Cruise liner special: Swakopmund and Namib Desert Highlight Tour
Description
This is a unique tour in that it includes all the highlights this area has to offer in one tour. You will have gathered knowledge on the frail ecology, harsh geology and hard lived history of this desert Landscape. Everything it offers is unique to this area only. We have a drink and light lunch at a 360 degree lookout point. Its an up market tour in Airconditioned vehicles and limited participants, but very popular for Cruise liner Guests. The absolute quietness, the vast unpopulated landscapes, the light Desert Breeze, the evidence of lava flow and lack of water gives light to how inhospitable this area is. Would love to showcase this area to you.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Our tour takes us past Bird island , the only manmade Guano Island along the coast, ( 10 minutes)to the Swakopmund Jetty.( 30 minutes) We learn about the interesting fact about the struggles to build the Mole( 15 Minutes) and the Jetty then we see some old German colonial buildings ( 20 minutes)and onto Martin Luther the Steam tractor ( 15 minutes) that was tried to be used to tow wagons in the years of the Rinderpest and onto the Namib desert gravel plains to Goanikontes. ( 1 hour) we spend a lot of time driving to the next site as they are far apart
On our way to Goanikontes a very important land mark and watering hole in yesteryear we pass by the Lichen fields ,( 30 minutes) We look for the tiny plants only millimeters big , covering the desert , which is a combination of an algae and a mushroom, growing in a small strip in the desert, adapted to living off the Fog that blows in. We learn about some Desert plants and how they have evolved to live of the moisture of the fog. Then we drive along the gravel plains to the Moonlandscape.
We are then surprised by arriving at the Moonlandscape. This area is about 500 million years old, its unique, its vast and its very quiet. Wind erosion is evident. We can see the layers of lava flow that happened millions of years ago. This area is believed to have had at least 2 ice ages. we go to various view points to view this unique landmarks AND SPEND ABOUT 15 MINUTES ON EACH VIEW POINT.
the route takes us to Goanikontes , the first oasis or watering hole in the Swakop River, of great importance in the olden days. Here the Horses and Oxen were watered and changed. Then it became the vegetable garden for Swakopmund. Here was an old Police station. Nowadays we have a little restaurant here and some toilet facilities. We pass through it to a few point high up in this harsh environment . About 30 minutes and then we drive to the Welwitschia plants about 20 minutes. the age old Welwitschia plants which grow only in this desolate and harsh area. Some plants are believed to be hundreds of years old. This unique desert plant has no stem and only has two leaves. Leaves are ripped by the wind and Zebras feeding on them and are pollinated by little light brown and bright orange bugs.
We drive along a desert path and see Uranium Prospecting sites. Also some weather stations and about 20km onwards we stop at the Welwitschia Plants. There is a male and female plant, it grows very old and very slowly, has only two leaves and no stem. Very unique and only found from this spot on northwards in Namibia. Locals call it the plant that never dies. After seeing the Welwitschia Mirabilis we drive about80km or 40 minutes to Dune 7 on our way back to the harbour we pass Dune 7, unfortunately we will not be able to climb it as our time has run out and we return to Walvis Bay port
After our long drive back to Walvis Bay we stop at Dune 7. outside Walvis Bay. This Dune was called Dune 7 as it was 7 miles from Walvis Bay and the British Enclave of Walvisbay went to 10 miles into the Desert. We view the dune. It is not the highest Dune in Namibia as you will see yourself. It is probably the highest Dune you can climb in the area, but we sadly do not have time to climb it. Admission fee not included as we do not go in. It costs about us (Dune 7 near Sossusvlei is the highest Dune in Namibia, but you cannot climb it.) we now make our way back to the harbour and our Namib desert highlight tour ends. Thank you for joining us.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
This Tour is an ideal Cruise liner Tour that starts and ends in Walvisbay. Should your Ship arrive at another time please contact us as we will reschedule to meet the new Docking Times. please note all Cruise Liner passengers, your tour pick up time starts an hour after you have docked. The tour will depart latest an hour and a half after the pick up time. Late comers are considered a no show All cruise liner passengers: Please look out for our gazebo with the name Desert Dunes and Dust Tours on as you exit the cruise liner. Please note Sandwich Harbour tours is a sister company of Desert Dunes and Dust Tours
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- We need at least two travelers to start the Tour. Should we not start the tour for whatever reason we offer an alternative or full refund
- Should the ship Dock at another time, other than our start time we will reschedule our Start times to meet you at the dock
- we however need enough time to complete the tour
- We meet our clients with a Name Board please look out for your name
- We also have a tear drop Flag so we stand out in the crowd.
- Please what's app us for any assistance.
- German speaking guides are very scarce. These will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.
- Please note due to the scarcity of German guides we cannot guarantee a German speaking guide, in peak season or when a cruise liner is in the Harbour and 2000guests disembark.
Reviews(10)
Riaan showed us a great time! Swakopmund was beautiful, but the ride in the desert was phenomenal. He had lots of good information all along the way and was a joy to ride with. Highly recommend.
Thank you for the high recommendation, we truly appreciate your support and feedback. We're glad you had a phenomenal experience with us 😊. See you again for more. Warm regards Uwe
Wonderful experience, exceeded our expectations. This tour was the highlight of our trip to Namibia and we will definitely be back. Our guide Riaan was outstanding, very knowledgable, easygoing and helpful. He is a wonderful ambassador for Namibia, with a positive, humorous and practical outlook. We enjoyed touring Swakopmund and the evocative surrounding landscapes. The city is a unique mix of German and African influences, great shops and historical buildings, and located on a scenic harbour. We also saw flamingos and Guinea fowl. Can highly recommend this tour.
Thank you for the high recommendation, glad we exceeded your expectations and that the tour was the highlight of your trip to Namibia. We would love to welcome you back to explore Namibia with our Spitzkoppe adventure drive. Warm greetings Uwe
A really great way to see a lot of the area in a short time. We had a wonderful day out with Didi. He looked after everything and never rushed us.
Wonderful of you to leave a review, thank you! Thanks Uwe
Our tour guide/driver was great and did the best he could so everything I say is about the tour company, not him. The van we took should have been 4 wheel drive and it wasn't. The drive through the desert isn't on a road its just a rocky path which is VERY VERY bumpy and dusty. The ride was uncomfortable and if you are prone to motion sickness, you probably wouldn't like it. There was NO air conditioning and we had to have the windows rolled up due to the large amounts of dust and dirt and it was HOT and STUFFY in the van. Also quite unpleasant. The tour itself was fascinating and the landscape was amazing.
Thank you for your criticism, only this way we can get better. I cannot follow the booking but would presume you were on a Cruise liner as that is a cruise liner special. We use VW Syncro awd with gravel suspension and a Mitsubishi Delica awd but have aircon and are all wheel drive. We often rent in vehicles on these days to help us handle the many guests. None the less we humbly apologize as we can well imagine how hot and uncomfortable you were. We will look into those days and make sure it will not happen again. We trust you accept our apologies and thank you once again for letting us know. Uwe
The tour was excellent. We were picked up with a total of four SUVs directly at the harbour in Walvis Bay. From there we went first to Swakopmund with stops at the old jetty, in the city center at the old light tower (with some free time for souvenirs and a coffee) and at the old train station, which is now a hotel. Then we went into the desert. After some photo stops we were served a very delicious picnic with soft drinks and local beer (necessary to try). Afterwards we went back to Walvis Bay to the salt pans (with great views from the dunes) and the flamingos in the lagoon. Our driver Dany not only drove us safely at all times, but also told us a lot about the country and people. In short: The perfect excursion if you want to explore as much of the surroundings as possible in one day.
sehr schoen. Freut uns das sie einen gelungen Tag in der Wueste hatten, Danke die Empfehlung. Gute Reise
The tour started rocky because our boat arrived later than the tour expected. Our tour guide Michael was very informative. Great tours highly remind
Thank you for your kind recommendation. The Last Cruise ship was a real challenge, immigration took very long and as it was a large ship disembarking per Deck took very long. This created very long delays. We apologize and trust you understand it was not in our hands. Thank you for your kind words, it goes a long way. Uwe
Our driver/guide Hannes greeted us at the port entrance and after picking up our lunch went straight away into this extremely interesting tour. At first the fog around us was so thick that the dunes could not be seen but slowly it disappeared so we were given spectacular views of the desert. We were extremely lucky that a few days before rain fell and otherwise dry riverbeds were in some places full of water. We even ran into some soft mud and the 4x4 Toyota was struggling to get out of it (upon return to Walvis Bay we were definitely the only car painted in mud :) ). The desert took advantage of the rare rain and started to bloom. At the Welwitschia site we discovered tiny little green Welwitschia sprouts coming out everywhere which appears to be a really rare sight not seen in decades. We had several stops, first at the Goanikontes oasis, where we could use the restrooms and see some desert scorpions. We could find some ice cold Namibian beer served here at the music of German schlagers (fyi the large beer was cheaper than a capuccino, quite funny). Next stop we had in the desert and got our finger-food lunch served with cold drinks aside. A remarkable experience! We also made a stop in Swakopmund after exploring the city by car. Unfortunately it was Sunday and everything was closed but nevertheless we got the impression of this city based on German heritage. I would recommend this tour to every nature lover. Except for birds the part we visited is not known to offer animal sightings but one gets to understand the ecosystem getting the water supply from fog, e.g. lichens appear in large quantities. Observing the effects of a sudden supply of water in form of the rare rain was a bonus. Hannes is very kind and very knowledgeable, we learned a lot. Thank you for the super interesting day, Hannes!
Good to hear. Everybody likes to hear from satisfied guests. The birds in the desert are limited and occasionally we see the Trac Trac Chad at a viewpoint. The Desert is so thankful for the little bit of rain it got. 15mm averaged out over 15 years is little and surviving has become an interesting topping to study, for both fauna and flora. Glad our guide showed you all. If you go out now again you will see how green it has become in this short time. Glad you picked up the difficult life out here. Thats what we try and show. Wishing you safe travels Thank you. Uwe
The scenery was spectacular. Our guide/driver Hans was very professional and an excellent driver. We had a wonderful time. This is a must due tour.
Thank you! That is what we would like to hear to build this new booking Platform. Great to hear we did a good job at Sandwichharbourtours.com on our Swakopmund Highlight Tour. This tour offers diversity in a wide area and what the desert has to show. Thank you for booking with us. Wishing safe travels.
A beautiful experience in the desert together with a very nice and competent staff. I recommend to anyone who comes to this city this excursion
Vielen Dank fur die netten Worte . Wir schaetzen es sehr. Jede review ist hart erarbeitet. Danke schoen.
