Swakopmund
Strand Hotel Swakopmund
The Strand Hotel Swakopmund is a social hub for visitors and residents of Swakopmund. The hotel has creatively entertaining restaurants, bars, deli, lounge, sea-facing terraces, beach kiosk and state of the art conference & banqueting centre, all set on the Mole, a historic site surrounded by ocean on three sides.
The Strand’s architectural inspiration has roots in Namibian-German history and reflects this in a tasteful contemporary manner. The interiors are residential in nature, and the brief to all designers involved was to create a non-hotel hotel, one as charming and welcoming as the town itself. The result is simply warm and comfortable and, as they say in German, gemütlich, providing a genuine sense of place and adding to any Namibian visit.
Arriving at the Strand is a dramatic experience as one passes through its 13m high and 9m wide Ocean View Atrium which travels right through the hotel offering sea views at either end. Off the Atrium Lobby is Reception, consisting of three individual desks and an inviting open fireplace which rounds off the residential feel and warm welcome.
Facilities
There are various room levels with the Standard Rooms having panoramic sliding doors with garden views, en-suite bathroom, writing desk and armchair. Enabled Rooms have in addition a second bathroom for disabled use and full wheelchair access. Luxury Rooms have balconies offering sea views and large beds, dining tables, couch and two armchairs. There are also Junior and Luxury Suites sleeping four and one Presidential Suite.
Optional Activities
Bicycle hire
Alan Godwin
Area Specialist
Although the hotel has no swimming pool, the Atlantic Ocean provides opportunities for a refreshing dip, especially in the warmth of mid-day.
If you have any questions regarding our Namibia tours, please feel free to contact me on +44 (0)1803 866965
This was our second visit to Namibia in just over 12 months, with Reef and Rainforest and our seventh consecutive wildlife trip with them. I think that speaks for itself. This year we were particularly keen to try and observe some desert adapted Lions. The Lions found in ‘The Namib Desert’ are genetically identical to those found in the rest of Southern Africa but have adapted to live in one of the harshest environments on earth. They number around 150 and have a huge range, and are rarely seen. They came to prominence in the outstanding documentary film ‘Vanishing Kings’. The best chance of observing members of this subset of Lions is during a stay at Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp, although sightings cannot be guaranteed and weeks can pass by without any success. Therefore a stay at this camp was at the heart of our itinerary and we were very lucky to spend time with a Lioness and her niece who had killed an Oryx in the conservancy. The camp itself is absolutely outstanding in every respect and the location is just spectacular.
Visitors should be aware that this is not ‘The Serengeti’ and that the wildlife is quite thin on the ground. However you would have to be very unlucky not to see Elephant, Giraffe and several other species. Whilst we were out in the desert we were lucky to bump in to Dr P. Stander who has dedicated the whole of his adult life to the conservation of The Desert Lion, what a thrill. The day trip out to the coast was pretty special as well.
The rest of the itinerary worked very well and we were very pleased to have three full days in Etosha N.P. where we recorded 25 mammal species, including 32 individual Lions, observed the aftermath of 4 zebra kills, 11 Rhinoceros (both Black & White), an African Wildcat and the rarely seen in Etosha, elusive Leopard.
So a big thank you to ALL at Reef and Rainforest, another highly successful trip, you certainly delivered again.