South Africa – The Most Visited Holiday Destination in the Sub-Saharan Africa

Excellent wildlife observation, multi-ethnic cities such as Johannesburg, breathtaking views from the national parks, and lively civilization are the secrets that make the territory appealing to all kinds of visitors and budgets. Offering hundreds of sights and scenes, it was not possible for me and my friends to explore each corner of its beauty. However, we picked some worth visiting popular locations to obtain the maximum out of our journey here.

Prime Destinations

• Johannesburg:
  This is the ‘City of Gold’ offering unlimited shopping, entertainment, and tours. After reaching here through the flight, we first took the Mystery Ghost Bus, which is a strange way to explore some historic sites – the Sterkfontein Valley and the Cradle of Humankind. Being a World Heritage Site, here we could see the important palaeontological finds. We then visited the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden at Kloofendal preserving the original grassland and 120 bird species with the only black eagles. Next, the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens in Emmarentia was our target famous for its Rose Garden and waterfowls in the Emmarentia Dam. Next was the turn of Braamfontein Spruit located at 25 km from the Westdene Dam in north. This is the longest park offering walking trails along the river featured with an Iron Age village and smelting works.

• Cape Town:
  This is the major tourist attraction famous for its picturesque looks, superstars’ beaches, whale watching, best shopping, and much more to add to the list. After traveling from Johannesburg until 16 hours by road, we explored – The Victoria and Alfred (V&A) Waterfront for Two Oceans Aquarium, amphitheatre, and shopping, the Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was jailed for 18 years, the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, a family beach, and the above all, the Table Mountain for stunning hikes and a cable car.
• Garden Route:
  Located between the Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, this is also called the South Africa’s Eden and is rich in natural beauty that allures adventure enthusiasts. It offers contemporary golf courses, old forests, fynbos floral kingdom, isolated artist population, retirement estates, modern malls, craft centres, mountains, and beach holidays. If you have time, visit the towns of the Calitzdorp, Sedgefield, The Wilderness, Knysna, and Plettenberg Bay. Try to spot the Southern Right whales, the humpback, and common dolphins close to the Plettenberg Bay here. We also visited the new Garden Route National Park that links the prevalent Tsitsikamma National Park’s ancient forests and coastline with the Wilderness National Park through lakes.
• Kruger National Park:
  This is the oldest wildlife park in Africa hosting 16 ecosystems situated north of Johannesburg that took us 5 hours by car. Spot the Big Five on a 4×4 game drive, hippos, crocodiles, giraffe, and cheetah. Considered as among the best-cared parks in Africa, its leaves no scope for a visitor to take a 4×4 vehicle. The park offers rest camps with chalets, cottages, bungalows tents, caravan, and camp sites whose cost and style vary from reasonable to luxurious. For the mobility impaired, wheelchair and specialized safari vehicles are provided.

• Durban:
  Located in the province of KwaZulu Nata on the east coast, this is another famous city on Natal Bay that from its year-round warm waters. The ‘Golden Mile’ beaches are worth visiting that are safeguarded from shark and by lifeguards for swimming and surfing. Next comes the Promenade expanding along the waterfront, which is full of restaurants, shops, hotels, and the excellent uShaka Marine World aquarium. The tour was then followed by the Victoria Indian Street Market holding mosques, temples, and shops. Lastly, our trip here ended with the Umgeni River Bird Park that is the home of 3000 exotic birds, 4 waterfalls, green vegetation, and other extinct species. A tip from me here is to be aware of the pickpockets in the market and promenade particularly at night.
• Robben Island:
  Commencing our journey at the Nelson Mandela Gateway at V&A Waterfront by taking a ferry, we reached in 30 minutes and were given 2.5 hours to explore this historic island. The UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee commemorated this location for its ‘triumph of the human spirit’ shown by Mr. Nelson Mandela after being imprison here. This site also has witnessed the imprisonment of many other leaders who fought against racial oppression.
• Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve:
  This is the popular for its God’s Window, picturesque drives, and climbing trails.
• Wild Coast:
  This is a rocky coast that presents remote beaches, dolphin spotting, horse riding, trekking tracks, mystical history, Xhosa heritage, and the Hole-in-the-Wall.

Best Time to Visit

The good period is at spring from mid-September to November and at autumn from April to May.

Accommodations

• Jaci’s Tree Lodge (Madikwe Game Reserve, NW South Africa) for family
• Cape Grace Hotel (Cape Town), a luxurious one
• Phinda Private Game Reserve (KwaZulu-Natal)
• Earth Lodge (South Kruger National Park)
• Thonga Beach Lodge (Maputuland Coast, KwaZulu-Natal)
• Diaz 15 House on the Beach (Jeffreys Bay, Garden Route), an affordable one