Explore The Skeleton Coast
Ticked off
Fog rolling off a cold ocean onto desert dunes, rusting shipwrecks and tens of thousands of barking fur seals.
The adventure
The cold Benguela Current runs up this coast, and where it meets the hot Namib Desert it makes fog: thick, silver banks that roll in at dawn and smother everything. You drive for hours on salt roads with the Atlantic pounding on one side and gravel plains or dunes on the other, and barely pass another car.
Then the coast throws something at you. At Cape Cross the smell hits first, then the noise, as tens of thousands of Cape fur seals jostle and bark on the rocks. Further on, a rusting hull lies stranded on the beach, a reminder of why Portuguese sailors called this the Gates of Hell. Inland, in the dry riverbeds, desert-adapted elephants and lions survive where you'd think nothing could.
Why it’s epic
- Cape Cross is home to one of the largest Cape fur seal colonies in the world.
- The name comes from the whale bones and shipwrecks that once littered its beaches.
- The Namib here is one of the oldest deserts in the world.
- Desert-adapted elephants and lions roam the dry riverbeds inland, such as the Hoanib.
What it is
The Skeleton Coast is a remote stretch of fog-bound desert coast, scattered with shipwrecks and seal colonies.
How to do it
Self-drive from Swakopmund up to Cape Cross and Torra Bay, or take a fly-in safari to the remote north.
Top tip
Fill up with fuel whenever you can.
Need to know
- UK visitors now need a visa for Namibia, available online or on arrival.
- The Skeleton Coast National Park needs a permit, gate times are strict and wild camping isn't allowed.
- Roads are salt and gravel, so drive slowly, carry a spare tyre and fill up whenever you can.
Plan this trip
- Rough cost
- £2,000 to £5,000 per person, including flights from the UK
- Time needed
- 3 to 5 days
- Best time to go
- All year
- Fly into
- WDH airport
A 4x4 hire and long drives keep a self-drive trip moderate; fly-in safaris to the far north cost far more.
Sample itinerary
- Day 1Fly to Windhoek and drive to Swakopmund
- Day 2Cape Cross seal colony and the first shipwrecks along the coast
- Day 3Fly-in safari or 4x4 north to the Skeleton Coast park
- Days 4–5Desert-adapted elephants and lions in the dry riverbeds, then back to Swakopmund
Do it yourself
- Tours and ticketsGetYourGuide
- HotelsBooking.com
- FlightsKiwi.com
- Adventure travel insuranceWorld NomadsWe receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using this link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.
Some of these are affiliate links: if you book through them I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. More about this.
My experience
Ticked off, but the full story is still to be written up.
Over to you
Is “Explore The Skeleton Coast” on your bucket list, or have you already done it? Tell me in the comments, and if you've got a question about it, ask away and I'll answer.