Windhoek

Windhoek is the capital of Namibia and today has between 300,000 to 400,000 (depending on source of information) inhabitants. Windhoek is the political, cultural, industrial and economical centre of Namibia.

Geographically speaking Windhoek is situated in the centre of Namibia. As is expected from a capital all transport links from north to south and from east to west cross here. Due to its hilly surrounding the international airport “Hosea Kutako” is situated forty kilometres outside the town – southern Windhoek only has a small airport. Windhoek is surrounded by mountain ranges, which are up to 2000 metres high and which strongly limit an expansion of the town. Windhoek has a height of 1,625 to 1,725 metres above sea level.

Until today numerous buildings from the colonial time can be found in Windhoek. It is striking how clean the town is. The influence of the German colonial times can still be seen today: German Restaurants, several German street names, German beer, bread and sausages. Especially the German carnival is celebrated to a great extend! In some of the shops one can communicate in German even though the official language in Namibia is English.

The town offers quite a few places of interest for example the Christuschurch, the Tintenpalast (seat of the government), the old fort „Alte Feste“ the monument of the German rider as well as several museums and galleries. It rests on a gravely inland plateau with dotted areas of acacia and scrub grass surrounded by two desserts, the Namib Desert to the west and the Kalahari to the east. Just outside of the city are many wildlife reserves, perfect for relaxing and viewing game. The Khomas Hochland represents the highest point of the plateau, its peaks no more spectacular than Namibia’s fourth highest mountain, the Gamsberg, a table-topped mountain rising some 500 meters above the surrounding landscape. For a change of pace, the Gross Barmen Hot Springs highlight the areas many wellness opportunities, where one can relax in baths of steaming spring water.