Skeleton Coast National Park
Stretching up the northern coast for 500 kilometres, the Skeleton Coast is a real contender as the most beautiful part of Namibia.
When to go to The Skeleton Coast
Best Time to Go
Seemingly endless dune fields
A truly unique area
Seal colonies & shipwrecks
The remote North
Home to Breathtaking Scenery
Not to be confused with areas adjacent to Swakopmund, the Skeleton Coast National Park is one of the most beautiful and dramatic parts of the country. It is widely regarded as the most picturesque park in Africa. This area is exceptionally remote, with its northern sections visited only by fly-in guests. However, some of the best lodges and operators are based in these far northern regions. It is an absolutely outstanding area.
The north of the park is a very expensive place to stay, but the rewards for paying some of Namibia’s highest prices outweigh the cost, with the area showcasing some of the most exquisite and exclusive scenery on the planet. The only issue with visiting this area is the logistics of getting here. Self-drive operators can make it up halfway, as far as Terrace Bay, but accommodation is limited and you need to know what you are doing!
We highly recommend flying to experience the best parts of the park, and believe the operators here offer some of the best experiences in Africa.
The Skeleton Coast Trips
Activities & Wildlife
Not a classic safari destination but one of Namibia’s most famous sites, the Skeleton Coast is both bleak and beautiful; a must-see and reminder of the immense forces of nature that govern this land.
Scenic drives
Scenic flights
History tours
Visit the seal colonies
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The haunting shoreline of the Skeleton Coast is brimming with history and is one of the most desolate places on Earth. This untamed beach stretches for 500 kilometres and is littered with old whale bones and the wrecks of ships that didn’t fare well in these perilous waters! Its northern coastline is sandwiched between the Atlantic and the massive dunes of the oldest desert in the world. This meeting of these hot and cold opposing forces creates a dense fog that often hangs eerily over the shoreline.
The indigenous San people call the Skeleton Coast ‘The Land God made in Anger’. This is primarily a scenic driving location – and while there is some wildlife in Skeleton Coast National Park, Etosha is the superior destination for big game.
This is by far the best way to experience the stark beauty of the Skeleton Coast. There is one particular company that has operated along this coastline for generations. The Shoeman Brothers are legendary in these parts for their flying safaris. Expert pilot–guides, they will take you on an aerial adventure the likes of which are very rare. They can stop off for picnics in wild places, inaccessible to everyone else, and fly low over the dunes. Witnessing this remote and wild landscape from the air gives you a much fuller perspective of just how formidable it really is! This is definitely an activity to speak to your Namibia specialist about.
You can do guided tours of the shipwrecks that are available to visit. The broken and rusty hulls of old ships include the Eduard Bohlen and the Zeila. Due to the ever-shifting sands, their locations have changed over the years! You can imagine the ‘lucky’ sailors to have made it to shore, only to be greeted by endless desert and whale bones. There are some good stories to be told of these survivors.
Farther along the coast there is the impressive Cape Cod seal colony, home to over 100,000 Cape fur seals. Self-driving is often how people travel in parts of Namibia, and you can also rent quad bikes or go sandboarding down the many dunes.
Where else can you experience ancient desert, unique game viewing, and eerie shipwrecks all in one place? As you journey through the desert dune environment to reach the wild ocean on the coast, you pass through four distinctly beautiful ecosystems where you have the chance to spot desert-adapted lion, elephant, and, if you’re lucky, the elusive brown hyena.Talk to someone who’s been there
Real expertise doesn’t come from a few trips to Africa. All our specialists have either been guides, run the camps, or grown up and lived in Africa. That’s over 600 years of genuine safari experience.Good to Know
01.Why should I visit the Skeleton Coast?
What always surprises us about trips to Namibia, is how very few people actually visit Skeleton Coast National Park! Everyone talks about it, and the vast majority of operators include it in their itineraries. However, the majority of travellers explore only up as far as the famous Cape Cross seal colony, which can be a half-day’s excursion from Swakopmund. The stunning dune fields begin just 250 km north of Swakopmund… and it is here that the park really comes to life.
02.Do I need previous experience to do a self-drive here?
If you are going to drive yourself, then push up as far as you can go, but be careful, this is a serious area where a breakdown or loss of direction can cause you a much bigger problem than you may expect. You simply must have self-driving experience to explore up here.
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