Garden Route & Eastern Cape
Why go?
The shores of the Indian Ocean between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth
are among the lushest, most breathtaking stretches of coastline in
South Africa, indeed in the whole continent. Long, empty beaches
of golden sand, white rollers crashing onto the dark blue sea,
dense green forests brimming with wildlife, deep gorges with black
rivers and white rocks, bustling seaside towns ... it is a visual
and sensual delight, a paradise for nature-lovers and outdoors
enthusiasts. It also happens to have some of the country’s
finest hotels and lodges.
The Garden Route refers to the stretch of coast between
Mossel Bay in the west and Cape St Francis in the east. The
best-known towns, beaches and nature reserves lie within this
strip: Wilderness, Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, Storms River,
Tsitsikamma. It’s also the most developed
touristically.
East of Cape St Francis lies Port Elizabeth, a large
industrial city, and beyond that the ‘Shipwreck Coast’
of the Eastern Cape, beautiful in its own way, but lacking the
infrastructure and stability of the Garden Route. Inland, however,
are 2 wonderful nature reserves, ideal for accessible,
malaria-free, year-round game viewing.