Travel to Angola? For most Europeans, it is still a trip to a country destroyed by war. Contaminated by mines, inadequate supplies, without any infrastructure. – This was correct for the first two, three years after the end of t he civil war (1975-2002).

Angola is making enormous efforts to help people forget the decades of civil war, and to catch up with the 21st century. There are currently 450 000 Chinese in Angola, working on renovating the road network from scratch, using state-of-the-art technology. The project will last many years, and shall asphalt the important North-West transport axes as well as in East-West direction.

In spite of everything, Angola will remain a difficult country to travel in for many years to come. Those who travel here must be ready to do without many amenities.

In return, we offer a trip through a beautiful, still hardly discovered land, pristine and adventurous. Especially the rural population and their different tribes are still practically undiscovered by tourism. This makes the mutual introductions that much more enchanting and inquisitive.

The trip begins in lively Kinshasa (RD Congo) and ends in Windhoek (Namibia)

Itinerary and highlights:

Day 1

Arrival in Kinshasa. This city (7 - 8 million inhabitants) offers everything that one could expect from an African metropolis. We will camp on the premises of a mission downtown.

Day 2

Stores, bars and restaurants are located at our "doorstep". The huge central market can be reached by bus or taxi. The Congo River and the exclusive ambassador quarter are also close by. Well worth seeing - the rapids of the Congo at the upper end of the Boulevard. They are still considered to be insurmountable.

In the evening - it is weekend - we will be roaming through the entertainment district of Matonge. It might just be the best that Africa has to offer. Countless bars, music taverns and open-air events can be found here. Matonge is the district that never sleeps. This is where Congolese music started its triumphal procession through Africa, Europe and the USA.

Day 3

Journey along good tarred roads through the province of "Bas-Congo" towards Songolo. This province is known as the "bread basket" for Kinshasa. Fruit and vegetables as well as manioc and corn – the Congolese staple foods - are cultivated on the fertile soils.

We will spend the night at a mission in Songolo.

Day 4 - 6

The next three days will take us through the savannah landscapes of the north of Angola. The region is still sparsely populated; the tracks are in poor condition. Road construction is concentrated in Luanda and the southern part of the country.

Border crossing at Luovo to Angola. This border is much more convenient than the border crossing at Matadi.

M'Banza Congo, the first smaller city in Angola.

Nzeto. We have reached the Atlantic coast.

Ambriz. Small seaside town and fishing village in the "Reserve de Ambriz"

Barra do Dande. The last overnight stay before Luanda.

Bush camping / beach camping

Day 7 - 9

Once we have crossed Luanda - leaving its insane traffic, road works, tailbacks and the total traffic chaos in the city behind us - good paved roads await us. In addition, there are fantastic landscapes. The blue Atlantic at the left with its sandy beaches and the "Parque Nacinal da Quicama" at the right.

20 kilometres after Luanda, we will reach a large handicraft market. Especially the exquisitely colourful paintings catch the eye. We can enjoy good Angolan food at numerous small street restaurants. Fish, meat skewers or fried duck are offered.

Cabo Ledo. A tranquil fishing village with the country's oldest lighthouse.

Porto Amboim, beautifully located at the Atlantic, is in the process of returning to its old contemplative splendour

Through the larger seaside town of Sumbe, we will continue to the small village of Egito Prayo. We will be staying here for two nights. In this small fishing town, we can experience the fisher's lives up close. Fresh fish can be bought directly from the boat. With a little luck, we will also find some freshly caught crayfish.

Bush camping / beach camping

Day 10

Benguela, the capital of the province, offers lots of urban flair, a very nice boardwalk and many places of interest from its 400 years of history. A museum, the slave house, an opera… the city suffered immensely under the long civil war. A lot of money was invested to restore its former appearance.

Visit of the museum and the slave house

Bush camping

Days 11 - 15

Dombe Grande. A lively market with all we need for the next days: fruit and vegetables, meat, bread and beer.

The following stage of our trip to Lucira will be extremely difficult. Depending on what the last rainy season made with the track: Sometimes we will only be able to drive through the mountains at a snail’s pace on tracks that have been washed away by the rain. Every now and then we will run into cattle, but herdsmen are nowhere to be seen. The landscape is fascinatingly sparse and hostile. However, old truck wrecks are evidence that this road was once well-developed. During the civil war, the road was known as the only safe route connecting the north with the south.

Lucira is surrounded by high mountains. It is just a small fishers’ town, where time seems to stand still. We will take the time to watch the fishers unloading their catch, the market women bargaining, and let the leisurely goings in the small town sink in.

Travelling along the coast we will reach Namibe. In Namibe, the spotlessly clean seaport with its old buildings from the Portuguese era, we can replenish our drinking water reserves, fuel and fresh food. The small city is definitely worth a visit.

The Flamingo Lodge is located south of Namibe. With its secluded location at the ocean, this lodge is an insider's tip since many years for South African off-road drivers and recreational fishers. Rooms are available at the Lodge.

The fantastic Leba Pass takes us from an elevation of 2000 m down to almost sea level over a distance of only a few kilometres.

We will reach Lubango (1800 m) on a newly tarred road. The statue of Christ, towering high above the city, was a gift from the Brazilian government and is an exact replicate of the statue in Rio de Janeiro. Lubango exhibits excellently renovated buildings from the Portuguese period. Lots of money is being invested to restore the city’s former splendour.

20 Kilometres out of Lubango there is the stunning "Tunda Valde", a mountainous region up to 2500 meters. A fantastic place for camping

Bush camp

Days 16 - 17

Travel on to the border to Namibia. Most of the road is now tarred. Passing Cahama, Xangongo we arrive in Ondjiva. Almost completely destroyed during the war, the city was rebuilt with great efforts to create a modern picture book city.

Namibia

Border crossing to Namibia. Camp in the Nakambale museum rest camp. This historical mission with its museum welcomes us with hot showers and cold drinks. Nice, to be back in civilization!

Day 18

Travel on to the Etosha National Park – the most famous park of Namibia with its gorgeous animal kingdom. We camp near the park entrance on a guest farm.

Day 19

Crossing of the park. From our high truck we have a magnificent view on both sides. Big herds of springboks and zebras, gnus, kudus, cow antelopes, elephants, giraffes and and and…..In the afternoon we come to the part of the park where we might see lion.

Just before closing time of the park we leave it to the nearby Etosha Safari Camp.

We have dinner at the restaurant (buffet).

Day 20

Visit to Outjo, a friendly little town. Here we find a post office, shops, internet, cheap souvenir shops and a delicious bakery. All we need.

Travel on to a small farm behind Otjiyarongo. A nice garden with a swimming pool, some ducks, some dogs, a lot of sheep and a nice farmer couple with his workers.

Day 21

We arrive in Windhoek at noon. There we stay at the Arebbusch Travel Lodge. This lodge is a combined camping and chalet plant with a restaurant and a small swimming pool, some kilometers outside the town.

Day 22

This day is our buffer day. On journeys like we did it, through countries with poor infrastructure it is always possible that delays may occur. This can be due to the weather, poor roads, delays at border crossings, technical breakdowns or the need of medical aid etc. If we had no delays on our trip, this day you can spent to visit Windhoek. If you think, one day is to short, to see the town, just stay another day and don’t leave tomorrow. You can use your tent and our other equipment.

Day 23

Windhoek, farewell to Africa, return voyage.

Overview and compact travel information:

We are already at the starting point one week before the journey starts. At the ending point we will stay two days after the trip has finished. Thus, you can choose your arrival and departure day individually.

Our price includes:

• All camping fees

• All entrance fees for tourist sightseeing

• Entrance fees for the Etosha National Park

• Dinner at the Etosha Safari Camp

• 16 x 3 meals a day

• 3 x breakfast
  At the starting and ending points of our tours normally we just serve breakfast. Near our camps, you can eat for small money in African restaurants or in restaurants with international kitchen.
  If we stay on camping grounds with a restaurant, normally we just serve breakfast. Sometimes the dinner in the restaurant is included in our price.

• 4 x 2 meals a day (breakfast and / or lunch / dinner)

Not included:

• Flights

• Visa fees

• Taxi fees

• Drinks (soft drinks / alcohol)

• Tips (for local guides)

Visa Information for Namibia

Nationals from the countries listed below are not required to obtain Visas to travel to Namibia for visits shorter than three months:

Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russian, Federation, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States of America and others

Look also at: www.projectvisa.com