Windhoek sits almost exactly in the centre of Namibia, in a basin at about 1700 m ringed by hills. Around 450,000 people live there, roughly a sixth of the national population, and almost every visitor passes through because the international airport, the car rental depots and the supply supermarkets are all here.
The colonial core
The Christuskirche, a Lutheran church consecrated in 1910 in a mix of neo-Romanesque and art nouveau, stands on a traffic island and is the symbol of the city. Behind it is the Tintenpalast, the ink palace, built in 1913 as the colonial administration and now the parliament, with gardens open to the public. Three small castles built by the same architect look over the centre from the hillside.
Independence Memorial Museum
Opened in 2014, designed and built by the North Korean Mansudae studio, and unmissable in every sense: a gold and glass tower on the site of the demolished colonial Reiterdenkmal. Its three floors cover the colonial period, the genocide of 1904 to 1908, the liberation struggle and independence in 1990. The top-floor cafe has the best view in the city and entry is free.
Katutura
The township was created in 1959 when the black population was forcibly moved out of the old location; the name means the place where we do not want to live. It is now a large and lively part of the city. Guided tours run to the Single Quarters market, where kapana, meat grilled on open braais and cut to order, is the essential Windhoek street food.
Eating and shopping
Windhoek eats game: oryx, kudu and springbok appear on most menus alongside German dishes that arrived with the colony and never left. Joe Beerhouse is the institution; the Namibia Craft Centre in the old brewery is the best place for baskets, Himba jewellery and San craft with clear provenance. Namibian beer is brewed to the German purity law, a fact the labels state at length.
Day trips
The Daan Viljoen game reserve is twenty minutes away and has zebra, kudu and giraffe with walking trails and no predators. Okapuka and other guest farms lie within an hour and make an easy first or last night.
Practicalities
Hosea Kutako airport is 45 km east and the drive takes forty minutes. Pick up rental vehicles here and buy everything you will need for the north: supermarkets outside the capital are limited. The city is safe by regional standards during the day; use taxis at night and avoid displaying valuables in the centre.