This beautiful region offers the visitor a wide choice of holiday attractions, with leisure options ranging from hiking through the lush green valleys and mountains to surfing and sunbathing on its golden beaches. The region bears a rich legacy of an area which saw the first meetings of the British, Dutch, German and Xhosa people. As a landing place of the 1820 Settlers, Port Elizabeth boasts some of the finest architectural attractions in the country.
Attractions include national parks and game reserves, South Africa's only traditional healing village, Kaya Lendaba, bird-watching, air flips, canoeing, various mountain-bike and horse-riding trails and organized outdoor excursions. Tourists can visit various museums and memorials, go on the Donkin Heritage Trail, take a ride on the famous Apple Express and visit the Oceanarium.
Grahamstown is sometimes referred to as the City of Saints, because of the more than 40 churches found in the town. The Standard Bank National Arts Festival is held there annually. Other attractions include various museums and historical buildings, the oldest post box in South Africa, botanical gardens, the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, nature reserves and hiking trails. Over 200 houses in Graaff-Reinet have been restored to their original Victorian look and have been proclaimed national monuments. The Old Library Museum houses the Lex Bremner Fossil Collection of Karoo reptile fossils and a collection of Khoe and San art reproductions. Urquhart House has a popular genealogical research centre.
The Addo area is blessed with the world's leading safari lodges, where your every whim is fulfilled. You can enjoy stunning cuisine or cutting-edge spa treatments whilst Big Five sightings are orchestrated on your behalf by rangers tacking the bush from before dawn until after dusk. This area is malaria FREE.
Addo Elephant National Park is situated only 72 km from Port Elizabeth. The park represents one of South Africa's major conservation stories. I the early days the elephants of the Eastern Cape were ruthlessly hunted for their ivory. By 1920 the great herds which once roamed the region had dwindled to only 11 survivors. Since proclamation of the park in 1931 the elephant population has grown to nearly 250. The Park also supports buffalo, white rhino, kudu and many other antelopes. A large waterhole near the chalets enables guests to watch game from the comfort of their verandas.
The Alexandria coastline, between the mouths of the Sundays and Bushman’s Rivers, is a vast and lonely dune field of unmatched beauty and the start of the Alexandria Hiking Trail, which travels through the three ecosystems of the area – high forest, desert-like dunes and spectacular beaches.
The Alexandria area has an abundance of birds and wildlife and dolphins and whales are a regular occurrence. Originally known as Olifantshoek (Elephant’s corner) Alexandria lies half way between Cape Town and Durban and is the centre of the chicory industry today. The Alexandria Dune field is one of the largest active coastal dune fields in the world and is forms part of the Addo Elephant Park.
Just outside of Bathurst in Summerhill is the biggest pineapple in the world. You can climb up in the inside and view the area up to the coast from the top. This is part of an 1820 Settler farm, its 1825 barn now houses a rustic pub and acharming restaurant. The 'Pig and Whistle' a national monument is said to be the oldest pub in South Africa.
Surrounded by sand dunes and a natural habitat, the area of Colchester and Cannonville have been left unspoilt and undeveloped, save for the property boom in the area. There came no Port, no ships and no "modern town". Colchester now lies nestled between the beautiful sand dunes, the river and the unspoilt vegetation. These dunes are interestingly also very old. Estimated to be between 6000 and 10 000 years old, they rest upon even older dunes, now compacted and hard, dating back to perhaps 100 000 years. They represent times when the sea was much higher or much lower. It is they too that force the Sundays River to make a right-angled turn and flow south into Algoa Bay.
Grahamstown in the middle the Frontier Country is a vibrant mix of all the best that Africa has to offer. One of the premier tourist routes in the Eastern Cape, it has a turbulent past, with more forts than the rest of the country combined. Frontier Country is the historic heartland of the Eastern Cape and embodies the spirit of the many and varied cultures who met here and made their mark - Khoi, Xhosa, Boer and British. They brought with them a rich heritage that can still be seen in Grahamstown. The broad tree-lined streets and buildings of Grahamstown are the legacy of a time when this was the Cape's second city. Take time to walk through this historic centre and visit the Observatory Museum which houses one of only two Victorian Camera Obscura in the world - the other is in Bath, England - with a magical mirror that reflects the town onto a large circular table. Another interesting museum to visit is the Albany Museum. Grahamstown still feels like a strange English transplant. There are some fine churches and 19th-century buildings. The Grahamstown Region is one of the most diverse ecological regions in South Africa, with a variety of biomes that provide unspoilt and spectacular scenery. This malaria-free region is fast gaining local and international popularity for excellent game-viewing with a variety of private reserves which include the Big Five. Grahamstown boasts some of the finest schools, colleges, universities (Rhodes University) and educational institutions to be found in South Africa. Port Elizabeth 131km, East London 185km, Cape Town 873km, Durban 796km, Port Alfred 67km
Jeffreys Bay is a town renowned for its 34 km of endless unspoilt beaches, good angling and the best surfing waves in the "world". The town attracts thousands of surfers from all over the world - and even world championships have been held here. Jeffreys Bay remains a favourite haunt for shell collectors. Many cold and warm water species reach the extremities of their ranges along this stretch of coast where the Benguela and the Agulhas currents intermingle in an unpolluted environment. The Jeffreys Bay Shell Museum is well worth a visit.
Tip: I liked the little Shell Museum. Or search for shells on the 32km long unspoilt beach
Beach at Kenton on Sea Copyright: Pam Golding Properties
Kenton on Sea is situated between 2 tidal rivers - the Kariega and Bushmans Rivers. It has an unspoilt beachfront as a Nature Reserve borders the beach and covers the sanddunes that line the magnificent pristine beach between these rivers. The main beach next to Kariega River was voted best beach in South Africa in 2001. Small buck and other wild game live in this reserve and are spotted regularly. Because of this ideal situation, Kenton is also a birder’s paradise with the sea, rivers and nature reserve in close proximity.
Bushmans River is navigable for 33 kms and is safe for swimming and all water sports activities like boating and canoeing.
Port Alfred lies on the picturesque R72 coastal road, half way between Port Elizabeth and East London. This small place once has been a sleepy fishing village at the mouth of the Kowie river, which is navigable for some 28 kilometres upstream. Today Port Alfred boasts a huge yacht harbour. With man-made islands and canals a paradise especially for boat owners was created, who from here can go either to sea or up the river. The Kowie river is particularly popular with canoeists (Kowie Canoe Trail, 18 kilometers long).
And Port Alfred boasts an excellent golf course too, which belongs to the top ten in South Africa. The Kowie History Museum concentrates on the history of the town and the Albany District. In the museum is a card index of all 1820 settlers and their immediate descendants - much used by genealogical researchers.
Port Elizabeth, on the shores of Algoa Bay, also known as the 'Friendly City' ( PE is genuinely a friendly place) is the largest coastal city between Cape Town and Durban and has the third largest port in South Africa. Port Elizabeth and its nearby sister city of Uitenhage, are the main centres for South Africa's car Industry. The actual founding of Port Elizabeth dates back to the arrival by sea of 4 000 British Settlers in 1820 to become the first permanent British Settlers in the country. Port Elizabeth is considered to be the country's leading centre of Art Nouveau style architecture. Many buildings display the intricate stonework, wrought iron and stained glass of that era and are very visible in the historical areas of the city. Bayworld, one of Port Elizabeth's major attractions and comprises the Museum, Oceanarium, Snake park, Tropical House and No. 7 Castle Hill Museum. The Main Museum of Bayworld blends cultural and natural history. The Oceanarium with its popular dolphin and seal presentations take place at 11:00 and 15:00 daily. Within the Oceanarium is a good aquarium including 2 larger tanks housing sharks. No 7 Castle Hill Museum is one of the oldest surviving settler cottages and dates back to 1827. The house has been painstakingly restored to reflect the history and lifestyle of earlier days. Fort Frederick, on Belmont Terrace, overlooking the Baakens River, was built in 1799. Donkin Street and Reserve are immediately behind the town centre. The reserve is flanked by some fine examples of Victorian architecture.
St. Francis Bay lies nestled among green clad dunes lining the beautiful Bay of St. Francis. The Kromme River, navigable for 10 km upstream from the mouth, twists and winds its tranquil way down to the azure sea creating a paradise for fishermen and canoeists. A magnificent white, gently sloping beach extends approximately 3 km from the main bathing area to the river mouth.
The bay itself is world famous for its waves and is frequented by surfers from South Africa and overseas. The Cape St. Francis Nature Reserve with its fynbos and antelope, lies in the endangered coastal dune river system with its unique landscape.
The area was settled in the 1790s by Dutch immigrant farmers. Uitenhage was established In 1804 on a farm owned by Gert Scheepers. It became a municipality in 1877. In the 1880s the signalman at the station, who lost both legs in an accident, trained a baboon called Jack to pull the signal levers. The baboon did the job for 9 years until his death. Cuyler Manor Museum offers demonstrations of farming activities of the 1850s. Today Uitenhage is the center of the motor industry in South Africa with the Volkswagen factory being the biggest.
Tsitsikamma National Park is situated at the heart of the picturesque tourist region near Plettenberg Bay. Tsitsikamma is a Khoisan 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. The Tsitsikamma’s spectacular scenery includes the Indian Ocean breakers, pounding rocky shores beneath 180 m high cliffs, ever-green forests and fynbos rolling down to the sea in a lush carpet.
Tsitsikamma National Park is the third most frequently visited out of the twenty national parks in South Africa. The Park conserves a considerable portion of the natural biota of the Garden Route. The primary vegetation biomes consist of Mountain Fynbos, Coastal Fynbos, Afromontane Forest and the Marine herbland-, inter-tidal-, and sub-tidal zones. The mean annual rainfall is 1200 mm. Approximately 30% of the park is covered in fynbos, scattered amongst the forest vegetation, boasting a wide variety of beautiful flowers, including proteas and heath. Many species of forest, fynbos and sea birds are present. On the N2 you will find a sign to the Big Tree. It is a short but very interesting walk.
Tip: The most fascinating route to take is the old national road and not the
new highway toll road. It leads through 2 fantastic passes the Groot
Rivier Pass and the Blauwkrantz Pass. Also accommodation in Natures Valley
