Introduction
Khomas is the small central-Namibian region built around the capital Windhoek and the surrounding Khomas Hochland — the mountainous plateau rising to 2 000 m that gives the region its name. It is geographically among the smallest of Namibia's fourteen regions (37 000 km²) but demographically the largest, with about 500 000 of the country's 2.6 million people living within its borders, almost all of them in Greater Windhoek. As the seat of government, it is the country's administrative, political and economic centre.
Overview
Almost every Namibia trip begins and ends in Windhoek, and Khomas is really the capital plus its scenic highland backyard. The compact city centre holds the Wilhelmine landmarks, the museums and the country's best restaurants; just west, the Khomas Hochland rises into gravel passes, private game farms and mountain lodges. The most reliable half-day escape is the Daan Viljoen reserve 24 km out, while the C26 and C28 offer a slow, scenic gravel descent all the way to the coast.
Discover Khomas
Windhoek's Christuskirche (1907–1910), the architectural icon of the Khomas regional capital, seen across the palm-shaded Parliament Gardens.
© Curioso Photography / Adobe Stock
Windhoek (≈ 480 000 in Greater Windhoek) is the demographic, political and economic centre of Khomas and of the country as a whole. It sits in a basin on the central plateau at 1 700 m and operates as the country's only proper city — every national institution, the only international airport with intercontinental traffic, every major hotel chain, the country's best restaurants, the central Namibian Craft Centre, and the start and end of nearly every self-drive itinerary in the country. The Wilhelmine architectural personality of the centre — Christuskirche, Alte Feste, Tintenpalast, the three Klein Windhoek castles — comes from the 1884–1915 German colonial period. The Independence Memorial Museum opened in 2014 on the hill behind the Alte Feste presents the country's pre-colonial, colonial and independence history across five floors. Klein Windhoek and Olympia hold the city's better restaurant scene — Joe's Beerhouse, The Stellenbosch Tasting Room, Leo's at the Castle in the Heinitzburg, Käpps in Swakopmund's Konditorei tradition. Katutura township on the city's western edge dates from a 1959 urban-restructuring period and today holds the demographic majority of the city; it is best explored on a guided township tour.
Ways to Experience This Destination
Wilhelmine architecture, the Independence Memorial Museum, Joe's Beerhouse, the Namibia Craft Centre and the only proper restaurant-and-hotel scene in the country.
Daan Viljoen Game Reserve 24 km west of Windhoek with springbok, gemsbok, eland and giraffe; Gocheganas, Heja and the wider belt of private game farms in the Khomas highlands.
Scenic gravel descents from Windhoek to the Atlantic via the Bosua Pass and the Gamsberg viewpoint at 2 347 m — 4–5 hour drives that end at Swakopmund or Walvis Bay.
Namibia's only intercontinental airport 45 km east of the city; the B6 continues to the Trans-Kalahari Border Post (Mamuno) and on to Botswana — a Visa-on-Arrival entry point.
The Auas range south of Windhoek with hiking trails and the Heja game-farm reserve; the Avis Dam on the eastern edge of the city as the local cycling and birdwatching reservoir.
Heroes' Acre 12 km south of the city as the national-memorial garden; the Old Location Cemetery near Penduka as a small memorial site.
Frequently asked questions
Tourism & destination guides
National destination marketing organisation — trip-planning resources, registered-operator directories, festival calendar, and the e-Travel permit portal.
Bookings for the state-run rest camps inside the national parks. The Daan Viljoen camp in Khomas is run as a private concession, but the wider NWR network handles Etosha, Sossusvlei and the other state parks.
Cities in Khomas
Treat this Visaja page as your starting point: verify the current rules directly with the official source before you submit an application.