How To Get From Maun, Botswana to Windhoek, Namibia Without a Car

Whew. This was one of the more taxing journeys and border crossings of my long African overland adventure. From broken down trains at the Zambian border to bribing immigration at the Ugandan border, I’ve had my fair share of misadventures on this trip. Did I really expect any different as I tried to cross the border between two of the most sparsely-populated countries in the world?

Despite being two fairly popular travel destinations, neither Botswana nor Namibia really have great public transportation options. Most travelers choose to rent a car and self-drive when exploring these two countries. As a solo traveler on a budget, I had no choice but to keep the adventures a little interesting.

Luckily, I met a Japanese solo traveler at my fantastic homestay in Maun, and we decided to endure the complex journey together. It involved a 4 am wake-up and six different modes of transportation before the shells of our bodies nestled into the Paradise Garden Hostel in Windhoek shortly after sunset. It wasn’t easy or straightforward, but it is possible.

Here’s how to get from Maun, Botswana to Windhoek, Namibia using (mostly) public transportation.

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The First Leg: Maun to Ghanzi

There are buses from Maun to Ghanzi that leave throughout the day, but if you want to maximize your chances of making it to Windhoek on the same day, it’s the 6 AM bus you’re looking for.

We were advised to arrive an hour early to ensure a spot on the bus, so we packed our things and hopped on a taxi to the bus station. Arrange a pick-up the night before because you won’t be able to find a taxi this early in the morning. Private taxis are called special taxis here and they charge a standard rate of 33 pula for anywhere within Maun.

Our taxi helped us find the bus to Gaborone which makes a stop in Ghanzi. I think we paid about 90 pula for the 3-hour ride from Maun to Ghanzi. It left right around 6 AM and was fairly empty so I managed to get some sleep before being awoken to pass through one of the security and health checkpoints. You’ll arrive in Ghanzi around 9:30 AM.

The Second Leg: Ghanzi to Charles Hill

Now, we play the waiting game. There is a van that leaves Ghanzi at around 11 AM, give or take an hour. The bus station in Ghanzi had a few shops lining the perimeter and a small food shack serving breakfast. It’s not a far walk from a pharmacy or convenience store if you need anything else, and you’ll have plenty of time before the bus comes.

It was a nice little vibe here, with many of the locals taking interest in the two foreigners that had made themselves comfortable on the sidewalk. Time passed fairly quickly as we sipped our coffees and chatted away with some friendly fellow passengers. The bus rolled up and people made a beeline for it to get their desired seats. Luckily, we were still able to get seats despite being among the last people to hop on the bus.

We squeezed into the back as a luggage trailer was secured to the back of the bus and we watched our backpacks get loosely strapped in. The bus departed and we paid our 72 pula to the man collecting the fares. It took about two hours to reach Charles Hill, the long drive through flat landscapes highlighted by absolutely nothing memorable.

The Third Leg: Charles Hill to Mamuna Border Post

We got off the bus at Charles Hill and there were a handful of taxis waiting at the bus stop. A man started talking to us and said he had a friend coming to pick him up and take him to the border. We decided to chance it as the taxis were charging something like 50-70 pula per person for the short drive to the border. Surely they’d still be around if things didn’t work out with this stranger’s friend. I would have probably hopped in the taxi and paid the fare if I was alone, but with my Japanese friend, Shun, I was feeling bold and we decided to chance it.

A few minutes later, the man’s friend showed up and took us to the Mamuna Border Post.

The Mamuna Border Post: Crossing from Botswana to Namibia

This was a fairly straightforward border crossing. Neither of these countries required a visa or additional paperwork for my U.S. passport, so I was able to just rock up stress-free. The Namibian side had me fill out an entry form but that’s pretty standard. The actual border crossing from Botswana to Namibia itself was the easiest part of the entire day.

We were able to exchange our Botswanan pula to Namibian dollars at a relatively reasonable rate of 120 Namibian dollars for 100 pula. I exchanged just enough to pay for any remaining taxis that day. There is also an ATM at the rest stop just past the border post where you can withdraw Namibian dollars.

Upon arriving in Namibia, make sure you have a plan for staying connected, since it isn’t easy to buy SIM cards at the land border crossings. I use Saily eSIM to keep me online during my travels, ensuring that I have internet from the moment I land to the moment I leave. Navigating directions, coordinating plans with new travel buddies, ordering a ride, and so on – having an eSIM makes life that much easier when you’re on the road. You can use my code “eli5” for an additional 5% off of your first Saily eSIM.

The Fourth Leg: Mamuna Border Post to Gobabis

Our new Namibian friend, a teacher named Saki, turned out to be a much-needed stroke of good luck. He had made a quick trip to see his friend in Maun and was now headed back to his home in Gobabis. After hanging around the border for a few minutes, one of his friends showed up to pick him up, and we piled our things into his car. Another Namibian hitchhiker we met at the border hopped in with us, and we headed on our way to Gobabis.

Normally, this is where most people would have to hang around for an hour or two and hope that someone comes to pick them up. Apparently, there might also be taxis hanging around at the border to take people to Gobabis. This costs about 150-200 Namibian dollars per person and they always wait until they’re full before leaving. No idea on how long that could take. Alternatively, one can hang around by the rest stop and see if they can find someone to give them a ride to Gobabis or all the way to Windhoek. It’s a gamble, but if you’re patient enough, I’m sure you’ll eventually find a ride. People around here are extremely friendly, and there are quite a few over-landing travelers who’ll happily let you hop in their car if they have space.

The Fifth Leg: Gobabis to Windhoek

Saki’s friend dropped him off at his home on the outskirts of Gobabis. We exchanged numbers quickly before he told the driver where to take us and said his goodbyes. The driver took us to the shared taxi waiting point outside of a gas station where we shoved our bags into a car and began the waiting game. There were three other taxi drivers competing against him, and with hardly anyone planning to head to Windhoek this late in the evening, it felt like a fight to the death. Every car that passed by would be instantly swarmed by our driver and the others to try to seduce them into their car specifically.

Shun and I hung around chatting, snacking, and doing whatever else we could do to pass the time with no internet or SIM cards. We were there for well over an hour before the drivers seemed to make an agreement and combine the grand total of five passengers between their four cars. We all squeezed into one car, with me taking the lone seat in the back amidst all the luggage.

It seemed like the most comfortable spot at the time, where I could lay on the bags and take a much-needed nap as I had long run out of gas and wanted nothing more than a short nap. That didn’t happen, of course, as the driver insisted on playing his music at ear-splitting decibel levels. I shoved my clothes to try and block out the speaker right next to my head, but no sleep was had. We had a short break for the driver to smoke a cigarette and we hopped out to watch the sun set a full 15 hours after we had hopped in the taxi to Maun’s bus station, seemingly a full lifetime ago.

This two-hour stretch of the journey cost 150 Namibian Dollars and they dropped us off right at the Paradise Garden hostel in Windhoek. I’m not sure if they drop off door-to-door for everyone, but our hostel was close enough to the city center and we fortunately didn’t have to take another taxi to get there. If you do need a taxi, you can hail one off the streets or use the Yango app, which is the version of Uber used in many African countries.

All in all, the entire journey will cost you about $30 USD. If everything goes smoothly, it should take about 14 hours to get from Maun to Windhoek using public transportation and shared taxis. It could take more or less time depending on how long it takes for the shared taxis and buses to fill up, but it’s very possible to do the entire journey in a single day. It was great to finally catch a glimpse of Namibia’s small desert mountains after spending weeks in nothing but flat land.

It was physically exhausting, especially with minimal sleep the night before, but in its own way, it was a lot of fun. We met some great people along the way and were able to see many sides of Botswana and Namibia that we would not have otherwise seen. Both countries are incredible travel destinations and have among some of the friendliest and most helpful people I’ve ever met. Just be open to an adventure.

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