The currency of the country is the Namibian dollar, denoted by the symbol “$” or “N$” (ISO currency code: NAD). It is divided into 100 cents.

Namibia, Lesotho, South Africa and Eswatini (Swaziland) form the Southern African Common Monetary Area through which each country’s currency is pegged 1:1 to the South African Rand (ZAR). Both the Namibian dollar and South African rand are legal tender in Namibia though change will usually be given in Namibian dollars.

Banks in Namibia will convert Namibian dollars for South African rand and vice versa without charge or paperwork. Since any bank or currency exchange outside Namibia (including other members of the Common Monetary Area) will charge a substantial service fee to change currency, it is advisable to make use of a Namibian Bank before leaving the country.

It is also advisable to carry proof (for example, ATM receipts) that money you are taking out of the country is money that you brought into the country in the first place.

Current official exchange rates are available from the Namibian Central Bank.

Automated teller machines are available in all towns. “Town” in Namibia is defined as “being independently governed”, and not by size. Some towns thus are really small. Most villages do not feature an ATM. Be also advised that not everything on the Namibian map is a settlement. “Red drum” in Kunene Region is just that, a red drum, and “Sossusvlei” is a clay pan, not a village. And has no ATM, of course. It is best to use only teller machines that are manned by a security guard in uniform. Always be careful to make sure no one is watching you enter your PIN, and be vigilant about typical scams (e.g. machines that seem to eat your card and won’t give it back after you enter the PIN).

The cross-border money transfer facilities are limited and expensive, with one of the poorest currency buying-and-selling rates, because government does not want the money to be sent out of the country. There are only a few Western Union Money Transfer offices in Namibia.

BY PLANE:

• Westair Aviation (ex Westwing), +264 61 372 300, fax: +264 61 232 402, info@westair.com.na. Offers both scheduled and charter flights throughout the country.

BY TRAIN:

The national railway company of Namibia, TransNamib, operates trains (and buses) to destinations all over Namibia via their StarLine passenger service. Some routes available are:

• Windhoek-Otjiwarongo-Tsumeb
  
• Windhoek-Gobabis
  
• Windhoek-Swakopmund-Walvis Bay
  
• Windhoek-Keetmanshoop (formerly also to Upington in South Africa but not any more)
  
• Walvis Bay-Swakopmund-Tsumeb

The StarLine scheduled service conveys passengers via special coaches hooked on the back of freight trains. These passenger coaches offer comfortable airline-style seating with air-conditioning and (sometimes) video entertainment. Vending machines provide refreshments on long journeys. StarLine, +264 61 298-2032, fax: +264 61 298-2495, paxservices@transNamib.com.na.

Other rail services operating in the country are:

• Desert Express, +264 61 298-2600, fax: +264 61 298-2601. The Desert Express is a luxury tourist train that traverses Namibia regularly, taking tourists to such destinations as Walvis Bay, Swakopmund and Etosha National Park. Buses are used to transport visitors from train stations to the various sights.

BY CAR:

Despite the vast distances in Namibia, most people get around by land, and not air. Namibia’s primary routes are tarred, and secondary routes are well-graded gravel. An all-wheel drive vehicle is not necessary to reach the major tourist destinations except Kaokoland and the Skeleton Coast. Driving at night is very dangerous because there is a lot of wildlife on the roads. Traffic drives on the left. Namibian roads eat tires and chip windscreens. Always check your spare and inspect your tires often. If someone overtakes you on a gravel road, drive as far left as possible and slow down to avoid being hit by flying stones. The road edges can be soft, so take care.

Service stations can be a fair distance from each other, so it pays to get a map showing where they are located to plan your trip. If you are on the back roads of Namibia, it’s always wise to stop and top-off your tank when you see a service station. Most service stations in towns accept credit cards, and many have ATMs available. However, in the countryside you might have to pay cash. A small tip for the attendant pumping your gasoline of N$3-5 is quite common – and you need to make this in cash. It is also necessary to carry food and water, in case you get stuck with a breakdown. On lesser travelled roads it can take days (!) for another vehicle to pass through.

Namibia has some of the worst road accident statistics in the world per head of population. The speed limit on tarred roads is 120 km/h but few drivers adhere to it. There is an unbelievable amount of head-on collisions due to overtaking at unsuitable spots. Self-driving tourists “score” mostly in the ‘no other party involved’ accident category, losing control of their cars for no apparent reason but speed. Driving on dirt roads is unlike any other driving experience that Europeans or North Americans can gain at home, and the 100 km/h speed limit does not mean you should, or even can, drive safely at that speed. This farmer overtaking you at breakneck speed knows every rock and every puddle on this road, has a better suitable car, and likely a few hundred thousand kilometers of experience on his belt.

Namibians often estimate the time to drive between places according to their own vast experience driving quickly on dirt (untarred) roads. Add a third and you will arrive alive with kidneys intact!

Before you reserve a car let the rental company send you a copy of its rental agreement. Most of them have many (and sometimes absolutely ridiculous) restrictions. Take your time to compare them according to your needs. Small damage to tires, windscreens, and the vehicle front is almost unavoidable on gravel roads. The rental company will charge you for that, or will try to sell expensive add-ons to the contract. When picking up your car, check that the spare wheel is of the same type as the regular wheels, and that the tools for changing it are complete. Consider comprehensive travel insurance from your home country that may cover all damage.

Blood alcohol limit in Namibia is 0.08.

• Drive South Africa (Car and 4X4 Hire), +27 21 423 6957, info@drivesouthafrica.co.za. Rental branches’ pick-up and drop-off locations are offered in eight locations throughout the country, including Namibia’s airports and major cities.
  
• Europcar Car Hire (Car Hire), +264 61-227103, info@europcar.co.za. Car rentals in Namibia.
  
• Kalahari Car Hire (Car hire Windhoek), 109 Daan Bekker Street, Windhoek, +264 61 252 690, iti07553@mweb.com.na.
  
• CABS Car Hire Namibia (Car hire Windhoek), 282 Independence Ave, Windhoek, +264 61 305 912, info@cabs.com.na.
  
• Windhoek Car Hire (Windhoek Car hire), 124 Andimba Toivo Ya Toivo Street, Windhoek, +264 61 306 553, info@windhoekcarhire.com.
  
• Thrifty Car Rental, +264 61 220 738. Offers 24 hour car rental service for a scenic drive through Namibia
  
• AAA Car Hire, +264 811 246 286, fax: +264 61 244558, info@namibweb.com. Sedan, 4WD and bus rentals in Namibia.

BY TAXI:

There are two types of taxi services in Namibia: shared taxis and dedicated taxis, often called “radio taxis” or “call-a cab”. The shared taxis have a license restricting their movement, either to within a town, or between a set of towns. Taxi fares of shared taxis are regulated by government and cannot be bargained on. However, taxi drivers might nevertheless overcharge tourists who do not know what the standard fares are. Radio taxis have no such restriction but charge between 5 and 10 times for the same ride.

Shared taxis are seldom roadworthy – any car in Namibia must pass the roadworthy test only upon change of ownership. It is not uncommon to see bonnets tied by steel wire, emergency spare tyres, broken screens, and the like. Drivers habitually jump red lights (in Namibia: “robots”) and stop signs and will let passengers embark wherever they find them, including on highways and in the middle of an intersection. Be considerate to other drivers by not waving at a taxi where it is not safe to stop.

It is quite easy to get around towns by long-distance shared taxis. They are fast, sometimes scarily so, and they are cheap. Just ask around to find out where the taxi rank is (sometimes there are several taxi ranks, each one with departures to different areas of the country). None of these will take you to tourist destinations, though, as those are almost always away from the larger settlements. For taxis that operate within a town it is expected that you, instead of waving at them, point into the direction you wish to travel.

A lot of companies offer affordable shuttle services between most towns like Windhoek, Swakopmund, Walvis Bay, Tsumeb, Otjiwarongo etc. These services are perfectly safe but more expensive than taxis.

BY BUS:

• TransNamib. Operates air-conditioned buses (and trains) to destinations all over Namibia via their StarLine service.

BY TOUR:

Several tour companies operate in Namibia. Each is unique in services offered but most operate with safety in mind.

• Okutembuka Safaris. A company that specialises in private guided day tours, multi-day tours or self-drive safaris.
  

EAT:

Namibians have a very high intake of meat, and a very low intake of vegetables. This has to do with the semi-arid climate; agriculture almost exclusively is cattle, sheep, and goat farming while edible plants only grow when irrigated. As a result, meat is good, cheap, and plentiful, while fruits and vegetables are neither.

A very popular way to eat and socialise is the braai, a mixed wood-fired barbecue with lots of alcoholic drinks. Every campsite, every lodge, and every domestic home has pre-installed braai facilities.

In the coastal towns seafood is fresh and inexpensive. Make sure you try the local specialities kingklip and sole. Hake is also available and cheap. Restaurants will often offer line fish or angel fish which is simply what the fishermen managed to haul out from the sea—do ask what kind of fish it is before ordering. Inlands, fish is also served in restaurants but how fresh it is is a matter of luck. Of course it has been frozen during the transport across the Namib Desert; if you don’t like that then order something else.

All towns have supermarkets with all standard products, although most fruits and vegetables are imported and therefore rather expensive. Shops in villages will have very little fresh produce. Even if they have cold storage it will mostly be used for drinks. Far away from bigger towns tomatoes, onions, potatoes and apples is all you can hope for, and mostly not at once. Also buying meat can be a challenge unless you are prepared to take the whole animal. Travellers usually take along mobile fridges, or at least several coolboxes, to complement the restricted offer. Coolboxes are so ubiquitous that there is a local viral video about them.

Vegetarians can have a difficult time in Namibia. In restaurants the waiter will offer to bring a side salad in meal size, if you are lucky. With the exception of Windhoek, Swakopmund, and the really expensive lodges you won’t find anything that is purposefully vegetarian. Some people will offer chicken because that is ‘not meat’.

DRINK:

Namibia’s nightclubs are always happening and always open late (pretty much until the last person leaves). They are only located in bigger cities. The local version of a bar is the shebeen, a formal or informal structure with a counter for alcohol sale, a TV, a slot machine, and often a pool table. Drinks in shebeens are very cheap, and there are a lot of them, but most are situated in the townships. The flagship beer of Namibia is Windhoek Lager, an easy-drinking filtered beer, brewed by resident German master brewers.

The sale of alcohol for take-away is not allowed between Saturday 13:00 and Monday morning; all holidays count as Sundays. That means in supermarkets, which usually are open every day, the fridges with alcoholic drinks will be padlocked during this period. In informal areas (townships, shebeens, or remote villages) this rule is seldom enforced.

Oshikundu or Ontaku is a traditional Namibian beer-like drink made from fermented millet and sold in markets and at street stalls.

CAMPING:

Namibians love camping and the outdoors. Near every tourist attraction you will find several camp sites, from very simple, communally run places on sand that just have water and a dry toilet (about 100 N$ per person) to private park-like settings with lush grass, power sockets and a sink per camping spot, shade, and private WCs (about 200 N$ per person). In the national parks there are places without any amenities where you even have to bring water. These often need a 4×4 to get to, and you have to buy a permit in advance which is more expensive than staying at the best camp sites in the country. The chance to get caught without a permit is small but if they get you they will impose a 7.800 N$ fine—per person! If you spot a nice place to camp next to the road, check if there is a fence. If there’s a fence then that’s a farm. Farms are private properties. Don’t enter a farm without notifying the farmer and asking for permission. Wild camping is allowed (but not very safe, luxurious or pleasant) on the side of the road between the banks and the farm fence, or in the areas that are neither commercial farms nor protected areas.

TBC.