Information: Northern Free State

Parys is a popular tourist destination, affording the visitor endless opportunities for leisure and adventure. Water sport activities include river rafting, water skiing, canoeing, angling and power boating. Abseiling and gliding facilities are also available in Parys.

The Vaal River, which stretches about a kilometre wide at Parys, is dotted with willow treed islands, on one of which has been built a 9 hole golf course. Access to Golf Island is via a suspension bridge, built high enough to ensure golfers can reach it even when the river is in flood.

Visitors can also choose between a variety of Hiking Trails taking them into the hilly countryside surrounding Parys incorporating game viewing, bird spotting, viewing the remains of diamond diggings along the river and exploring the many battle sites within the vicinity.

Parys was established in 1876 by the Van Coller brothers on Klipspruit Farm. The town was romantically named by its surveyor, Schilbach, who was reminded of the French town of Paris, which was similarly situated along the banks of a large river.

Welkom is South Africa's youngest town and has been the centre of the gold fields since 1947. The town sprung up after gold was discovered on a farm called St Helena.

Welkom has grown perhaps with a faster rate as Johannesburg, yet is proud of the fact that its traffic system of traffic circles were so well designed that they still have only a few traffic lights. It is in the Free State the second largest town and the core of the relatively recent geologic windfall of the Free State.

Brandfort is a small town in central Free State, just 50km north-northeast of Bloemfontein on the R30, between Bloemfontein and Theunissen. 
Jacobus van Zijl, a Voortrekker elder, established a church on his farm Keerom in 1866. The community was visited by Orange Free State president JH Brand &, shortly afterwards, the town was named in his honor.

The town of Kroonstad, the third-largest town in Free State province of South Africa, lies two hours drive from Gauteng. It was established in 1855. The main industry is agriculture. A caravan park and many more camp sites on the banks of the willow-lined Vals River are frequented by anglers and watersport enthusiasts. Folklore has it that the town was named after a horse named Kroon, belonging to Voortrekker Sarel Cilliers, which drowned in a stream on the site of the present town. From 13 March-11 May 1900, it was the capital of the Orange Free State. The British built a concentration  camp here during the Second Boer War to house Boer women and children.