Otjiwarongo



Otjiwarongo (Otjiherero: "pleasant place" or "place where fat cattle graze") is a city of 28,000 inhabitants (2011) in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Otjiwarongo electoral constituency and also the capital of Otjozondjupa.

Understand
Otjiwarongo is in central-north Namibia, on the TransNamib railway. It is the biggest business centre for Otjozondjupa Region. Otjiwarongo is located on the B1 road which links the town to Windhoek, the Golden Triangle of Otavi, Tsumeb and Grootfontein, and Etosha National Park. It is one of Namibia’s fastest growing towns, with a neat and peaceful quality environment, and many excellent facilities including supermarkets, banks, lodges and hotels.

By car
Otjiwarongo is 250 km north of Windhoek on the B1, which is the main route running south to north and connects all the towns in the centre of Namibia.

By plane
Otjiwarongo has a landing strip which is situated about 5 km outside of the town on the B1 towards the north. The GPS coordinates are longitude: 18° 15’ 0” E and latitude: 21° 44’ 0” S. The airport is very small and not manned but the airstrip is kept in good condition. It is a gravel strip and is only good for light aircraft.

By train
TransNamib, via their StarLine passenger service, operates trains from Otjiwarongo to destinations all over Namibia.

There are no dedicated passenger trains in Namibia. The StarLine scheduled service described above conveys passengers via special coaches hooked on the back of freight trains. These passenger coaches offer comfortable airline-style seating with air-conditioning and (sometimes) video entertainment. Vending Machines provide refreshments on long journeys. Namibian trains are considered a relatively slow and sometimes unreliable method of transport.

By bus
There are two major bus services available with daily schedules for most towns in Namibia that has drop off points in the centre of Otjiwarongo. The bus services are Intercape and Sunshine Tours.

Get around
Downtown is compact and easy to walk. Most attractions are within a 10- to 20-min walk away from most of the guesthouses in town. For ease of getting around a car would be advisable. Parking is free and voluntary carguards will look after your car.

There are various international and local car hiring companies in Namibia. All the major companies like Avis, Budget, and Europcar have offices in and around Namibia. Avis has an office in Otjiwarongo.

Buy
Otjiwarongo has a well developed downtown with most basic services such as ATMs, grocery stores, and pharmacy.