If you are lucky enough to find yourself in Cape Town, take some time to drive down the N2 highway leaving the city. The road carves and meanders for 800km between Cape Town in the Western Cape province and Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape.
The Garden Route – the name given to the stretch of forested, coastal area between Mossel Bay and Port Elizabeth – is the epitome of South African experience.
Swellendam
About halfway between Cape Town and Mossel Bay, Swellendam is a good stopping point to take a break from the drive. More than 250 years old, Swellendam is a preserved small town filled with charm and wide open streets. It also holds the neatly preserved Cape Dutch and Victorian buildings, and excellent places to enjoy some South African food.
Mossel Bay
Considered by many as the official westernmost point of the Garden Route, Mossel Bay has a temperate year-round climate, beautiful beaches and friendly locals. Golf has become the main attraction in the area, thanks to the course at Pinnacle Point Golf Estate and Golf Resort. The course is perched atop a cliff and offers spectacular views of the Indian Ocean.
Despite the leisurely side of Mossel Bay, it still remains one of the only two places in South Africa from which visitors can go cage diving with great white sharks – a perfect activity for those seeking an adrenaline rush underwater.
Oudtshoorn
For a uniquely South African experience, be sure to head north of George for a quick visit to Oudtshoorn, South Africa’s ostrich capital. It’s slightly north-east of Mossel Bay and is both an important link in South Africa’s road network and a crossroads for both coastal explorers and those traveling inland.
Although it’s located just a few miles inland, the Oudtshoorn landscape is a dusty contrast to the thickly green forested coastline of the Garden Route. Activities include the Ostrich farms in Oudtshoorn and the famous Cango Caves. Believed to have been formed more than 65-million years ago, the caves are regarded as one of Africa’s most important natural wonders. It would be wise to phone ahead and book in advance to avoid any disappointments once you arrive.
However if the caves fail to impress, the nearby Cango Wildlife Ranch surely will. The centre is one of the world’s foremost cheetah breeding projects and also boasts rare white lions, Bengal tigers and crocodiles.
Wilderness
Leaving George behind, the great Wilderness is undoubtedly where you will next want to stop for a day or two. With an impressive collection of long, secluded beaches, lakes and rivers, the small intimate town is the perfect place to enjoy a secluded getaway.
Knysna
From the moment you approach Knysna, you will understand why this town is the unofficial capital of the Garden Route. As you enter you will first notice the impressive Knysna Heads – the two large sandstone cliffs that stand guard on either side of the estuary mouth. In Knysna, visitors can just as easily explore the lagoon, forests and rivers as the bustling town centre. As the Oyster capital of South Africa, Knysna is a place where people love to eat. The culmination of the town’s oyster obsession is the annual Knysna Oyster festival, which takes place from late June to early July.
Plettenberg Bay
Packed with marine life, lined with long beaches and buzzing with daytime activities and nightlife, Plettenberg Bay is the place many South Africans spend their summer in. There are also a variety of special places located just outside Plettenberg that must be visited. These include the Elephant Sanctuary, Monkeyland and Birds of Eden, the largest free-flight bird aviary in the world.
Tsitsikamma
Heading east once again, it’s time to tame your fears in Tsitsikamma. About 80km of rocky coastline comprise the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park, a place of deep, heavily scarred gorges, cliffs, tidal pools and thick evergreen forests. There are walking trails that range from comfortable day-long hikes too much longer treks. For a less strenuous experience, canopy tours are available. Standing almost 100 feet in the air, surrounded by 100-year-old hardwood trees, visitors slide along cables, zipping from platform to platform in the treetops. Not to be outdone by the heights of Tsitsikamma, the nearby Bloukrans Bridge offers a heady rush of adrenaline. At 708 feet, Bloukrans is the highest commercial bungy bridge jump in the world.
Port Elizabeth
Finally, arriving in Port Elizabeth means you may have reached the end of your Garden Route journey east. However, the coastal fun is far from over. PE is the gateway to the game reserves of the Eastern Cape, a malaria-free safari region that offers some incredible wildlife experiences.The most famous of the Eastern Cape reserves are Shamwari, Kwandwe Private Reserve and the Addo Elephant Park, but there are many other remarkable reserves in this region, all of which are a comfortable drive in South Africa’s “Friendly City”.
