Me and my wife just arrived back from a fantastic self drive tour through Namibia. (Oct 2013)
I spent hours of research to make this trip happen, as we had a very limited budget.
My biggest problems was car rental. The 4x4 options (or camping tent on the roof options was all outside our budget to start with).
I then wanted to rent a smaller 2x2, but accommodation in Etosha and Sossusvlei was prohibitively expensive.
I then settled on a combination: Sedan sized car with camping equipment!
We camped 9 out of 20 days. This kept costs down and gave us access to Etosha and Sossus.
Also, if I made the wife camp for 20 days in a row - it would have ended badly, so hence the other nights in B&Bs!!!
Finally I managed to get the total budget under N$30 000!
Here is my (updated with realtime info) Itinerary for anyone that wants to see as much as possible from Namibia, but on a limited budget.
(More detail on rentals, activities and a lot of tips follows below...)
Day 1:
Arrive Windhoek
At Airport: Obtain a MTC sim card. Talk Time and 1GB data: $480
Rent 2x2 sedan (Toyota Corolla or similar) for 20 days: $8122 ($406 per day)
Get Country Map from rental agency.
Relax rest of the day
Dinner at Joe's Beer House
Sleep: Tamboti Guest House (B&B): $680
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Day 2:
Pick up Camping gear from Camping Hire Namibia. Caprivi Pack: $1980 ($110/day)
Obtain food/stocks for camping
Sightseeing Windhoek (2 hours)
Drive: Windhoek - Otjiwarongo (230km / 02:10)
Sleep: Weaver Rock Guesthouse - Camp Site $200
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Day 3:
Drive: Otjiwarongo - Etosha (Namutoni) (420km / 05:00)
Sights: Otjiwarongo: Train, Churches, Jacaranda Trees
Grootfontein: Hoba Meteorite $40
Tsumeb: Mining Museum $60. Arts & Craft Market.
Lake Otjikoto $50
Sleep: Namutoni Camp Site $420
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Day 4:
Sightseeing: Game viewing own vehicle (Game viewing best early morning and late evening)
Activity: Night Game Drive with Park Ranger $600
Sleep: Halali Campsite $400
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Day 5:
Sightseeing: Game viewing own vehicle
Park fees for 3 days $390
Sleep: Okaukuejo Camp Site $420
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Day 6:
Drive: Etosha - Twyfelfontein (395km / 04:30)
Sights: Vingerklip Formation $20
Twyfelfontein Rock Art $120
Burnt Mountain
Organ Pipes $20
Wondergat
Petrified Forest $100
Drive: Twyfelfontein - Khorixas (100km / 01:25)
Sleep: iGowati Country Hotel (B&B) $700
(Option to camp as well, but this is a long day and the rooms here are fantastic!)
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Day 7:
Drive: Khorixas - Erongoberg (375km / 05:00)
Sights: Omaruru: Franke Tower. Kristall Kellerei (must do lunch here!!)
Sleep: Ameib Ranch campsite $240
Sunset: Bulls Party & Elephants Head
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Day 8:
Sunrise: Phillips Cave
Drive: Erongoberg - Spitzkoppe (85km / 01:10)
Sights: Spitzkoppe & Pondoks $90
Dont miss the natural rock pool for cooling down!
(You can self drive to most points, but the rock paintings are with guide only, price neg)
Sleep: Spitzkoppe campsite $220
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Day 9:
Drive: Spitzkoppe - Swakopmund (145km / 02:00)
Sightseeing: Around Swakopmund (Old Harbour, Museum $40, Lighhouse, Kristall Galerie $40, Colonial Buildings, Jetty, Lagoon, Aquarium, Martin Luther)
Sleep: Swakopmund: Hotel d'Avignon (B&B) $550
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Day 10:
Drive: Swakopmund - Cape Cross - Swakomund (250km)
Sights: Zeila Shipwreck, Henties Bay, Cape Cross Seal Reserve $90
Laundry at guesthouse $300
Sleep: Swakopmund: Hotel d'Avignon (B&B) $550
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Day 11:
Drive: Swakopmund - Walvis Bay - Swakopmund
Activity: Kayak Trip with Namibia Kayak Tours (great tour!!) $1100
Sights: Saltworks, Flamingos and Pelicans, Dune 7
Sleep: Swakopmund: Hotel d'Avignon (B&B) $550
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Day 12:
Activity: Dune Surfing with Alter Action $600
Activity: Camel riding (erbelke@mweb.com.na) $250
Sleep: Swakopmund: Hotel d'Avignon (B&B) $550
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Day 13:
Drive: Welwitchia Drive. Permit required from NWR Office Swakop. $70
Sights: Lichen Fields (bring some water)
Moon landscape
Welwitchia Plants
Goanikontes Oases for lunch
Activity: Massages (ask Guesthouse for recommendations) $800
Sleep: Swakomund: Hotel d'Avignon (B&B) $550
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Day 14:
Drive: Swakopmund - Sesriem (360km / 05:30) This road gets bad!
Sights: Vogelfederberg (needs permit from NWR Office in Swakopmund) $70
Carp Cliff Viewpoint (same permit)
Kuiseb Pass
Solitaire: Apple Crumble for lunch!
Sossuvlei Day Fees for 2 days $260
Sleep: Sesriem Campsite $260
Sunset: Sesriem Canyon & Elim Dune
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Day 15:
Sossuvlei Sights:
Inner gate opens 1 hour before sunrise. (64km drive to 2x2 car park)
Shuttle from 2x2 car park to Dead Vlei $200
Sights: Dead Vlei (try to be here for sunrise. It's worth it!)
Big Daddy Dune (not for the unfit!)
Sossus Vlei
Hidden Vlei
Sleep: Sesriem Campsite $260
Sunset: Dune 45 (80km return drive. Inner gate closes 45min after sunset)
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Day 16:
Sunrise: Redo previous morning / Sightseeing flight / Balloon flight (But $$$)
Drive: Sesriem - Luderitz (504km / 07:00). Take the C19 then C14 then C13. (C27 is VERY bad)
Sights: Helmeringhuasen: more good apple pie!
Wild Desert horses near Aus.
Sleep: Luderitz: Zum Anker (self catering) $590
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Day 17:
Sights: Agate beach, Shark Island, Oyster farm, Goerke Haus $50, Felsenkirche, Diamantberg, Museum
Sleep: Luderitz: Zum Anker (self catering) $590
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Day 18:
Sights: Kolmanskop ($110 standard entry / $400 for sunrise access)
Gate opens at 08:00. Permit from gate.
For sunrise access: get special permit from Luderitz Safaris & Tours (Main street) day before (063 202719)
Sights: Luderitz Peninsula: Black ridge, Diaz Point and Lighthouse, Halifax Island (penguins), Grosse Bay (shipwreck).
Sleep: Luderitz: Zum Anker (self catering) $590
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Day 19:
Drive: Luderitz - Keetmanshoop (350km / 03:30)
Sleep: Quivertree Forest Rest Camp - campsite $200
Sights: Quivertree forest, Giants Playground $110
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Day 20:
Drive: Keetmanshoop - Windhoek (540km / 06:30)
Sights: Hardap Dam $50
Return Camping Equipment
Sleep: Windhoek: Tamboti Guesthouse (B&B) $680
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Day 21:
Total Distance covered 5005km. Fuel ($12/l and 14km per litre: $4290
Return Rental car. No fuel at airport, refill in Windhoek
Leave Windhoek
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NOTES:
All prices are for 2 people and excludes flights to/from Windhoek.
Trip was done in October 2013. All prices in Namibia fluctuate with season, so check them!
Our total expenses on food, gifts, curios, tips and sundries were just under $5000.
This trip was optimised for 2 budget travellers, but not for camping every night.
Camping was 9 out of 20 nights. This kept costs down but also allowed access to Etosha Park and Sossusvlei Park.
(Chalets in side Etosha and Sossus are VERY expensive. You can stay outside the parks, but then you lose out on sunrise/sunsets as well as the camp watering holes in Etosha)
Also, we take a lot of photos, so activities and campsites are chosen with sunset and sunrise in mind.
The pace in Swakopmund an Luderitz is fairly relaxed as we saw that as a little holiday inside the holiday. One would be able to cut some time there if needed or fit in more activities.
Weather was mostly very hot (42deg C in Etosha). It was cool in Swakopmund and Luderitz.
Night temp in Sossusvlei went down to 8deg C.
The map from the airport was generally pretty good.
We did however use a GPS driving app on my phone called Sygic (should be cheaper than renting a GPS from rental company)
Car Rental: This was by far the hardest part!
I could not afford a 4x4. I agree with previous posters that this will make the trip more enjoyable, but only because of some bad roads.
We did not feel that we missed out because we could not go where 4x4s could go.
(The only two places I HAD to see that is 4x4 only was:
Pelican Point in Walvis Bay - we did this with the Kayak Trip in their vehicle
Deadvlei / Sossus Vlei - Shuttle available from 2x2 car park: 10 min before sunrise to 17:00 daily)
MOST of the dirt roads was perfectly fine and easy to drive. There were some bad bits (Swakop - Sesriem), but we just took it slower on those.
Getting a good car quote is difficult. Cheapest I could find was on Thrifty.co.za (if you use thrifty.com you get a quote for almost twice the price!!)
Same with avis and budget. Depending on .com / .co.za; you get different quotes.
Also the excess in case of accidents vary wildly!! So keep trying all of them till you get the best deal.
I wanted a sedan specifically (i.s.o a hatchback) so we can lock stuff in the boot. This was perhaps a bit futile, because with all the camping gear the car is loaded to the roof!!
With a smaller car though, you wont be able to fit everything anyway.
With Thrifty, "Toyota Corolla or similar" means you get a Nissan Tiida Sedan. Not a bad car but they have hubcaps. I recommend you take these off when driving on dirt roads otherwise they are going to come off. Also on dirt roads: tyre pres should be 1.8 in front and 2.0 in the back - makes for a smoother ride.
I have more detail for my itinerary as well as coordinates for everything if someone needs it.
I can also elaborate if anything is unclear and a lot of info on photo opportunities!
This was an absolutely amazing holiday!! Namibia blew us away. I can highly recommend this holiday!