| About South Africa | ||
| Provinces | ||
| Western Cape | ||
| The Western Cape is widely regarded as South Africa´s most attractive province. At its heart lies Cape Town, one of the world´s loveliest cities, but the region´s scenic splendours include a rugged coastline, sparkling beaches, majestic mountain ranges, elegant vineyards, tiny fishing villages and rare flora and fauna. This is where Europe and Africa met 350 years ago – and modern South Africa had its beginnings. The province has a Mediterranean-type climate – hot, dry summers and slightly cold, wet winters. The best visiting months are in the Spring (Sept-Oct), Autumn (March-April) and the Summer inbetween (Nov-Feb). | ||
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| Eastern Cape | ||
| Warm waters, unspoiled beaches, excellent surfing, malaria-free game parks, a dry but beautiful interior and many historic reminders of South Africa´s turbulent history make the Eastern Cape a top class destination for visitors. Leading on eastwards from the Garden Route, the Sunshine Coast and the Wild Coast offer hundreds of kilometres of pristine beaches. The region´s two principal cities, and ports or entry, are Port Elizabeth and East London. Other important towns of note are Graaff Reinert, with its superb Karoo architecture, the settler city of Grahamstown, and Umtata. The Eastern Cape climate is kind to visitors. Coastal areas are at their best from January to May. The interior is hot in summer, but dry and sunny in winter. | ||
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| Northern Cape | ||
| Although the country is classified as semi-arid, it has considerable variation in climate. The great inland Karoo plateau is very dry, and so is the Kalahari Desert. Extremely hot in summer, it can also be icy in winter. In contrast, the eastern coastline is lush and well watered. The southern coast, part of which is known as the Garden Route, is less tropical but also green, as is the Cape Region all year round. This south-western corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate, with wet winters and dry summers, but its most famous climatic characteristic is its wind, which blows virtually all year round, either from the south-east or the north-west. Free State and the Highveld are semi-arid, but saved by its altitude (Johannesburg lies at 1 740m) from subtropical extremes of heat. Winters are cold, though snow is rare. Further north and to the east, especially where a drop in altitude beyond the escarpment gives the Lowveld its name, temperatures rise. | ||
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| Free State | ||
| Situated on the plateau between the Vaal and Orange Rivers, the Free State is farming – and mining – country. Historic Bloemfontein is the judicial capital of South Africa. Welkom, in the Goldfields, is South Africa´s youngest town. Pride of the province is the beautiful Golden Gate Highlands National Park in the eastern Free State. | ||
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| North-West | ||
| Not far from Johannesburg and Pretoria, the North-West Province is a haven for short or long stay holidaymakers in search of sun, water, bushveld or, at Sun City, the high life of an internationally famous golfing and gambling resort. The Taung Skull Heritage Site and the Vredefort Dome, where a meteorite crashed to earth 2000 million years ago, are famous historic sites in the province. Other top attractions include the Pilanesberg National Park, the Madikwe Game Resort, the beautiful Magaliesberg and the Hartbeespoort Dam. | ||
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| Gauteng | ||
| Gauteng is South Africa´s smallest but most urbanised and economically powerful province. One of the largest conurbations in the world not served by a waterway, Gauteng offers visitors the buzz of big city life – in Johannesburg, Soweto and Pretoria – as well as rural tranquillity, mountain walks and wildlife in its natural environment. Gauteng has a matchless climate of warm, thundery summers and crisp, dry and sunny winters. Late spring and early autumn are the best months to visit, but the weather year-round is good, with an average of 9 hours sunshine per day. | ||
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| Limpopo | ||
| Limpopo, known until recently as the Northern Province, offers the traveller a vivid contrast between the highveld splendours of the Waterberg, Soutpansberg and Magoebaskloof and the wildlife delights of the Lowveld, including the northern reaches of the Kruger Park. Polokwane (Pietersburg) on the Great North Road to Zimbabwe, is at the economic and geographic heart of the province. Louis Trichardt at the foot of the Soutpansberg, Tzaneen, east of the lovely Magoebaskloof pass, Mokopane and Phalaborwa, 2km from the Kruger Park, are other prime tourist destinations. | ||
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| Mpumalanga | ||
| Mpumalanga, meaning “place of the rising sun”, descends from Highveld grasslands and the greater Drakensberg escarpment to the tropical Lowveld around Nelspruit in the east, and the grass and wetlands around Chrissismeer and Wakkerstroom in the south. Most visitors to Mpumalanga spend a day or more in the Kruger Park, one of the world´s biggest and finest game reserves. Nelspruit, the provincial capital, is an important stop en route to the Park and the many private Game Reserves on its fringes, and to Maputo in Mozambique. Top attractions include the Panorama Route, a 70km circular drive passing the Blyde River Canyon, Pilgrim´s Rest, the Pinnacle, God´s Window, Berlin and Lisbon Falls and Bourke´s Luck Potholes. |
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| Kwazulu-Natal | ||
| A melting-pot of Zulu, European and Indian cultures, KwaZulu-Natal is a province of vivid contrasts – and magnetic appeal to holidaymakers. Besides two new World Heritage Sites – the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park and the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park – the province offers sun and sand, warm waters, rolling fields of sugar cane, game parks, spectacular mountains and – for the enthusiast – relics of some of the great battles of South African history. Early autumn through winter to spring is the best time to visit. Summers can be very hot and humid. Game parks are best visited in winter, and the Indian Ocean is warm enough to swim in all year around. | ||
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