South Africa

South Africa – A World in one Country

Every country in the world displays some diversity, but South Africa, stretching from the hippos in the Limpopo River to the penguins waddling on the Cape, takes some beating. It befits its position at the southern end of the world’s most epic continent, with more types of terrain than photographers can shake their zoom lens at. There’s the deserted Kalahari, Namakwa’s springtime symphony of wildflowers, iconic Table Mountain and Cape Point, Kruger National Park’s wildlife-stalked savannah (scene of the famous lion-buffalo-crocodile battle watched more than 40 million times on YouTube) and, running through the east of the country and into Lesotho, the Drakensberg. KwaZulu-Natal’s iSimangaliso Wetland Park alone has five distinct ecosystems, attracting both zebras and dolphins.

If you’re interested in another kind of wildlife, hit the nightclubs on Cape Town’s jumping Long St or sample African homebrew in a township shebeen (unlicensed bar). When it’s time to reflect on it all, do it over seafood on the Garden Route, curry in Durban’s Indian Area, a sizzling Cape Malay dish, or a braai (barbecue) in the wilderness – accompanied by a bottle of pinotage produced by the oldest wine industry outside Europe.

South Africans are some of the most upbeat, welcoming and humorous folk you’ll encounter anywhere, from farmers in the rural north who tell you to drive safely on those dirt roads, to Khayelitsha kids who wish you molo (‘good morning’ in Xhosa).

Our Top Picks For South Africa

Kruger National Park

Savour creation’s primeval majesty in this world-renowned safari destination

Drakensberg

Hike amid the magnificent peaks and plunging valleys of this breathtaking escarpment

Southern Coast / Whale Watching

Explore South Africa’s coastline, from Hermanus with its whales to the rivers and ravines of Tsitsikamma National Park

Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park

Visit this stomping ground for the Big Five plus other wildlife galore

Cape Town

Savour the cosmopolitan chic of one of the world’s most beautiful cities and get pelted with spray at Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve