One of South Africa’s most beautiful coastal destinations, the Garden Route between Mossel Bay and Storms River is most often explored on a guided tour or as a self-drive excursion starting in Cape Town and flying out of George or Port Elizabeth. Encompassing unspoiled sandy beaches, deep blue lakes, towering cliffs, indigenous forests and fields of protea-rich fynbos, it is an area well suited to outdoor enthusiasts of all persuasions.

Discover the Garden Route

The towns along the Garden Route all possess a strong individual character. Plettenberg Bay, with its postcard perfect beach, is a favorite with families, while sleepy Wilderness retains more of a village feel, and lagoonside Knysna, with its burgeoning LGBTQ+ and art scenes, attracts a hipper, younger crowd.

The Garden Route is renowned for its wealth of coastal and forest walks. Of these, the footpath that circumnavigates the towering cliffs of the Robberg Nature Reserve is arguably the most scenic oceanic day hike in South Africa. Marine wildlife is abundant, most notably the Cape fur seal for which Robberg (‘Seal Mountain’) is named, but you might also see dolphins, whales, sharks and various shorebirds.

 A thrilling suspension bridge across the Storms River Mouth is a scenic highlight of Garden Route National Park. The park also incorporates the forested coastline at Nature’s Valley and a series of bird-rich freshwater lakes around Wilderness.

 A diverse menu of adventure activities is on offer. At the more extreme end of the scale, try the world’s highest bungee jump (700 ft) at Bloukrans Bridge, or a caged shark dive to Seal Island off Mossel Bay. More sedate activities options include canoeing through the forested Touws River Gorge, and guided tours into the spectacular Cango Caves.

 Although a few secretive elephants still haunt the forests inland of Knysna, large terrestrial mammals are generally scarce. The birdlife is fantastic, however, and includes a wealth of marine and aquatic species alongside forest endemics such as yellow-throated warbler, olive woodpecker and the truly spectacular Knysna turaco.