From the Maun to Windhoek

During my travels through southern Africa I readily utilized the public transportation. And that was no exception when I decided to travel between Botswana (Maun area specifically) to Namibia (Windhoek). And while between Gaborone and Windhoek you can find a bus, from Maun it involves a bit more patience and an adventurous spirit.

And that is because at the time of writing this there is no direct connection between the two, nor is there even a bus that crosses the border even to a boarder town city. But if you are up for the adventure, it is worth the experience and leaves you with a great story. Here is how I managed to get from Maun to Windhoek, which involved a bus, random pick-up, two taxis and some luck.

While there is not a bus that crosses the border, there is a bus that drops you off at the border town of Charles Hill, departing from the Maun bus station. At the time when I traveled there were regular bus departures, I opted for an early bus to ensure plenty of time for getting transportation once I crossed over.

Once I arrived to Charles Hill, the bus drops you off at a gas station, the driver pointed me to the street and a spot to go and wait, where I could try to find a ride to the actual boarder. But if you do not wish to wait, you can also begin walking, which can take about an hour. However, since it is not unheard of to have people crossing at that spot, it is quite easy to find a ride. Luckily there was another traveler doing the same route as me, so we both tagged teamed it. And within about 10 mins of waiting we quickly found a ride to the immigration office.

Once we got there we got out and headed through immigration.

Once out, and cleared to start exploring Namibia, again we had to head to a spot where apparently taxis come by to offer a ride to the next big town over, which is where we would be getting a taxi or bus to Windhoek. After about a 30 minute of waiting we flagged down a driver who was willing to take us to the next largest city, and not only that, but had a contact who could provide us a spot in their taxi to Windhoek.

Once we arrived into Gobabis, where we would be switching drivers, our driver brought us to the other taxi. After driving around to pick up some other people, that were also heading to Windhoek, we headed off.

By the time we got into Windhoek and to the hostel, it had been about 10-hour journey, which considering the waiting around, was quite impressive.

Of course, sometimes these journeys can take longer, and it can take longer than 30-mins to an hour to wait for a car to stop, or to get another ride, but because it is a common route for people to take, it is not impossible to do. But even with the uncertainty of how long it will take, I highly recommend considering this option if you are looking to go between the two cities and don't want to make an extra stop to Gaborone.