of Swakopmund, you need to beon a tour or have a car. All the operators provide pick-ups in town (eg to theSwakopmund Airport for skydiving), which are almost always included in theprice.

background

Background The municipality since 1909 has made every effort to create anup-to-date township. The water supply is the best in the whole Protectorate

and shortage is never felt in the town. There is an Electric Power Station,Ice and Mineral Waters Factories, a first class Hospital and Nursing Home,Public Library, German, Dutch and English Churches, High-class Schools


5/6

Authors

Footprint

Content provided by

FootPrint


and Hostels and a lot of Corporations and Clubs (Swakopmund PublicityAssociation, 1924-1925). This is how the town proudly promoted itself duringthe inter- war years, yet 30 years earlier no more than 30 Europeans livedin the newly established town. As a visitor, it is always worth pausing andquestioning why and how the town came to be here. If ever there was atown in Africa that owed its origins to colonialism it was Swakopmund. Thefirst Europeans to encounter the barren Namibian coastline did not stop;

the Portuguese sailors left monuments to mark the points where they hadventured ashore, but there was no attempt made to settle anywhere alongthis section of the Atlantic coast. But when the German protectorate wasproclaimed in 1884 the British had already claimed possession of WalvisBay, forcing the Germans to look elsewhere for a suitable coastal port.While there were other more suitable sites along the coast, the Germansselected Swakopmund as the point to develop a future harbour and settlementbecause, first, the immediate hinterland was not a mass of sand dunes thatinhibited the inland development of transport routes, and second, a shortdistance up the Swakop River valley there was a fresh water supply. In August1892 the German gunboat, Hyena, landed just north of the Swakop Riverand two beacons were raised by the crew to mark their position. At the timethis was one of many possible locations for a port along the coast that theGermans were looking for. Today history recounts that the landing in 1892marked the origins of Swakopmund, however, it was a combination of chanceand a tough spirit that saw the establishment and growth of a town at thispoint on the coast. The first 40 settlers were landed in 1893 by four boats, butthereafter they had to fend for themselves. There was no accommodation,there was nothing; many of these early settlers ended up living in what havebeen described as caves on the beaches. Today the town can be a grim placeon a misty day, so imagine how it was for the first settlers at the turn of the lastcentury. Gradually a town developed and people were able to move inlandand establish trading posts and mission stations, but it was the resilience of

the earliest settlers that set the pattern. After the First World War the town fellinto decline as the nearby port of Walvis Bay assumed the role as the maintown on the coast. Many businesses and government offices also moved.Until the 1970s Swakopmund may have been a forgotten town, but many ofthe citizens made their mark. Today it is one of the most unusual and vibrantcommunities along the western coast of Africa; whats more, it has a specialplace in German history. Tourism is now an integral part of the local economy,and many people in the area depend upon the thousands of visitors eachyear. During the month of December the population on the coast is said todouble, hotels are full, restaurants require a booking and to the frustration oflocal residents there are no parking places in the town centre. In recent years,

Swakopmund has witnessed development on a large scale, and the moderntown is experiencing a building boom that is taking many people by surprise.Already a number of resorts and holiday homes have been built at Long

Authors

Footprint

Content provided

by

FootPrint


Beach between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay. To the north of Swakopmundthe former bleak campsite at Mile 4 is long gone and the region is now partof the built-up area of the town. Building (mostly apartments) is going oneverywhere: both Namibian Breweries and the Swakopmund Tannery havebeen closed down for new development and to the north of town blastinghas started, and rocks are being quarried to build a new marina as part of awaterfront development that will also include apartments, shops, restaurants

and two hotels, one a five-star establishment. The latter is expected to takeanother four years to complete.


6/6


tripwolfworldwide travel guide

What is tripwolf?

The social travel guide

tripwolf combines travel tips from professional travel writers with a vastcollection of travel information, experiences and reviews from a worldwidecommunity of thousands of travelers like you.

Browse through more than 500,000 locations, city guides, personalrecommendations and travel blogs on tripwolf.com. Ask our trip gurus for veryspecific travel advice to find your favorite spots in any city. Organize yourtrip with our online trip planner, and then download and print your free PDF

travel guide! Plus: Import your friends through facebook and share your travelpictures!

Imprint

tripwolf GmbHSpengergasse 37-39 3rd floor1050 Vienna, Austria

E-Mail: [email protected]

VAT Number: ATU 64266289

Handelsgericht Wien, FN309512Chamber: Wirtschaftskammer sterreich - http://www.wko.at

All guide content from tripwolf authors, users or partners. 2010 tripwolfGmbH. All rights reserved. No part of this pdf may be reproduced withoutwritten permission. Although tripwolf will attempt to keep the providedinformation accurate, the accuracy of the information provided cannot beguaranteed and tripwolf does not accept any liability for error or omission.

Swakopmund and Around

Documents

Transcript of Swakopmund and Around