ED’S LETTER

Irecently had the privilege of travelling across the country from Lambert’s Bay on the West Coast to Morgan Bay on the East Coast. And then I went west again, along different roads back home to Stellenbosch.

My fellow explorers and I chose gravel roads where possible, taking our time over mountain passes and picking our way through all the villages and hamlets sown across South Africa’s interior, covering 3 700 km in total. A story about this journey will appear in go! later in the year, but for now I’ll mention a few of the things that struck me: Since you’re a reader of this magazine, you’ll know this already, but wow – our country is splendid! The variety of landscapes and the diversity of its people are glorious to behold. You can forget this if you’re trapped in your own place for too long – as we were last year during lockdown.

On our journey, we met groups of fellow travellers – on motorcycles, in their cars, some towing caravans – all getting reacquainted with their own country. Even though there are some border posts open, which allow us to visit neighbours like Namibia and Botswana, most international destinations are still closed to those of us who use the “green mamba” as a passport.

South Africans with the means to travel to places like Patagonia, Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe are now on local voyages of discovery, since the urge to travel can’t be locked down. One after the other, the owners of hotels and guesthouses would tell us how domestic travellers had saved them from complete ruin. Even though they had to drop prices and create enticing offers, some of them have had a first quarter that trumped even 2019. For many little towns – bullied by years of drought and municipal mismanagement – tourism is one of the few things that puts food on the table and keeps the lights burning.

If you plan your journey carefully, you can have one of your most affordable holidays in years, as you rediscover your country from north to south, west to east. And there’s nothing better than a go! magazine to inspire you and help with the planning.

Now is the time to get in your car and drive!