Experience an adventure of a lifetime in tourism melting pot
Eastern Cape attractions offer thrill-seekers various activities from game drives to walking trails and horse rides
Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency wants you to explore:
BUFFALO CITY Visit the beautiful Buffalo City and experience a warm and friendly welcome from its diverse and unique people. Be amazed by spectacular natural landscapes and take advantage of the splendid adventure activities.
INKWENKWEZI PRIVATE GAME RESERVE Big five private game reserve with an emphasis on luxury and thoughtful detail. There are five different regional ecosystems (biomes) and a tidal estuary. The rich diversity of landscapes offers unparallelled wildlife viewing experience. Safari game drives, elephant educational, elephant walk, canoeing, hiking and quad bike riding. 043-734-3234/ www.inkwenkwezi.com
WHALE WATCHING AND OCEAN CRUISES
Southern Cross Cruises have been granted East London’s first – and only – boat-based whale watching permit. Take a front row seat on the excursion of a lifetime. There are various packages available – discuss directly with the operators. Bookings essential. Boat trips weather permitting. 082-938-6275 (John or Kathinka) / www.facebook.com/southerncrosscruisesandboating
EXPLORE NELSON MANDELA BAY
Nelson Mandela Bay boasts magnificent golden beaches along the warm water of the Indian Ocean. The city offers a broad range of attractions, including, history, eco tourism, beaches, entertainment, shopping, business, wildlife and more. Experience the splendour, beauty, spirit, freedom, wildlife, culture and friendliness.
BEACH AND COASTAL ENCOUNTERS
Port Elizabeth’s pristine beaches are legendary – three of these beaches boast full Blue Flag status. Wide expanses of golden sands and warm water – ideal for safe sheltered swimming, other water sport and beach leisure activities. 041-582-2572/ dlouw@nmbt.co.za / www.nmbt.co.za
ROUTE 67 CULTURE
Uniting arts, culture and heritage, the route portrays 67 public art works symbolising Nelson Mandela’s 67 years of work dedicated to the Freedom of SA and includes 67 steps leading up to the second largest flag in Africa. 041-582-2572 / dlouw@nmbt.co.za / www.nmbt.co.za
EXPLORE THE FRIENDLY N6
Dubbed “The Friendly N6” because of the hospitality of the local people, this route offers natural history, trout fishing, 4x4 trails, a taste of farm life, meetings with living legends and the pure bliss of driving around the mountain heights.
ON THE WARTRAIL HORSE TRAILS AND DAY RIDES
Get to the top of Senqu’s highest peaks, through picturesque valleys and rivers to historical bushman paintings and massive sandstone features – on horseback. Groups of riders with any level of experience. Stay in self-catering, fully catered or cave-to-cave catered accommodation. Day rides, tailormade group rides and annual rides in March and December for experienced cross-country riders. Kimberly and Peter Frost/ 083-578-7033/ onthewartrail@gmail.com
FLY FISHING
The Rhodes, Barkly East area has amazing fly fishing opportunities with about 150km of mountain steams available to anglers – Bell River, K ra aiR iv er,Boksp ru it,Rifl esp ru it, Sterkspruit, K loppers hoeksp ru it,Vloei kraals prui ta nd Langkloof River. Many of the pristine rivers and streams originate 9,000 to 10, 000ft above sea-level. www.linecasters.co.za/freshwater/index / www.wildtrout.co.za
EXPLORE THE KAROO HEARTLAND
The Karoo’s rugged and intense beauty is dominated by vast plains, rocky mountains and the world’s biggest assortment of succulents. This beautiful area, subject to red dust, thorny acacias, stunted vegetation, aloes, windmills, sheep and the odd Angora goat, boasts some of the quaintest towns in the country.
THE OWL HOUSE
A national heritage site, The Owl House and Camelyard represent South Africa’s foremost example of the outsider art of internationally recognised artist Helen Martins. Having lived a troubled and challenging life, she transformed an ordinary Karoo home into a place of light and colour with a fantasy garden of sculptures made from concrete and ground glass. 049- 8411733 / admin@theowlhouse.co.za / www.theowlhouse.co.za KAROO FOOD EXPERIENCE Take a Karoo cuisine trip to enjoy all the treats the Karoo has to offer – Karoo lamb, potjiekos, melkkos; a typical Karoo braai under the stars on one of the many farm stays; and delectable carrot cake in Cradock. Stop off in Graaff-Reinet for gin, beer and wine-tasting opportunities. A coffee shop in Nieu-Bethesda offers the best coffee under the Sneeuberg. Chantelle The Tour Guide/ 071-670-4747/www.karooheartland.com
EXPLORE KOUGA / BAVIAANS
The Kouga route incorporates the towns of Humansdorp, Patensie and Hankie in the Gamtoos Valley, the Langkloof Valley, the Baviaanskloof Wilderness area and the coastal towns of Oyster Bay, St Francis Bay and Jeffrey’s Bay. Enjoy activities from beach horse rides and hiking to calamari tasting and golf.
BAVIAANS CAMINO & COASTAL CHOKKA TRAIL
The north-south route of the Baviaans Camino lends itself to novice horse riders accompanying hikers, supported by two vehicles. Stay overnight in farmhouses or tents. Starts in the Klein Karoo, traverses the Baviaanskloof Mountain Range into the Baviaanskloof, and continues through the Kouga mountain range towards the coast. 75km over four days and five nights. The Chokka Trail is a 62km slack-packing holiday between Oyster Bay, St Francis Bay and Cape St Francis. The best possible way to see and experience just how beautiful the greater St Francis is on foot, at your own pace and with overnight accommodation at guesthouses and a resort. Esti Stewart 073-825-0835/ www.baviaanscamino.com/ info@chokkatrail.co.za/ www.chokkatrail.co.za
SKYDIVE EXPERIENCE
A scenic 20-minute plane ride over Jeffreys Bay, followed by the rush and excitement from jumping out of an aircraft at 9,000ft.
Thirty-seconds freefall at 200km/h and a five-minute parachute ride are on offer. There are experienced instructors with a minimum of 1,000 skydives. Skydive Jeffreys Bay 072-26622150/ info@skydivejeffreysbay.co.za/ www.skydivejeffreysbay.co.za
EXPLORE SUNDAYS RIVER VALLEY
Here the Addo Elephant National Park stretches from the Karoo region north of the Zuurberg Mountain Range to the coast and islands of Algoa Bay. This is one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world, with five of the country’s seven biomes. It has one of most densely populated elephant herds in the world and is home to the locally endemic flightless dung beetle.
ADDO ELEPHANT NATIONAL PARK
The only Big 7 game reserve in the world. View the largest density of African elephants on the planet, Cape buffalo, leopard, black rhino, lion as well as great white shark and seasonal southern right whale in the marine section. 041-582-2575
DANIELL CHEETAH PROJECT
Daniell Cheetah Project offers a unique educational Predator Tour by trained tour guides. This is a 1hr guided educational tour to see and learn more about our animals, their conservation status and our efforts. Guests will be given the opportunity to visit a cheetah inside the chee- tah’s enclosure. www.daniellcheetahproject.org
EXPLORE THE SUNSHINE COAST
This route explores the spectacular strip of coastline between Port Elizabeth and East London where you travel via coastal towns and hamlets like Colchester, Alexandria, Kenton on Sea, Port Alfred and Kids Beach. The route’s major attraction is its magnificent sandy coastline with many rivers, resorts and activities along the way.
GOLFING – TWO ICONIC GOLF COURSES
The Royal Port Alfred Golf Club’s undulating course snakes its way through thickets of pristine coastal forest and over hilly dunes in true links tradition. Panoramic views from many of the fairways. Resident wildlife includes bushbuck, springbok, impala, blesbok, fallow deer, duiker, giant tortoises and abundant birdlife. The magnificent Gary Player championship 18-hole golf course at Fish River Golf Resort incorporates bent grass greens and unique challenges presented by the natural landscape. Royal Port Alfred Golf Course: 046-624-4796 / Fish River Resort: 040-676-1101/ www.rpagc.co.za/ www.mantiscollection.com/fish-river-resort-opens
SURF LIKE A PRO
Shaka Surf School and surf camp is based in Port Alfred but operates in Kenton during holiday seasons. The forest surf camp boasts an upcycled treehouse – hired as a private unit or a dormitory that can sleep six. The surf camp is on the edge of an ancient dune forest and boasts its own hiking trail and half pipe skateboard ramp. Surfing road trips. Dave MacGregor/082-335-4764/ david@livewirenews.co.za www.sunshinecoasttourism.co.za/listing/shaka-surfschool
EXPLORE TSITSIKAMMA
Tsitsikamma Adventure Route stretches from the Bloukrans River in the west to the Tsitsikamma River in the east, and is bordered on the north by the imposing Tsitsikamma Mountains and in the south by the Indian Ocean. Tsitsikamma is a Khoi word meaning “place of abundant or sparkling water”.
HIGHEST COMMERCIAL BUNGY IN THE WORLD
The view from Africa’s highest bridge captures all the majesty and tranquility of the Bloukrans River valley. But there is nothing tranquil about throwing yourself more than 200m down towards the river below. Recognised as the “highest bungy from a bridge” in the world, Bloukrans Bungy uses pendulum bungy technology to ensure the smoothest, most comfortable bungy jump possible. Jumpers are secured in a fullbody harness combined with an ankle connection. 042-281-1458/ 071-109-6872/ 071-248-5959 / book@faceadrenalin.com/ www.faceadrenalin.com
TREE TOP CANOPY TOUR
A canopy tour takes you on an unforgettable adventure as you zipline from one platform to the next along a series of steel cables set among magnificent natural surroundings. Safe for almost all ages (recommen- ded age group is between 7 – 70). Canopy tours are enjoyed by nature lovers, families, thrill seekers and corporate team-building or conference groups. 04- 281-1836 / www.stormsriver.com / www.canopytour.co.za
WILD COAST
The Wild Coast stretches from East London all the way north to Port Edward. The region is home to some of the most beautiful coastal scenery in the world. It is a place of steep green hills atop which sit clusters of traditional Xhosa mud huts; a land of windswept cliffs, deserted white beaches, forests, untamable waves and numerous shipwrecks.
HOLE IN THE WALL
The Hole in the Wall is a rocky archway set just off the Wild Coast, south of Coffee Bay. The little holiday village close by shares the same name. This landmark was created millions of years ago through the continuous wave action against the sandstone and shale under the hard volcanic dolerite, creating the archway. It stands before the mouth of the Mpako River and is the source of many legends. www.wildcoast.co.za/hole-in-the-wall
A CHINTSA EAST HORSERIDE ON THE BEACH
“People who say there is no heaven on earth have clearly never been on a horse.” The wonderful beaches and bush trails of the Wild Coast are best explored on the back of a Chinsta Horse. Georgie Dickerson 043738-5141 / georgie@cintsahorses.co.za
EXPLORE FRONTIER COUNTRY
This route traverses the area that was the scene of nine Frontier Wars between the British and the Xhosa and the meeting place of five great cultures, San, Khoi-Khoi, Dutch, Xhosa and British. Frontier Country, in its natural state, is one of the most diverse regions on earth. Much of the pristine indigenous flora and fauna is still very accessible, making for breathtaking views, experiences and memories.
GAME VIEWING IN FRONTIER COUNTRY
Kwantu | Blaauwkrantz | Shamwari | Amakhala | Bucklands | Kamala | Kwandwe Bushman Sands | Great Fish River | Lalibela | Thomas Baines | Pumba
PIG AND WHISTLE
Stop by the historic Pig and Whistle Inn while in Bathurst. This Inn has been providing hospitality for over 180 years and is home to the oldest continuously licensed pub in South Africa!www.facebook.com/Thepigbathurst
EXPLORE THE AMATHOLE MOUNTAINS
This route stretches from Adelaide in the west to Stutterheim in the east, with the majestic Amathole Mountains standing as a clear beacon on the horizon. Visit an area steeped in Xhosa culture and Settler history. Activities in the area include trout fishing, canoeing, bass fishing, mountain biking, archery and abseiling.
STUTTERHEIM ENGINE MUSEUM
Established in 1995, the Stutterheim Enginge Museum displays 120 engines from 1903 to 1990. It is believed to have one of the largest collections of restored stationary engines in the world. Visit the museum to learn about the development and advancement of engines as well as the history of the engines on display. 043-6831507
HOGSBACK
Waterfall, hiking, eco shrine. The little village of Hogsback, surrounded by scenic mountains, is often covered by a blanket of snow in winter.