Namib Desert Lodge, Gondwana Collection Namibia — Hotel in Hardap

This hotel cost 3x what I paid in Swakopmund and 1.5x what I paid in Windhoek so I was expecting a better experience overall, but felt underwhelmed.

The food and food service was good, but the things that weren’t good were:

The room was fine but not amazing for the bigger price tag. WiFi was hit or miss and housekeeping came late in the afternoon after activities when I was already trying to relax in the room. They also left a note asking guests to conserve water with showers less than 4 minutes and not washing towels daily, but then watered the grass and plants daily? I’m happy to accommodate any requests for conservation, but I felt like they weren’t practicing what they preach.

The guide to Sossuvlei was trying the least. He barely spoke during the 4 hour round trip ride in the car, he drank a beer while driving (which normally I would say “yas, have fun” but when he didn’t try at all during the tour, it was annoying), and he didn’t explain the major undertaking of hiking Big Daddy. Another guest and I were struggling with the hike so he suggested a “shortcut” and sent us on our way. The shortcut included extremely deep sand and he had to come down to get us, only to let us know that we “took the wrong route”. At one point I explicitly asked “is there a way to make this easier” and he said no, but then later gave the tips of following in others footsteps or removing shoes. I get that he does this every day, but he did very little to make the process more comfortable and informative, which is literally why I hired a guide.

This hotel is in the middle of nowhere and when I tried to change my transport plans they kept telling me “sorry, it’s the weekend so we can’t help you” or “wait for the manager to come back.” At one point (after following up literally four times), I pushed for alternate solutions and the employee just started ignoring me as if I wasn’t talking. I’ve also lived and worked in hospitality in a remote place and you usually know people or services that aren’t obvious to guests, but they really made me fend for myself with the power of google on the spotty wifi.

When I checked out one day early (as I noted when I checked in and when I asked for transportation 4x over two days), the staff seemed shocked and confused that I was leaving. They didn’t know what to do when I asked to apply the funds I paid for the extra unused night to activities, drinks, lunch, etc. and had to call the head office. The head office refused any type of concession, aside from a 10% refund of the unused night.

Overall I felt like an inconvenience and I was constantly begging for service on everything aside...

We spent two nights in the camp-to-go, one night at Dune Star and one night at Namib Grace. What an unforgettable experience! We loved being in a tent and relatively isolated at the camp-to-go - able to braai our own supper and watch the full moon rise over the beautiful escarpment. The camp is wonderfully equipped with absolutely everything - and more than - we needed.

We celebrated my husband's birthday at Dune Star, sleeping under the stars and waking to sunrise over the dunes - incredible pinks, oranges and yellows. We were fortunate to be there after good rains so the grasses and fairy circles gleamed alongside the glowing red sand. What magic and what luxury to witness that from the warmth of our comfortable double bed and crisp linen cocoon. The evening before we were taken for a short walk on the dunes and introduced to silken spider houses, beetles and a wonderfully camouflaged dune hare. The drive to and from the camp in a an open backed vehicle was also very special.

The privacy of our room at Namib Grace was amazing - to be able to swim and shower looking straight out onto the desert. To cap the whole experience we were taken on a two person sunset drive by Eddie whose love for the desert and pride in Gondwana was truly heart warming. We presented ourselves for the evening drive without having booked it and were asked to wait a little while. Imagine our surprise when Eddie, the manager, nogal!, arrived to take us on the drive because all the other guides were busy at that time. He had come over especially from NDL when alerted that two guests were waiting for a drive and laughed off our concern that he had other more important things to do. We learned wonderful things from him and got to see a glorious sunset from a high vantage point while nibbling delicious snacks and drinks. Eddie certainly went beyond the call of duty to make our trip extra special, but then all the staff at Namib Gondwana did.

We highly recommend this extraordinary part of the world and the...

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗩𝗘𝗟 & 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭 Beyond 50 Live An Inspiring Location Independent Life! 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗡𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝟱𝟬 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸

𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗧 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗗𝗦 This is a RETREAT property. There are many nice features to the lodge, yet it is not ideal for travel/work. Wifi is almost non-existent; most of the time I couldn't even get a connection with my personal MiFi pocket hotspot. Prepare for that and relax!

𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦 Excellent location for access to tour of Sossusvlei / Deadvlei. I was impressed with the relaxed desert luxury.

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗜 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘𝗗...

• Fresh and modern interiors, very nicely designed.

• Pristinely clean. Very comfortable bed with soft linen.

• Nice lightly fragrant toiletries.

• Gracious and attentive service from all the staff.

• Buffet meals were tasty and varied.

• Nice gift shop.

• Very quiet, you'll have a peaceful sleep; not noisy at night.

• Clean, well-managed and maintained property.

• Nice shower, toiletries fresh pleasant scent, nice sized towels

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦...

• As stated above; there are many nice features to this property, yet it is not ideal for travel/work. Wifi is almost non-existent; most of the time I couldn't even get a connection with my personal MiFi pocket hotspot.

• No bedside outlets; see comment above. Rest and relax, work when you leave.

• No TV monitor... enjoy the amazing desert wonder all around you!

• With the solid wood window treatments closed, the room is very private from exterior viewing. However, it becomes profoundly and 'stumbling about' dark at night. A small night light in the bathroom would be nice.

• No mini-refrigerator in room. I guess they want to make sure you to use the restaurant.

• Although the property runs the day tours --and therefore sets the schedule-- the hot breakfast is not available until 6:00a. Inexplicably, tours leave at that time. The only available option is the cold breakfast buffet that...