Most likely places you might find me on holiday
Cape Town
OK, I live here, but a stroll in Kirstenbosch, a morning in Kalk Bay, a wander around the Cape Town City Centre or a walk up Lion’s Head is so much more fun if it’s not hemmed in by weekends or lunch breaks. My favourites are the Sunday market at Milnerton, sundowners at the Red Herring in Noordhoek and the harbour wall at Kalk Bay.
Calitzdorp
This is the perfect holiday town – it’s small and quiet, it has a few excellent restaurants, wonderful wines, cheap accommodation, wonderful scenery and even a hot spring. What more do you want? Drive out to the Calitzdorp dam (the Groenfontein turnoff from the main road), contemplate Rose of the Karoo’s interesting collection of antiques and musical instruments over a homemade pie or pop in at one of the wine cellars for amazing (and amazingly affordable) wines.
Addo Elephant Park
I love this part of the country – the people are friendly, the countryside is beautiful, there’s plenty of game, and if you fail to spot a lion in the park itself, you can play with a tame cub at one of the game farms in the region. Pitch your tent in the user-friendly campsite (make sure you get there early so you can grab one of the nicer stands), go on a horse trail in the morning and wind down over a beer on the deck at the park restaurant after a hard day of spotting other game amid the kudu and warthog.
Knysna
Despite the shopping malls and shiny 4x4s, it’s still one of my favourites. You’re never far away from a beautiful forest walk or a commanding view of a superstar coastline; with all that water, it’s a birder’s paradise, and if you look properly, you’ll still find the forest’s green old heart beating. Drive out to the Big Tree near Rheenendal, have a pizza at The Heads (it’s a bit pricey, but worth doing at least once), sample the locally-made beer at the Mitchell’s brewery and spot kingfishers at Belvidere.
Sabie and surrounds
You can spend days driving along the winding roads on the escarpment, staring at the views, walking in the forests, visiting waterfalls or following in the footsteps of Jock of the Bushveld, the fortune seekers from the gold rush, the warring armies of the Anglo Boer War…
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