FLYING INTO LUANDA AND GETTING INTO TOWN

Angola is pretty well connected and aside from many African cities, you can also fly here directly from Paris, Brussels, Frankfurt, Lisbon, São Paulo as well as from several cities in the middle east.

As of October 2023, most travelers no longer require a visa for short-term stays and indeed, all I needed to show was my passport. Got it stamped, done.

As far as money is concerned, there was an ATM in the baggage hall before customs and I was able to withdraw up to 60.000 AOA (Angolan Kwanzas) at once with no terminal fee (~68 USD, several withdrawals are possible). If you need cash, I recommend you try out this ATM first as the other ATMs outside in the arrivals hall did not work.

Right in the arrivals hall there is also an Africell store, one of Angola’s cell phone companies. I was able to purchase a SIM card there right away (the store seemed to open at 7am and all I needed was my passport). Please note that while Africell works perfectly in major cities such as Luanda or Lubango, its coverage is very limited in more rural areas. In those areas a SIM card from provider Unitel might be a better choice.

In order to get into town, I recommend you use one of the taxi hailing apps that currently operate in Angola such as Yango, Heetch, or more recently, Bolt. There is currently no Uber in Angola. A trip to the city center is very cheap (about 1000 to 1500 Kwanzas, cash payments only). Beware of the regular cabs or any touts trying to offer you transportation as those are said to be very expensive.

If you have arranged a pick-up with your hotel or Airbnb, then that’s even better.

DAY 1 - LUANDA

National Bank of Angola

I stayed in the central Ingombota neighborhood and in spite of Luanda’s not-so-safe reputation, it felt safe enough to walk around during the day - I would say similar to many Latinamerican cities. But given how inexpensive taxi apps are, I would recommend to use them even for shorter distances, especially since in my opinion many parts of the center are not too picturesque to stroll around anyway.

Note that cash is still king in Angola, and I was only able to pay by card in some upper end restaurants (not even in some supermarkets).

Monument at Fortaleza São Miguel

I was also always carrying some candy or cookies with me, as you get constantly approached by children begging for money. While this is a controversial topic and some argue that you should not even give out food and support child labor in some way, I decided to give out some food items whenever I could and in all instances it was received without hesitation.

Luanda's waterfront

As far as some sights are concerned, I recommend you do not miss the following places while visiting Luanda:

• Banco Nacional de Angola: beautiful colonial building from the 50ies.
• Stroll around the Marginal, Luanda’s waterfront
• Fortaleza São Miguel
• Ilha de Luanda: beach bars and restaurants

DAY 2 - QUIÇAMA NATIONAL PARK

This national park is only 1.5 hours away from Luanda which makes it one of the most reachable safari destinations on the African continent (and also much more affordable). While you can certainly not compare the wildlife seen here with similar parks in Kenya or South Africa, I think it is still very worthwhile visiting, especially if you are on a budget.

Wildlife in Quiçama National Park

Nowadays, you can spot several zebras, gnus and other antelopes, some elephants as well many different bird species. Unfortunately, at the time of writing, there are no longer any giraffes in the park as illegal hunters killed the the ones that were previously living there.

While I usually prefer to travel independently, I chose to go with a tour this time as this avoids having to rent a 4x4 car which can be very expensive in Angola. Prices may vary from agency to agency, but I found my day trip package to be priced fairly as it included many other stops aside from just the safari. I went with Luzaya Tours and paid about 100 USD for the whole tour - lunch, snacks and drinks included.

Boat ride on the Kwanza River

After the safari, you go on a short boat ride along the Kwanza river and before returning to Luanda you stop at the beautiful Miradouro da Lua which offers nice views of bizarre cliff formations as well as the Atlantic Ocean.

Miradouro da Lua

DAY 3 AND 4 - EXPLORE ANGOLA'S SOUTHERN COAST: NAMIBE

The coastal town of Namibe (also called Moçamedes) can be reached from Luanda in approximately 1.5 hrs by plane (or approximately 24 hours by bus, depending on road conditions).

Since I was short on time I opted for the flight. I had transportation from the airport to the Airbnb pre-arranged (2000 AOA) but Heetch also seemed to be available in Namibe (Yango did not).

Colorful buildings in Namibe

Once in town, I checked out some of the colorful colonial buildings as well as the beach where you can find some restaurants. While somewhat pricey for Namibe standards, I can only recommend Club Nautica, which has excellent seafood options (dishes around 10000 AOA).

While it was very grey and misty when I was there (it was winter after all), I really enjoying seeing how the desert meets the ocean.

Amelia Beach near Namibe

HOW TO GET AROUND IN NAMIBE

Out of the taxi apps only Heetch seemed to work, however, whenever I was searching for a ride, no drivers were found. There is, however, a (mini)bus terminal at the northern end of the Av. Eduard Mondlane Blvd. From here you can get a ride to surrounding towns and close by there are also the terminals of the bigger bus companies Huambo Express and Macon Transportes. From Nambie I was going to go to Lubango by bus and decided to go with Macon for this 3 hours trip which cost 5800 AOA and with the following schedules (as of August 2024):

• 07:00am
• 11:00am
• 04:00pm
• 05:00pm

Since I only had one day in Namibe, I just flagged down one of the many motorcycles requesting a ride to both Praia Amelia and Monte de Lyz, a little hill in the surrounding desert offering some decent views. I offered 5000 AOA for the whole trip including two 30 minute stops at each site (which apparently was more than the usual fare would be but I was really glad the driver helped me out checking a few of the sights in Namibe as I was running out of time).

Road into the desert

On the way back to Namibe, I was able to spot one of the emblematic Welwitschia plants that are typical in the region and are said to live several hundred if not even over a thousand years.

If you have more time you can certainly explore more and head south towards the town of Tombua where you can find impressive rock formations and desert landscapes.

Welwitschia plant

DAY 5/6 LUBANGO, HUILA PROVINCE - EXPLORING ANGOLA'S SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS

Serra da Leba

The bus ride from Namibe to Lubango takes only three hours and goes through the incredible Serra da Leba with its iconic views. The road is said to be one of the most amazing ones in Africa. Within just an hour you can witness the change of scenery from a desert landscape to a greener mountain plateau.

Serra da Leba

There is also a train that connects Namibe with Lubango (and onwards). However, at the time of writing I was told it only runs twice a week and on my day of travel (Monday) there was no scheduled train.

Once in Lubango you will notice the pleasant feel of the altitude (about 1700 meters). Nights and mornings are nicely fresh and the city has a very relaxed atmosphere compared to the much busier Luanda.

In the city of Lubango per se, there weren't too many sights, but it is definitely worth exploring for a day. At the end of your day you can visit the famous Christ statue overlooking the whole city and surrounding mountains from a plateau that is only about a 20min ride away from town. There is no public transportation available but on the Heetch app I was able to get a ride for about 3000 AOA one way. You may want to negotiate your return with the same driver as there may not be many cars available once up there.

While in Lubango you can definitely not miss checking out the iconic Tundavala Gap. It is only 30min away from Lubango and you can get there in your own rental car or with Heetch (about 6000AOA one way).

Tundavala Gap

Going up to over 2200 meters the road suddenly ends at a spectacular cliff overlooking the plains of the Namibe province about 1000 meters below!

For me it has been one of the highlights of my Angola trip as the views are simply breathtaking.

Views near Tundavala Gap

From Lubango I flew back to Luanda to end my little Angola trip, but there is certainly so much more to be discovered in this amazing and friendly country that is now more and more opening up to sustainable tourism.