Suggestions/Advice for the Eastern Cape Visitor
The Eastern Cape offers something for everyone, but all the variety can
be confusing. This page is intented to help you make the most of your Eastern
Cape visit.
Relax on the beach
If
you're a sunseeker and you want to relax on the beach, cool off in the Eastern
Cape 's Indian Ocean and not fuss too much then the Western Coastal Area or Sunshine Coast
is where you want to be. Port Elizabeth,
the Eastern Cape's biggest city has some fabulous beaches
of which Kings Beach is the most popular. Port Elizabeth also has all the
trimmings (and trappings) of a city. Traffic is not bad compared to most
cities, but during rush hour things do get a bit hectic. You can also see
movies, do shopping and certainly keep busy with sites around PE when the
weather is not so great.
Further to
east you will find the Sunshine Coast with numerous smaller towns that also sit
on the Indian Ocean. These towns are fantastic if you don't want the rush of a
city. Most of these towns don't have movies and 24-hour shopping, but they all
have shops and they do cater for the tourist market. You will find some
stunning beaches here and you could be the only one on the whole beach! This
you won't find near the cities. Bushman's
River Mouth and Port Alfred are
typical examples of these towns. Take note though that in the in-season
(Dec-Jan) these smaller towns do fill up.
Water sports
You
will find motorised water sports like jet skiing & water skiing in many
places in the Eastern Cape, but because of negative environmental impact
this website advises against motorsports in riverine areas. For open sea jet
skiing, the best area is the Western Coastal
Area. St Francis Bay is a good
place to start.
Almost anywhere along the coast you can do non-motorised water sports. Hobie
beach, Port Elizabeth is a favourite for wind-surfers. Jeffreys Bay & St
Francis Bay is world famous as surfing meccas. Doing a canoe ride up the
Bushman's River is also very rewarding.
As far as water sports go there is only one king in the Eastern Cape,
though. Jeffreys Bay and Cape St Francis are both world famous for their
surfing waves - and there is quite a rivalry between the two towns. Cape
St Francis has "Bruce's Beauties" (after the photographer who featured
them in the 1960's cult film "Endless Summer") and Seal Point (for obvious
reasons). Jeffreys Bay has Supertubes, home of the yearly Billabong Pro
surfing compeitition. You will just have to test both spots out to make up your
own mind! Seal Point is excellent for budding surfing
photographers because the shape of the coastline lets you get really
close to the surfers.
Adventure
For river-rafting, bungie jumping & other adventure sports the best area is
the more developed Western Coastal Area.
Humansdorp is quite central and also close
to the coast.
Wildlife
The
most famous game reserves in the Eastern Cape are the Addo Elephant Park
and Shamwari Game Reserve, but these are by no means the only ones. You can get
in touch with your "wild" side through most of the Eastern Cape, but the
best areas are the Karoo, Midlands & Western Coastal
areas.
Golf clubs
The Eastern Cape has some exquisite colf courses. Humewood in Port
Elizabeth is one the most well known clubs.
Walking
There are fantastic walks all over the Eastern Cape. These walks range
from daily walks to 5-6 day walks. The best known walks (Otter Trail,
Harkerville, Tsitsikamma) are all based around the Garden Route in the Western Coastal Area, but there are some astonishingly beautiful walks
in the Northern Interior as well.
Some believe this is where JRR Tolkien got some of his inspiration for Lord of
the Rings.
Skiing
Believe it or not, but in the winter you can actually do snow skiing on Ben
Macdui in the Northern Interior. Rhodes is a good place to start.
Safety first
- Always remember to be responsible when in the water.
- Wear sun protection in summer.