Our Namibia cycling holidays & tours
Our Namibia cycling holidays are a fantastic way to engage with the country's magnificent landscapes. Travelling on two wheels you really get a sense of scale, especially when it comes to the country's remarkable dunes and deserts. But embracing the emptiness is just one side of our cycling holidays. These trips use partners that are African-owned and based, and use local guides. Thanks to them, you'll be pointed towards great artisanal shops for your souvenirs, and they'll help you feel closer to the landscape and its people. What's more, by keeping to a small group, you can use small, locally run accommodation along the way. These trips are rewarding, whether you're in or out of the saddle.
Our top trip
Namibia cycling holiday
Wide open spaces, endless skies & sand dunes
From
£2479 to £3399
12 days
ex flights
Small group travel:
2026: 29 Mar, 12 Jul, 16 Aug, 27 Sep, 11 Oct, 8 Nov, 13 Dec
2027: 9 May, 23 Jun, 18 Jul, 15 Aug, 12 Sep, 26 Sep, 3 Oct, 17 Oct, 14 Nov
2026: 29 Mar, 12 Jul, 16 Aug, 27 Sep, 11 Oct, 8 Nov, 13 Dec
2027: 9 May, 23 Jun, 18 Jul, 15 Aug, 12 Sep, 26 Sep, 3 Oct, 17 Oct, 14 Nov
Contact Us
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What does cycling in Namibia entail?
Two weeks gives you a really nice survey of the Namibia’s best bike-able highlights and you can pack in eight days of cycling. You’ll need to be moderately fit, happy to submit your legs to multiple days of pedalling and your buttocks to multiple days in the saddle; the bumpy terrain can take its toll after a while. You won’t be expected to take a bike all the way up a sand dune, but a half-day on fat bikes, bikes with supersized tyres, will allow you to have a go at cycling on sand.
Cycling here is a rewarding experience that’s best when it’s shared. A small group trip will have a maximum of 16 participants, and participants need to be aged 16 or over. Trips include mountain bike hire and you’ll be accompanied by a support vehicle and two or three highly knowledgeable support staff. Ask them anything: what kind of gazelle just sprang across the rocks, what the weather will be like (hot) and how tall they reckon that sand dune is (the highest is 383m).
Expect heat and dust. It’s actually too hot to spend all day cycling and besides, there are far too many other interesting things to see. Generally you’ll start early in the morning (we’re talking catch-the-sunrise early) and stop for the day around midday, before the sun gets to full strength. The average daily cycling distance is 39km, which usually amounts to three or four hours in the saddle.
Cycling here is a rewarding experience that’s best when it’s shared. A small group trip will have a maximum of 16 participants, and participants need to be aged 16 or over. Trips include mountain bike hire and you’ll be accompanied by a support vehicle and two or three highly knowledgeable support staff. Ask them anything: what kind of gazelle just sprang across the rocks, what the weather will be like (hot) and how tall they reckon that sand dune is (the highest is 383m).
Expect heat and dust. It’s actually too hot to spend all day cycling and besides, there are far too many other interesting things to see. Generally you’ll start early in the morning (we’re talking catch-the-sunrise early) and stop for the day around midday, before the sun gets to full strength. The average daily cycling distance is 39km, which usually amounts to three or four hours in the saddle.
What’s the terrain like?
Using a mountain bike, 90 percent of the time you’ll be cycling on gravel tracks, but there will also be some quiet road cycling. You also have the opportunity to try cycling on sand dunes, with help from a ‘fat bike’.
A support vehicle cuts out the hard slogs, so you can enjoy downhill cycles down from mountain passes, and along flat roads where dramatic features, like Spitzkoppe and the Elim Dunes, look like they’ve been teleported from another planet. There are some gentle hills along the way.
When you stop
You’ll stay in a mix of lodges and desert ranches, but for the majority of the trip you’ll be camping. The staff will make and break camp each night, whilst you’re relaxing or busy tipping half a sand dune out of each shoe. You’ll be amazed at the variety of food that can be cooked on an open fire, but expect braii – South African barbecue, and potjie – stews. Towns are few and far between. When you’re out on the bike, toilet breaks will be al fresco, so be prepared.Whilst this is a cycling trip, when you get to Sossusvlei you’ll climb its famous dunes on foot. There are also great opportunities to hike at Waterberg Plateau. At Etosha National Park you’ll leave your bike for a game drive, and at Solitarie, near Sossusvlei you can visit the Namib Carnivore Conservation Centre, where formerly captive cheetahs, leopards and hyena are re-released into the wild after rehabilitation.
What to pack
Dust off your cycling gear (and get used to dusting it off!). Whilst you’ll get a mountain bike for the trip, you are welcome to adapt it with gear from home. Cyclists swear by padded shorts for longer trips – and your own pedals, and a padded saddle might also be a welcome addition. Bikes are fitted with men’s saddles as standard. You should bring your own helmet.A lip salve, a bike scarf or snood and some anti-chafing cream are little things that can make a big difference to your comfort on the road. Your guide might bring isotonic mixes for your water, and you could bring your own stash, too. If you want to rinse your kit at any point you’ll find that it dries very fast overnight in the desert.
You’ll also need a bit of camping kit: a sleeping bag is essential (perhaps also take a detachable liner for warmer nights – it can be as warm as 17°C at night in December). You might also want a head torch, ear plugs and a pillow. Take a pair of binoculars so you can check out the wildlife without being eaten.
Tips from our travellers
At Responsible Travel, we think the best people to advise our travellers are often... other travellers. They always return from our tours with packing tips, weather reports, ideas about what to do – and opinions about what not to.
We have selected some of the most useful Namibia cycling travel tips that our guests have provided over the years to help you make the very most of your holiday – and the space inside your suitcase.
We have selected some of the most useful Namibia cycling travel tips that our guests have provided over the years to help you make the very most of your holiday – and the space inside your suitcase.
I was gobsmacked by the scale of it all sometimes. Just the sheer pleasure of being out and seeing the landscape as you are cycling along, seeing the vastness. 
“I was a bit concerned about whether or not I would cope with the cycling, particularly ten days of it, but actually it worked out really well. Because the way we did it, we got up early and set off cycling about seven in the morning and did four hours... you could do your exercise in the morning and then feel good for the rest of the day.
“I took my own cycling pedals and clip on shoes just because I am more used to cycling in them. So if people are used to their own, then I would advise that. I took four pairs of cycling shorts and that was more than enough, as you could easily wash them through and dry them out for the next day. Definitely have padded shorts.”
“I was gobsmacked by the scale of it all sometimes. Just the sheer pleasure of being out and seeing the landscape as you are cycling along, seeing the vastness. There were times when you just saw this road going on forever, and I thought, ah OK, that is where I am going – well I just have to keep going then!"
- Jennifer Milward booked on our Namibia cycling holiday.
“I took my own cycling pedals and clip on shoes just because I am more used to cycling in them. So if people are used to their own, then I would advise that. I took four pairs of cycling shorts and that was more than enough, as you could easily wash them through and dry them out for the next day. Definitely have padded shorts.”
“I was gobsmacked by the scale of it all sometimes. Just the sheer pleasure of being out and seeing the landscape as you are cycling along, seeing the vastness. There were times when you just saw this road going on forever, and I thought, ah OK, that is where I am going – well I just have to keep going then!"
- Jennifer Milward booked on our Namibia cycling holiday.
Our Cycling holidays in Namibia reviews
4.7
3Cycling holidays in Namibia reviews
Daniel Naftalin27 Jul 2024
I loved everything about it... enjoyed fat biking, the cycling, the camping, the animals, the cycling safari, the scenery generallyread more
Joanne Knight02 Nov 2019
This was my first experience on the African continent. I was absolutely blown away by the wildlife, fantastic people and will come again.read more
Jennifer Milward03 Feb 2016
What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
GO!read more
