Where to Buy Food in Namibia: The Stock-Up Guide for Self-Drive Trips

If you have never been to Namibia before, here is the single most important thing to understand: this is not a country where you can stop for groceries whenever you feel like it. Namibia is roughly the size of France and Germany combined. It has fewer than 3 million people. Large parts of the country are pure desert with no towns, no shops and sometimes no mobile signal for hours at a time.

Knowing where to buy food in Namibia is one of the most important things you can plan before your trip. Get it right and you eat well every evening around a fire. Get it wrong and you are driving an extra 90 minutes to find a warm tin of beans and a packet of crackers.

Where to Buy Food in Namibia: Start in Windhoek

Windhoek is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It sits in the middle of the country and is where almost every self-drive trip begins. The supermarkets in Windhoek are modern, well-stocked and comparable to what you would find in South Africa or Europe. You can buy fresh meat, vegetables, fruit, bread, dairy, snacks, firewood, drinking water, cooking gas and anything else you need for a week or more on the road.

International visitors are often surprised by how good the shops are. This is your best and most reliable opportunity to provision properly. Do not rush it. A thorough shop in Windhoek saves you from paying two to three times the price for the same item at a remote camp shop four days later.

Swakopmund: Your Second Major Resupply Point

Swakopmund is a small town on the Atlantic coast of Namibia, about 360 kilometres west of Windhoek. It was built by German colonists in the late 1800s and still has a strong German character with colonial-era architecture, German restaurants and bakeries. The town sits at the edge of the Namib Desert where it meets the cold Atlantic Ocean.

Most self-drive routes pass through Swakopmund because it is the main coastal hub and a natural stopping point between Etosha National Park in the north and Sossusvlei in the south. The supermarkets here are smaller than Windhoek but well stocked. More importantly, the butcheries in Swakopmund are excellent. If you want to buy game meat for the rest of your trip, this is where to do it.

What Is a Braai and Why Is Game Meat Worth Buying?

A braai is the southern African word for a barbecue or open-fire cookout. It is not just cooking outside. It is a cultural ritual. If you are self-catering and camping in Namibia, you will likely have a braai most evenings. Almost every campsite in Namibia has a built-in braai stand or fire pit.

Namibia produces exceptional game meat. Kudu, oryx and springbok are the three you will see most often in butcheries. These are large antelope species that live wild across Namibia. The meat is lean, flavourful and unlike anything available in a regular supermarket at home. It is also cheaper than beef at most Namibian butcheries. Trying game meat around a fire in the Namib Desert is one of the genuinely great food experiences of visiting this country. Buy it from a proper butchery in Windhoek or Swakopmund rather than from a camp shop fridge where selection is limited and prices are high.

Biltong is dried cured meat sold throughout Namibia. It is similar to beef jerky but typically better quality. You will see it at roadside stalls, petrol stations and supermarkets everywhere. It keeps for days without a fridge, which makes it ideal for long drives between towns. It is also one of the best snacks you can buy for a self-drive trip.

Where to Stock Up Before Each Major Destination

Every major destination in Namibia has a last reliable town before you get there. If you miss that town, you may be driving an extra hour to solve a problem that takes five minutes in a supermarket. Use the interactive finder below to check your specific destination, or scroll down to the full reference table.

Here is the full reference table covering every major destination.

Which Supermarket Chains Will You Find in Namibia?

Unlike some parts of Africa, Namibia has a reliable network of supermarket chains in its larger towns. The stores are clean, well lit and carry a good range. Here is what to look for as you drive through each town.

What About the Camp Shops Inside Etosha?

Etosha has three main rest camps where you stay overnight: Okaukuejo, Halali and Namutoni. Each has a small shop inside the fenced camp. They stock the basics: bread, milk, water, charcoal, beer, wine, ice cream, biltong and snacks. You will not go hungry if you buy there.

The downside is that the prices inside Etosha are noticeably higher than in town. Most self-catering travellers stock up in Outjo before entering the park and treat the camp shops as top-up stops only. There is also one important rule you cannot ignore: you cannot take any meat out of Etosha when you leave. There is a veterinary inspection fence at every exit gate and it is actively enforced. Whatever meat you bring into Etosha must be eaten inside Etosha. Plan your quantities accordingly.

Do You Need Cash to Buy Food in Namibia?

Yes. This catches more first-time visitors out than almost any other practical issue. Always carry cash. The Namibian dollar (N$) is the official currency. South African rand is accepted everywhere at a 1:1 exchange rate. If you are coming from South Africa you do not need to exchange any currency. If you are arriving from elsewhere, draw Namibian dollars from an ATM in Windhoek on arrival.

What About Firewood?

Firewood is one of the things first-time visitors most commonly forget to plan for. Most campsites in Namibia do not provide it. You are expected to bring your own or buy it at the last town before camp. And in the Namib Desert there is almost no dead wood lying around to collect.

Your Pre-Trip Provisioning Checklist

Use this before you leave Windhoek. Tick each item off before you get on the road.

• Meat bought from Food Lovers Market or a good butchery. Consider buying kudu, oryx or springbok if you want to try something local.
• Firewood or charcoal. Enough to cover every night until you reach your next major town.
• Drinking water. At least 2 litres per person per day. More in summer months (October to April) when temperatures can exceed 40 degrees.
• Road snacks that keep without refrigeration. Biltong, dried fruit, nuts, rusks, crackers.
• Tinned goods for remote nights. Tinned fish, beans, tomatoes and soup. Backup for when fresh food runs out.
• Cooking basics. Oil, salt, pepper, braai spice (a seasoning mix sold at every Namibian supermarket and essential for braaing).
• Cash from ATM. N$500 to N$1000 in mixed notes. Do this in Windhoek, not in a smaller town later.
• Ice for the cooler box. Most Namibian petrol stations sell bags of ice. Buy it often on the road.
• Bread, butter and eggs for breakfasts on the road.
• Identified the next stock-up town on your route and noted what to buy there.

For more on planning your route and what roads to expect between these towns, read our Namibia self drive safari guide. If you are still deciding which areas to visit, our breakdown of the top 5 places to visit in Namibia is a good starting point. And if you are driving from South Africa, check what food items are allowed into Namibia at the border before you pack anything.