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Covid in Namibia

During a pandemic you should weigh your options carefully before deciding to travel or not. In our case, vaccines in March and April 2021 were not widely available yet, but testing in Germany was reliable. The coronavirus pandemic in Namibia was not a problem when we traveled, although numbers are constantly changing. Always check the local and international news for more up to date information.

Don’t travel for the sake of traveling, and don’t be reckless with your health. We traveled to Namibia during Covid times as we had friends to visit and were already on the continent for work. It also helped that there were very few Covid cases in Namibia, it is a sparsely populated country, and most of our trip was spent alone on the road.

Covid or not, with a population of 2 million it will be difficult to find anyone else out on the road between towns in this massive country.

Covid Testing During A Pandemic In Namibia

Our biggest worry in traveling to Namibia during Covid times was testing. Namibia requires a test at least 7 days before entry, which is fairly easy to time correctly. It is very difficult to figure out where and when to get tested in Namibia upon leaving. As we were flying into Kenya, which requires a test at least 96 hours before entry, we had to time the test carefully.

When we first started looking into testing, it appeared that Windhoek was the only place to do it. After some research, it turned out many safari companies were also carrying out their own testing and sending samples back to Windhoek for results.

We contacted the main testing center in Windhoek via email, and after a lot of back and forth, it appeared they could also test in Lüderitz, which was our second to final destination and would work out with our timing.

Covid Testing in Lüderitz

In Lüderitz, we visited the lone medical clinic, the light blue and white building located on Schinz Street. We were told to find Sister Solomon, who only worked two hours per day in the radiology unit and did not take appointments. We were there exactly on time, as was she. Our plan was that if she had too many patients and couldn’t see us, we would sadly have to leave Lüderitz and drive immediately to Windhoek to get a test in time for our flight. Thankfully, she did not have any patients! We completed lots of paperwork, had our passports scanned, and paid $N850 per person in cash for the test. The whole process took over half an hour as there was so much paperwork.

We tested at 12pm on Wednesday, and our flight was at 2:30pm on Friday. Our test results came by email at 9pm on Thursday night. And of course (thankfully), they were negative!

Cleanliness

We were highly impressed with the Namibian’s attempts to keep everyone clean and disease free. Nearly everyone was wearing a mask outside, although not everyone wore a mask properly. Anything can work as a mask (bandana, surgical mask, K95/FFP2, cloth, etc.) as long as it covers your mouth and nose.

Every building and nearly every room in buildings had sanitizer stations. There was often a person near the station to make sure that anyone entering sanitized their hands. There were also many temperature checks, and they would write down your name, where you were staying, your phone number, and what your temperature was.

Curfew & Alcohol

There was a daily curfew nationwide from 4am-10pm. No one is allowed to be out for any reason, and most restaurants closed at 9pm. We were at a few restaurants that had a hard close at 9pm, but when we left at 9:15pm they were still full.

The brewery in Swakopmund where we couldn’t have a beer tasting because it was Sunday …

Alcohol bans on Sundays and holidays were a surprise for us. Pre-Covid, this was never an issue, but now, make sure to plan your alcohol purchases carefully! If you are a hotel guest you may buy alcohol to consume on the premises on these days, but supermarkets and restaurants will not allow purchases with no exception.

Restaurants & Shopping

Everything was open while we were in Namibia. There were no restrictions on restaurants or shopping centers. In restaurants it’s polite to wear your mask while not seated at your table, but we saw plenty of people wandering from the bathroom who forgot to put their mask back on. Seating was open indoors and outdoors, and we chose outdoors when possible. It’s quite easy to eat outdoors as it’s a warm country.

We had some of the best calamari in Namibia – sweet, tender, and flaky.

Shopping was also not restricted. You could go anywhere and buy anything. As far as we know, delivery didn’t really exist. Everything was operating completely normally. The only additions were face masks and sanitizing stations everywhere, along with some temperature checks.

Overall, our experience with the coronavirus pandemic in Namibia was extremely positive. Due to the fact that they have a low population, typically low case rate, and a vast country that most people road trip and hardly see anyone anyway, your chances of traveling and having a great time while not contracting a virus are pretty high. We would highly recommend Namibia as a safe place to visit during a pandemic. Please do take all precautions before, during, and after your trip to keep yourself and those around you safe.