Top 5 shipwrecks to see on the Skeleton Coast, Namibia

The cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Namibia are a shipwreck graveyard. The largest in the world, in fact.

Many hundreds of ships – if not more – have met their ends here. These include sixteenth-century Portuguese sailing vessels and powerful modern liners.

What causes all these tragedies, you ask? The answer: fierce storms and winds, thick fogs, treacherous currents, and shifting sandbanks.

Most of the shipwrecks have disappeared beneath the waves, but many rot and decay in plain sight. There are those still being battered by the waves, stranded on sandbanks or the beach. And then there are those that poke out of the sand – some a ways inland as shifting dunes have reclaimed parts of the sea.

All of the Skeleton Coast shipwrecks are a striking reminder of the boldness of seafarers, the courage of rescue teams, and the relentless might of the ocean.

5 must-see shipwrecks of the Skeleton Coast

The Skeleton Coast can refer to the entire Namibian coastline, though Skeleton Coast National Park protects just the northern half. Even if you decide to only count the northern portion, that’s about 500 km long, so you can’t explore it all! It’s necessary to decide which shipwrecks you’re going to prioritise visiting.

Here are five varied shipwrecks that are well worth the effort. Together, they help to tell the story of a formidable coastline …

1. Bom Jesus (1533)

It’s believed this merchant ship left Portugal in 1533 and was on its way to the East Indies when it met its end near the modern-day town of Oranjemund in southern Namibia.

It’s the oldest known shipwreck on the Skeleton Coast, but it was only discovered in 2008! This is because shifting desert sands buried the wreck. Luckily for us, a diamond mining operation uncovered it.

Based on the wreckage, scholars believe the ship was caught in a particularly devastating storm. It likely struck a rock that breached the hull and led to the ship capsizing. The absence of human bones begs the question: did the crew escape, or were they lost to the sea?

2. Eduard Bohlen (1909)

The Eduard Bohlen was a German cargo ship that ran aground in Conception Bay in 1909 due to heavy fog. Today, it actually sits about 400 m inland, thanks to the ever-shifting sands of the Namib Desert. It’s half-submerged in sand, creating the eerie impression of a wreck drowning in the desert sands.

The only way to reach the shipwreck by land is on a guided 4×4 tour.

3. Otavi (1945)

Image shared by Hanspeter Baumeler

The Otavi is an upright, rusting cargo ship in Spencer Bay, northern Namibia. It was carrying a load of gauno when it ran aground after a navigational error. Happily, all crew made it out alive.

The Otavi’s position on the shoreline, where waves crash against its hull, and the craggy mountains of Saddle Hill that serve as backdrop make for a spectacular scene. But note that the wreck is hard to reach. It can only be accessed via air or 4×4. What’s more, this portion of the Namib Desert is restricted, so you need to travel with a specialist operator who can navigate steep dune driving. So visiting Otavi is a full-day desert adventure.

4. Zeila (2008)

The Zeila is a wrecked fishing trawler a little to the south of Henties Bay in central Namibia. It was being towed to a scrapyard in India when its towline snapped in a storm and it ran aground.

The Zeila is a particularly picturesque shipwreck, partly because it’s so close to shore and highly visible, partly because it’s largely intact and waves are always breaking against it, and partly because a squadron of cormorants has made it their home. So it makes for fantastic photography.

The Zeila is also very popular as it’s one of the Skeleton Coast’s most accessible wrecks, being just a short walk from a parking lot.

5. MV Dunedin Star (1942)

The Dunedin is a boat wreck site in the far north of Namibia – one that marks the location of a dramatic rescue story.

A cargo liner, the Dunedin, was en route to the Middle East, carrying ammunition for the Allied Forces fighting there. One night, the hull struck an underwater shoal off the coast of northern Namibia and quickly started taking on water. A distress signal was sent out.

With the ship grounded about 500 m from shore, a lifeboat managed to make two trips to shore before the rough sea disabled it, leaving some men and women stranded on a desolate shore while the others remained trapped on a breaking-up ship.

In the ensuing days, various sea, land, and air help arrived, but the strong currents, unstable sands, and other factors complicated rescue efforts greatly. In the end, all aboard the Dunedin were saved, but sadly two rescuers were lost.

Plan your own Skeleton Coast visit

The best way to visit the Skeleton Coast’s spread out shipwrecks is on an overlanding tour. As mentioned, most of the wreckages are in isolated and hard-to-reach locations that require a four-wheel-drive vehicle and a local guide.

Check out these exciting itineraries from African Overland Tours, which also include other key Namibian experiences, like hiking the towering sand dunes of Soussousvlei, meeting the traditional Himba people, and looking for wildlife in the mountains of Namib-Naukluft National Park. Namibia is so vastly different from any other African country, and truly worth visiting.

This blog was originally written by Bronwyn Paxton, 31 August 2017. It has since been rewritten by Megan Abigail White, 24 February 2026.