Driving the Garden Route South Africa
After leaving Kruger National Park, we drove back to Johannesburg and caught a flight to Port Elizabeth. This was the beginning of driving the Garden Route on the south eastern coast of South Africa. This scenic drive stretches for 300 kilometres with a mixture of dramatic scenery, including: mountains, beaches, forests, and wildlife.
It officially starts in Storm River and ends at Mossel Bay, however the breathtaking scenery continues along the coastline and extends to the town of Hermanus (for whale watching), and into the Cape winelands (for wine tasting).
Garden Route Itinerary
My tour commenced in Port Elizabeth for one night and then took us to Storms River and the Tsitsikamma National Park. We journeyed from the Western Cape to the Eastern Cape, where the scenery became more dramatic and wild.
The itinerary was as follows:
– One night in Port Elizabeth
– One day and night at Storms River
– Two nights in Knysna
– Two nights in Hermanus
– One night in Stellenbosch
Port Elizabeth – Gqeberha
The sea port city of Gqeberha, formerly know as Port Elizabeth, is located on Nelson Mandela Bay on the Eastern Cape. We spent one night here before we embarked on our Garden Route tour. Our hotel, The Kelway Hotel, was set on a rise overlooking the bay and was only a short walk to Humewood Beach.
There is actually a 40km-stretch of beaches with protected areas for swimming. Additionally, the bay is perfect for fishing, surfing, scuba diving, snorkelling and sailing.
Worth visiting are the following local attractions:
– Red Location Museum
– Donkin Reserve, Pyramid and Lighthouse
– Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum
– Prince Alfred’s Guard Memorial
– St George’s Cricket Oval
– Route 67 – a collection of 67 art pieces
– No 7 Castle Hill
– Campanile Memorial
– Large metal cut-out of Nelson Mandela
– Fort Frederick
Storms River
After a quick tour of Port Elizabeth, we headed southwards towards Storms River and Tsitsikamma National Park for a distance of 170 kms. We stopped temporarily at the Storms River Bridge, where we walked over the bridge to capture the stunning views down into the deep gorge beneath us.
Entering the Tsitsikamma National Park, the adventure playground of the Garden Route, we drove through the rainforest to the Storms River Mouth. Here we hiked to the suspension bridges that criss-cross the river canyon, that were unfortunately closed for maintenance.
Activities within the national park include:
– Canopy tours
– Kayaking and Lilo tours
– Hiking Trails
– Waterfall ziplining and abseiling.
– Quad bike tours
– Blackwater tubing
– Bloukrans Bridge Bungee Jump
After we lunched at a restaurant overlooking the sea at Storms River Mouth, it began to rain and the temperature dropped suddenly. Our accommodation for the night was at Tsitsikamma Village Inn, a former hunting lodge and historic hotel with individual cute cottages. It was cold so it was a welcome retreat to my cosy cottage.
The village in Storms River is worthy of a stroll, to check out Marilyn’s 60’s Diner – brimming with 60s memorabilia, the Tsitsikamma Micro Brewery and Hunter’s Pub.
The following morning we set off on a hike through the nearby indigenous forest at Plaatbos Nature Reserve. After getting our heart rates up hiking through the dense forest we deserved a coffee at Marilyn’s Diner before we got on the bus to continue our trip. We briefly stopped at Bloukrans Bridge to watch the bungy jumping and had a quick browse around the markets here.
Knysna
For approximately 100 kms, we drove through the picturesque terrain and landscapes of the Garden Route to Knysna. The drive into Knysna is spectacular with views of the large lagoon that dominates the town. The lagoon is a protected marine reserve and boasts many different marine species and water birds galore. It’s the type of place that instantly makes you feel relaxed.
An interesting fact about Knysna is that it is home to South Africa’s largest Rastafarian community who can be found living at Judah Square. They are instantly recognised by their long dreadlocks and colourful attire.
After checking into our hotel at Knysna Hollows, we drove to the nearby Waterfront where we browsed the shops and had a bite to eat. As depicted by the name, the Waterfront fringes the lagoon and has a large marina of boats, yachts with many restaurants and cafes with gorgeous water views.
Later in the afternoon we set off on a sunset, wine and oyster cruise out to Knysna Heads – the ocean entrance to the lagoon surrounded by steep sandstone cliffs. The conditions were perfect for a cruise, as our young captain steered us out to the heads and told us all about this natural lagoon.
Once we reached the heads we turned back, with our captain shucking some fresh oysters, both naturally grown and farmed. We then feasted on these oysters and a couple of glasses of ice cold wine. As the sun dipped we captured some beautiful photos as the sky became orange and it reflected into the lagoon. It was the ideal way to finish another fantastic day.
The following day was a free day in Knysna and I decided that I’d like to see some of the beaches on Buffalo Bay. My tour guide drove me out to the nearby Brenton Beach where the views from the headland went for as far as the eye could see. There is a big staircase down to the shore where I took a short stroll.
Afterwards I indulged myself in a lunch at the Waterfront and idled away the afternoon enjoying the atmosphere. But if you prefer you can visit the nearby Knysna Elephant Park, where you can experience a personal encounter with orphaned African elephants.
Hermanus
I spent the night with a bout of food poisoning and needed some medical attention before I could embark on the long drive to Hermanus. After an hour or so hooked up to an IV drip, full of medication and fluids, we set off on the mini-bus to the next stop.
The extremely scenic and attractive coastal city of Hermanus was a 4.5 hour drive from Knysna. Although, I was mostly out of it, due to my illness, we arrived here in the mid afternoon and checked into our accommodation at the Windsor Hotel.
Hermanus is famous for whale watching from the shoreline during the season from June to December. The foreshore of Walker Bay is lined by pathways that stretch for kilometres where you can get your steps in whilst looking out for breaching whales and blowholes. But there is also an abundance of intriguing sculptures along the pathway.
There is a 12 km cliff path that boasts sweeping views of the ocean and bay. Also hiking trails through nature reserves such as Fernkloof and Vogelgat with extraordinary scenery. For adventure seekers there are options such as: shark cage diving, quad biking, mountain biking, kite surfing and abseiling.
For me, I managed a gentle stroll along the coastal pathway and saw a few whale blowholes out in the bay. I then explored the town centre where there were interesting art galleries, arts and craft markets and boutique shopping. The town is a mixture of old and new with a few historic buildings.
Bettys Bay
With the spectacular Kogelberg Mountains dominating the landscape, we drove the 52 kms from Hermanus to Bettys Bay. This small holiday town located on the Overberg Coast is famous for its African penguin colony at Stony Point. We stopped here for an hour en route to our destination of Stellenbosch.
On a cold and blustery morning we ventured out onto the series of boardwalks to observe the cute penguins going about their lives. Some were burrowing, some were going out to sea fishing, there were couples preening each other, or in groups of seven or eight waddling around together in a parade.
Stony Point is also an important seabird breeding area for cormorants and can be seen nesting out on a large rock jutting out into the ocean.
Wildlife aside, the area is famous for being the heart of the Cape Floral Kingdom, with exceptional examples of fynbos (fine bush). Visitors flock here for the flowering season between October to February.
Stellenbosch
Following a scenic coastal drive along the Clarence Drive route, we changed direction and drove inland to the town of Stellenbosch. This historic, pretty-as-a-picture town is surrounded by mountains and vineyards.
Stellenbosch is South Africa’s second oldest town, founded in 1679, that is evidenced from some of the Cape Dutch architecture. Nowadays the town is centred around a university and the region is renowned for its flourishing wine industry.
The place was buzzing with people and loads of traffic. We spent a couple of hours exploring some of the historic buildings, shops, museums and galleries in the oak tree-clad streets. We found a kerbside cafe down one of the main thoroughfares where there were literally hundreds of eateries, and enjoyed a delicious lunch.
Our afternoon was spent at a local winery where we tasted some different varieties of wine. L’Avenir Wine Estate was located not too far out of town, surrounded by greenery and grapevines. A leading Stellenbosch boutique winery, L’Avenir specialises in South Africa’s Pinotage and Chenin Blanc wines.
I discovered that Stellenbosch Wine Routes currently consists of more than 150 wineries, each offering a unique cellar-door experience for wine-lovers. So you could actually spend days here exploring the region.
Our six day road trip on the Garden Route terminated in Cape Town, where we were to spend another three days. My impressions of this scenic coastline, where the mountains meet the sea, was that it’s comparable to many other famous coastal drives. The Great Ocean Road in Australia or the Amalfi Coast in Italy come to mind. I believe it is a definite must do on your South African travel itinerary.
