Best Places to visit in South Africa
Since President Ramaphosa announced our upgrade to Level 2 Lockdown, there has been an explosive demand for accommodation as cabin-fever infected individuals scurried to secure bookings at the best places to visit in South Africa.
Travel agents and websites have been inundated with requests for holiday packages to the most beautiful places in South Africa while hotels, resorts and game parks have reported full houses and not just over weekends.
Here is a concise South Africa travel guide to fun and interesting places to visit now that inter -provincial travel is back on track.
Best Places to visit in Cape Town
The Western Province has been blessed with excellent rainfall this winter and the first signs of spring are visible. It's still a little cool to head for the beach making this an excellent time to venture out of the city. Pack a picnic and drive to Cape Point via the spectacular Chapman's Peak Drive, descending down to the famous Kommetjie Beach. The hamlets of Scarborough and Misty Cliffs are well worth a short stop before reaching the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. Contrary to popular belief this is not the most southerly point in South Africa - that accolade belongs to Cape Agulhas. For your home bound journey travel via Simon's Town, Kalk Bay and Muizenberg.
The drive to the aforementioned Cape Agulhas in the Overberg is a much longer but equally spectacular drive. Take the coastal route via Pringle Bay and the Harold Porter Botanical Gardens in Betty's Bay and you might consider an overnight stop in Hermanus. Return to the city via Botrivier for a wine tasting at Beaumont Family Wines or quirky Luddite Wines.
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Best Places to visit in Durban
Durban too is blessed with scenic drives and the famous Valley of a Thousand Hills is not to be missed. This will lead you to the pristine Karkloof Forest and the Howick Falls. For a longer drive take in the Midlands Meander via unspoiled villages, craft shops, cafes and food markets. While you are at it you might as well go the whole hog and stay over in the majestic Drakensberg area. There are equally enticing drives south of Durban via coastal towns and inland to rural Ixopo set in verdant rolling hills. Heading north from the city opens up to game reserves and the protected St. Lucia Estuary and Wetland Park.
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Best Places to visit in Gauteng
Gauteng is our smallest province and most trips will take you over the border into neighbouring provinces. The Dinokeng Game Reserve north of Pretoria is the largest in the province and offers 21,000 hectares of Big Five game viewing. Magaliesburg in the west is a bustle of boutique hotels, craft shops, gastro pubs and outdoor cafes.
Why not travel a little further cross border and stay overnight at Sun City or in the Pilanesberg Game Reserve, both with a selection of accommodation types for all budgets. There are so many activities that it will be impossible to drag the kids home at the end of your stay.
Clarens in the Free State is also an easy drive from Gauteng with endless activities from a vast outdoor market, craft beer pub, pavement cafes, bookstores and the not to be missed Golden Gate Highlands National Park.
Best Places to visit in the Eastern Cape
Here we have just scraped the surface of tourist attractions in South Africa and no doubt you will find many more hidden gems as you venture out. Have fun as you travel the four corners of our beautiful South Africa.
