Cape Town and the Garden Route
In my mind South Africa really lives up to its name the' Rainbow Nation' – not only due to its many different types of people but its diversity of scenery, leading it to be described as a 'world in one country'. The country features traditional African savannah and wildlife; Indian Ocean beaches; magnificent mountain ranges; first world cities or awesome deserts. There is no end to the breathtaking scenery and smiling faces.
Cape Town
No holiday to South Africa is complete without a visit to Cape Town and a leisurely drive along the beautiful Garden Route. Most visitors to the region start their journey in Cape Town as there are several direct flights from Europe as well as an extensive airline network across southern Africa. Cosmopolitan Cape Town is South Africa's oldest city and justly famous for its dramatic scenery and world class hospitality.
The 1085m flat top of Table Mountain is often covered by a blanket of cloud, a striking contrast to the surrounding crystal clear sky. Table Mountain dominates the northern part of the peninsula. Its dramatic cliffs and eroded gorges make it a compelling feature of the city. Most visitors take the highly popular cable car to the top, but for a greater sense of achievement you may want to tackle one of the many hiking trails.
The Waterfront is one of the most popular attractions on the Peninsula. The site of Cape Town's original Victorian harbour incorporates the city's prime shopping area and its most fashionable restaurants and bars. One of the oldest most fascinating areas, the Malay Quarter (known as Bo-Kaap) is a colourful district whose residents descend from slaves and immigrants brought to the Cape by the Dutch in the 16th & 17th centuries. To get a feel for life here we recommend a 2½ hour guided walking tour with a local resident.
Just 12 km from Cape Town the flat and windswept Robben Island became a key site of South Africa's liberation struggle. Today many of the ex-prisoners and ex-warders work together as guides, sharing their experiences. Section B of the prison includes the cell where Mandela was held for almost two decades.
Or perhaps spend your days either taking in a game of golf, visiting Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, exploring the leafy Constantia suburbs or lounging on the nearby beaches of Clifton or Camps Bay. You could also enjoy a scenic drive down the Cape Peninsula towards Cape Point with a stop at the Penguin Colony at Boulders beach along the way. Tours on offer include city tours, township tours and winelands tours.
Cape Winelands
Less than an hour's drive out of Cape Town is the beautiful, mountainous wine growing region of the Cape. Here you will find incredible natural beauty, a rich cultural heritage and world-renowned wines. Explore towns such as Stellenbosch, Paarl, Wellington and Franschoek, with their mountain backdrop and fertile vineyards and each with well preserved Cape Dutch, Georgian and Victorian buildings.
So whatever your taste in wine, a tour of the Winelands is sure to bring to light some excellent local vintages to tantalise your palate. The region also boasts some of the finest restaurants in the Cape, offering from traditional fare to the more exotic. And don't miss out on other culinary delights produced in the region such as cheese, olives, herbs, berries and more. You can also enjoy this region on foot, horse-back, mountain bike or from a hot air balloon. The Cape Winelands can be explored in a day tour from Cape Town but we usually recommend staying in the winelands for one or two nights.
The Garden Route
The Garden Route is renowned for its dramatically rugged coastline, green meadows and lush forests. Of the quaint villages, which nestle along the rugged coastline of Cape Overberg, Hermanus, a traditional fishing port, has some of the best land based whale watching in the world between June and November.
From Mossel Bay to Storms River Mouth this legendary 200km stretch of coastal plain is cut by rivers from mountains which tumble to form rocky shores and sandy beaches. The coast is dominated by three inlets – Mossel Bay, Knysna Lagoon and Plettenberg Bay. The area is flanked by the Langeberg, Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma mountains in the north, and has its own unique climate described as 'temperate coastal' - warm summers and cool winters with year round chances of rain. Here some of the highlights of the Garden Route you may want to visit:
Mossel Bay is a seaside town, named after the many mussels lining the shores of the region. It has one of the two manned lighthouses on this coastline.
Wilderness is best known for its superb beaches and the forest fringed lagoons of Wilderness National Park.
George, named after King George III, is the socalled capital of the Garden Route, and has an airport. Its nearest beaches are at Victoria Bay, and Wilderness.
Knysna Set amongst lush forests and the shores of the lagoon this picturesque town is a great base for exploring the Outeniqua Mountains. The town itself has a settled community of artists and crafts people, excellent bars and restaurants yet still retains an air of tranquility. The Knysna Estuary or Lagoon is a protected marine reserve.
Robberg Nature Reserve – stroll along the cliff top paths and look down on seals surfacing near the rocks and dolphins arching through the water. Here you will find some of the nicest walks on the Garden Route and only 8Km from Plettenberg Bay.
Plettenberg Bay known as the jewel of the Garden Route, is only 35km from Knysna. The rugged Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma mountains form the backdrop to this beautiful coastal resort that is characterized by sweeping unspoilt golden beaches, a dramatic rocky peninsula, intriguing lagoons, estuaries, towering and indigenous forest and unpolluted rivers and sea.
Tsitsikamma National Park: Tsitsikamma is a Khoisan (early inhabitants of the area) word meaning, 'place of much water.' The Park incorporates 80 km of rocky coastline with spectacular sea and landscapes, a remote mountainous region with secluded valleys covered in mountain Fynbos and temperate high forests with deep river gorges leading down to the sea. Tsitsikamma's spectacular scenery includes the Indian Ocean breakers, pounding rocky shores beneath 180m high cliffs, ever-green forests and fynbos (proteas and heath) rolling down to the sea in a lush carpet where ancient rivers have carved their path to the ocean through rocky ravines
The Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is full of natural contrasts from mountainous terrain for walking to the malaria-free wildlife reserves of Addo, Shamwari and Amakhala. There are few parts of Southern Africa where you can find so many natural contrasts as in the Eastern Cape. The diverse terrain and the sheer size of this mountainous territory are ideal for walking tours.
From the haunting plains of the Klein Karoo to the rolling green hills of Pondoland there are endless ways to explore the region. The many game reserves are teeming with wildlife the wild jagged coastline offers sanctuary for the soul and the ghostly white images of Xhosa boys undergoing initiation into the tribe will give you a different perspective on life. The Eastern Cape boasts some of the finest private game reserves the country has to offer and they are all situated in a Malaria Free Environment. The majority offer 'Big Five' game viewing and include meals, game drives and various other activities.