Things to do in Swakopmund: Three Day Itinerary

Described by my trusty lonely planet guidebook as being “more German than Germany,” the town of Swakopmund is a quaint mixture of Los Angeles and Bavaria that sits on the border between the vast, Namib Desert and the mighty Atlantic Ocean. It is quite a peculiar town, where modern buildings, fancy restaurants and multi-million dollar houses seem to wipe away any sense of being in Africa.

My WorldTeach friends and I traveled to Swakopmund for a long weekend at the end of our first semester of teaching in Namibia. After living in the sweltering floodplains of Northern Namibia for three months, Swakopmund was a bit of a culture shock.

Day 1: Explore the German Town of Swakopmund

My friends and I spent three days in Swakopmund and nearby Walvis Bay. We stayed at the lovely Skeleton Beach Hostel for the entirety of our trip and enjoyed clean beds, fast wifi and easy access to Swakopmund’s top tourist attractions.

Swakopmund’s palm-lined streets and luxurious ocean-front villas showcase a level of wealth at odds with other places in Namibia. In some ways, the city reminds me of a toned-down German-style Dubai, with its beaches, desert dunes and distinctive architecture.  

Though much of the Swakopmund consists of condominiums, hotels and beach-front apartments, there are also significant historical buildings that call the city home. Most of these buildings date to the turn of the century, when Namibia was under German control. Today, Swakopmund’s German architecture gives the city a certain character and charm that is absent in many of the heavily-cemented cities of the North.

We spent our first day in Swakopmund merely enjoying the city’s overwhelmingly modern atmosphere and soaking in the ocean views. In the morning, we visited the Swakopmund Museum, where we learned more about the history of Namibia and Swakopmund in particular. The museum was well-equipped with plaques explaining important historical dates, artifacts from different ethnic groups around the country and displays of the plant and animal life in Namibia.

After visiting the museum, we spent the rest of the day admiring Swakopmund’s German colonial architecture, indulging in fantastic food at the VVillage Cafe and strolling along the city’s oceanfront.

Sandboarding in Swakopmund

Swakopmund is a highlight of Namibia that sits where the Namib Desert meets the sea. The adventure capital of Namibia, Swakopmund’s location near some of the world’s tallest dunes means there are tons of things to do in the area.

Sand boarding has become one of the most popular activities in Swakopmund. During our long weekend in Swakopmund, my friends and I joined a tour for an afternoon of sand boarding in the desert near Swakopmund.

Our tour company allowed us to choose between stand-up and lie-down boarding. I chose stand-up boarding, which is essentially snowboarding on sand rather than on snow. However, I soon realized that my experience snowboarding translated very loosely to sandboarding. As a result, I found myself face-planting on numerous occasions.

Nonetheless, by the end of the afternoon I was able to go down a few runs without falling. It was thrilling to wind down the steep dune faces, while marveling at my surroundings.

Every time I reached the bottom of the dune, I would unstrap my bindings, sling my sandboard over my shoulders and begin the walk back up the crest of the dune to the top. It was a tiring trek, but the damp sand from recent rainfall facilitated the laborious climb.

When I reached the top, I would hold my breath and gaze at the dazzling display around me. The dunes of the Namib Desert are the oldest in the world and they are amongst the tallest. From the top of the dune, I could see nothing but the oceans of sand that extend outward for miles upon miles in every direction. The sand sea stretches inland from the Atlantic Ocean for nearly 13,000 square miles. It is a seared and bleak landscape, with dramatic vistas and mirage-inducing panoramas. The great sand mountains of the Namib Desert have been chiseled by the Kalahari and Atlantic winds. They are ever-changing and transforming by the minute–their curves, ridges and crests carved by the elements over millions of years.

I enjoyed sitting at the top of the dunes and staring out into the vast expanse of nothingness. Sandboarding in Swakopmund was one of my favorite things to do in Namibia, not least because of the beautiful surrounding scenery.

Day Trip to Walvis Bay

After admiring Swakopmund’s colonial architecture and sandboarding down the nearby coastal dunes, my friends and I decided to take a day trip to Walvis Bay. Walvis Bay, an industrial town 40 kilometers south of Swakopmund, is home to a diverse array of marine and avian life. In Walvis Bay, we booked a boat tour of the Walvis Bay Lagoon with Levo Tours.

The drive between Swakopmund and Walvis bay takes about half an hour and offers spectacular scenery. One side of the road boasts views of crasing ocean waves. On one side, golden sand dunes rise toward the skies . This unusual landscape stretches the length of much of the country. It is a wild topography, where the scorched earth and the deep blue ocean collide in miles of spectacular coastline.

It is precisely the type of landscape that makes Namibia such a unique and otherworldly destination.

• Flamingoes at the Walvis Bay Lagoon

Walvis Bay is an industrial city along Namibia’s coast. As such, the city itself doesn’t have Swakopmund’s appeal. Yet each year, southern Africa’s largest flock of flamingos descends on the Walvis Bay Lagoon. Sitting at the edge of Dorob National Park, the Walvis Bay Lagoon is one of Namibia’s best spots for bird-watching.

Flamingos in the Walvis Bay Lagoon

• Boat Trip in Walvis Bay with Levo Dolphin Tours

After watching the flamingos for a bit, we headed toward the port to begin our marine tour. Unfortunately, within minutes of being out on the water, the light, misty drizzle began to take the form of light rain. However, we found it to be only a minor inconvenience at this point, for we were still engrossed in  our surroundings.

During our boat tour of Walvis Bay, we encountered pelicans, seals and flamingoes. Not long after leaving the dock, a pelican flew toward us and landed near our boat. Our guide threw fish at the bird and we were able to watch it devour the fish with its impressive beak and acrobatic maneuvers.

Merely moments after the pelican flew away, we spotted an amicable Cape fur seal that decided to make its way onto our boat. He hopped on board and scuffled toward the bucket of fish.

Interacting with the friendly Cape fur seal was certainly the highlight of our afternoon, for soon after the seal jumped back into the water, our pleasant excursion in the lagoon began to take a downhill turn. The light rain picked up and turned into a downpour. It drenched us from head to toe. Out on the boat, in the middle of the lagoon, we had nowhere to run for shelter. The rain soaked through our clothes. The wind sliced at our faces. The wakes started to crash into our boat and occasionally showered us in buckets of spray. Unfortunately, the poor weather conditions hindered us from being able to enjoy the rest of our day out at sea, and we had to turn back prematurely.

On the way back to port, we sailed past a sandbar containing a shipwreck and a lighthouse. The sandbar was covered in flamingos and seals. And even in my miserable state, I found it to be a fascinating snapshot of Namibia’s Skeleton Coast.

When we got back to the shore–soaked to the bone and shivering profusely–the tour operators welcomed us with fresh oysters and sparkling champagne.

In a desert country like Namibia, heavy rainfall like we encountered in Walvis Bay is a rare occasion. And while we were unlucky to book a tour during some of the worst rainfall of the year (according to our guides), I still recommend booking a Walvis Bay boat tour.

I am quite certain that if the weather had been better, we would have had an enjoyable day of wildlife viewing.

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Swakopmund is the adventure capital of Namibia and, without a doubt, the country’s most popular city. From sandboarding to wildlife viewing to visiting museums, Swakopmund has all the ingredients of an exciting vacation destination.

My three day Swakopmund itinerary gave me a unique sampling of some of the best that Namibia has to offer. And so, as I left Namibia’s “Little Germany,” all I could think about was how much I wanted to turn back and do it all over again.