Port Elizabeth –known as “The friendly city”, is just a few kilometres south of Addo. The city is the largest in the Eastern Cape region, and its population is estimated at 1 million. Founded in 1820 by Sir Rufane Shaw Donkin- Governor of the Cape Colony, he named it after his departed wife. The city is one of South Africa’s major seaports, with its harbour at Algoa Bay. The port is a grand family resort area offering plush accommodation, grand cultural experiences, nature parks, a 40 km beach stretch, and ample sporting facilities.

Port Elizabeth is one of the venues of the South Africa hosted 2010 FIFA World Cup, and is in readiness constructing a shiny new stadium. It is a major industrial centre, and is home to South Africa’s motor vehicle industry. You will find big names such as General Motors, Volkswagen, Ford, Continental Tyres, together with their suppliers ensconced here.

Port Elizabeth’s greatest attraction is the 5 km Donkins Heritage Trail. The trail nestles 43 of the city’s major attractions, with mid 19th century legacies given prominence. Starting out at the Library Building –a national monument of Victorian Gothic architecture, it heads into the city centre,
where you find the imposing Statue of Queen Victoria. To the queen’s right, the Market Square hosts a flea market every Saturday morning.

At the square, stands a replica of the 1488 Diaz Cross. This is in honour of the Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Diaz, who was the first European to visit the area. Further right is the Campanile, a 1923 brick tower with 23 high bells that stands at 52 m. At its top is a viewing platform from where you can catch a good aerial view of the Algoa Bay and the city below.

Along the trail, other interesting monuments include: the Number 7 Castle Hill –now a historical museum; the 1799 Fort Frederick at the mouth of Baakans River; the prestigious 1840 Pembridge House; King George IV Art Gallery; a Horse Memorial; a Conservatory; an Open Air Theatre. If your interest suits it, you may visit the St. George Park –South Africa’s oldest
cricket grounds and a test match site; old churches; Happy Valley picnic site; an Opera House, and Settlers Park Nature Reserve.

There is also the Port Elizabeth Museum, which features a children’s museum, an oceanarium, the Snake Park, and the Tropical House with its unique flora and colourful bird species. If boat trips are your thing, take a pleasure cruise to the Island of Santa Cruz, where you will be met by
penguins and have a chance for a wreck diving expedition.

A little west of the city is the Seaview Game Park, which has exceptional game viewing, camping and opportunities for nature treks on the Nyala Trail. St. Francis Bay is an excellent holiday resort, with its bathing resorts and fine beaches. Wind and wave surfing are good, and the shell collector will be at home.

Other areas of interest not to miss in this vicinity include: the 1879 Cape Francis lighthouse, Jeffreys Bay -reputed for its winter surfing, Moorskloof Nature Reserve with its 3 km foot trail, the waterbird sanctuary at Seekoei River Nature Reserve, and St. Francis Village –a paradise for shell collectors, surfers and anglers. 35 km north, the busy city of Uitenhage
thrives –and offers tours to its automobile plant. Nearby, the Cuyler Manor Cultural Museum, Drostdy Africana Museum and the 1875 Railway Museum are perfect day excursions.

Going westwards from Port Elizabeth, towards the Western Cape and below the vast Karoo, you find the Tsitsikamma National Park. This is an 80 km stretch of untouched natural landscapes along the coast between Nature’s Valley and the mouth of Storm River. At the coast, you can witness the dolphins at play. Around mid June to the end of October,
you may sight the Southern Right whales as they seek out an inshore breeding place.

Tsitsikamma is an amazing hideaway, which also offers you the chance to enjoy the magnificent Garden Route, which culminates at the Storm River. For those who love the rush of adrenaline, Bloukrans Bridge nearby, offers the world’s highest bungee jump.

Away from the Karoo west, beyond Port Elizabeth and Alexandria, the cape opens up to an even more vibrant stretch. It rises from Port Alfred –the Sunshine Coast, where summer rules almost all year, in contrast to the sub-tropical humidity of the east, and the dry frosty winters of the west. This is a popular beach and holiday location, with excellent water sporting and golf.

Northwards to Grahamstown, you find a world of historical and cultural museums, farms and nature reserves. At Grahamstown you have South Africa’s only camera obscura at the 1882 Observatory Museum. Also intriguing is the Egyptian mummy- one of 3 in the country, at the Albany Museum of Natural history.

The town is host to the annual Grahamstown National Arts Festival. This is a lively and most eclectic gathering, which is Africa’s largest cultural event. It attracts an estimated 50,000 people for 10 days around mid-year. It covers drama, dance, opera, stand-up comedy, sculpture, painting, jazz, and film, among other art genres.

Fort Beaufort up ahead is a former military outpost that is now graced with acres of citrus fruit and sheep farms. It is here that the 1846 ‘War of the Axe’ –certainly the most outrageous war in history was fought. The bloody war started after a local Xhosa allegedly stole an axe from a settler’s shop. This prompted British soldiers to attack the Xhosa
settlement, and a hot war ensued for over a year.

At the nearby towns of Adelaide and Alice, more museums and
exhibitions can be visited. Alice is home to Fort Hare University, which has produced many leaders in Africa, and South Africa in particular- including Nelson Mandela. Away from the museums, Hogsback, Katberg and Auckland are a home of tranquillity. The area presents beautiful hilly and forested scenes, popular year round resorts, and excellent game viewing, hiking and walking at the Tsolwana Game Reserve.

King Williams Town, southeast of Alice town and towards the coast, is a significant shopping and administrative centre. This former Christian missionary station is today a lightly industrialized town, and is dotted with some cultural and religious museums. The town was witness to many fierce battles between the Xhosa and European settlers. A short escape from the town takes you to Pirie Forest on the upper reaches of
Mt. Kemp. Adjacent to the town is Bisho – which means buffalo in the Xhosa language, and is the capital of Eastern Cape Province.

The Xhosa are a Bantu people, most of who reside in the Eastern Cape. Their tongue is South Africa’s second most widely spoken language. Closely related to the Zulu, the Xhosa are well distributed across the country. They originally occupied the Ciskei and Transkei regions of the
cape-which were later turned into ‘homelands’ in the dark days of Apartheid. They bore the full weight of the measures instituted before, and particularly under Apartheid, that guaranteed underdevelopment.

The Xhosa have produced a disproportionate number of South Africa’s anti-apartheid heroes, martyrs and moral giants. The most notable include: Nelson Mandela –South Africa’s first majority rule president, Thabo Mbeki –Mandela’s successor, Steve Biko, Victoria Mxenge, Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo, Chris Hani, Winnie Mandela and Desmond Tutu
among others, whose many sacrifices for the cause of human dignity is celebrated in South Africa, and beyond.

East London to the southeast of Bisho is a thriving commercial and entertainment centre, as well as a holiday resort. The city has 3 exotic beaches off the mouth of Buffalo River: Oriental Beach –which is closest to the city centre, the Eastern Beach -with its warm Indian Ocean waters, and Nahoon Beach -excellent for surfers and campers. The city also has numerous amusement and theme parks, museums and galleries, botanical gardens and a zoo.

Some of East London’s landmarks include the City Hall and the Equestrian Monument, the German Settlers Memorial, the Aquarium and seal training centre and the 1880 Lock Street Jail Shopping Centre. The nearby Powder Magazine towers and fortifications are a great place to take an
excursion back into history.

The shores beyond East London offer the best wreck diving in South Africa. This 240 km coastline from East London, all the way to Port Edward is commonly known as the Wild Coast. With a record 82 wrecks, this strip is referred to as ‘the vessel graveyard’, on account of the large
treacherous waves that have brought so much grief to sailors through the years.

The rugged coast overflows with magical scenery lined with caves and boulders, lagoons, and gorgeous beaches. The Wild Coast is a haven of adventure activities, including: abseiling, river and sea fishing, surfing, dolphin watching, and quad biking. Nelson Mandela’s birthplace- at
Qunu is quite close to the Wild Coast.

Qolora Bay is quite popular with visitors, and offers fine sand beaches and plenty of sporting opportunities. Coffee Bay is a small top holiday resort off the shores of the Wild Coast where water sporting and beach relaxations are the in-thing. South of coffee Bay, a large offshore rock
interrupts the landscape. Named ‘Hole in the Wall’, the famous rock has eroded at the centre, and offers excellent rock climbing and hiking.

Port St. Johns is the largest and most popular spot al ong the Wild Coast. Set at the mouth of Umzimvubu River, the beautiful lagoon town, buried in luxuriant sub-tropical vegetation is the ideal place to relax. Water sporting is also perfect. Dwesa and Hluleka Nature Reserves offer a
lot more, in addition to beach. This is a nature area with game viewing and birding, and sound evergreen coastal forests. There is a hiking trail running along the entire coast, which may take you up to 6 days. The best section is between Coffee Bay and Port St. Johns.

North of Port St. Johns lies Umtata- the former capital of Transkei. The place is quite hilly and is a vast grazing land- not quite an interesting place for tourists. North and further on is a great and beautiful mountainous region. The region has South Africa’s only skiing resort
and winter sports centre. The scenery is breathtaking and features hills and mountains, waterfalls, caves with Bushman rock painting, rivers and waterways and the possible activities are unlimited. Maclear offers skiing in winter and the best trout fishing in summer, while Rhodes is the
winter sports centre.

Barkly East, the mid point between Elliot and Rhodes is a key resort area and an important wool industry centre. The town serves well those versatile souls who seek a combination of activities; it offers skiing, trout fishing, partridge and fowl hunting, horse riding, golfing, birding and mountain biking. Visits to the rock art caves, township and Barkly East museum also make good excursions.

Further north, Aliwal North is an agricultural plateau on the banks of the Orange River. The northern town is famed for its hot springs. Inevitably the town has a health spa, where both locals and foreigners flock in search of nature’s cures. There also are museums, a nature reserve, an art galley and a memorial park.

The entire northern region of the Eastern Cape is perfect for mountaineering. There is no better place to wind this experience than at Ben Macdhui, a peak of the Drakensberg ranges that flow over from KwaZulu Natal Province at its border with the capes and Lesotho. Ben Macdhui is the cape’s highest point at 3001 m.

To discover the Eastern Cape, rent a car at Port Elizabeth or one of the cities in the region. You may take an escorted South Africa tour or safari that covers this part of the country.

Owing to its great topographical differences, the Eastern Cape’s climate varies considerably. The western Karoo heartlands are dry with limited rainfall, and experience cold and frosty winters and relatively hot summers. Tsitsikamma, just below the Karoo enjoys more precipitation
with temperate weather conditions. The east sub-tropics are relatively warm and humid, receiving summer rains. The interiors are cool with snowy winters in the mountains, at times dropping well below freezing point.

Overall, the region experiences four seasons. Hot and sunny summers, come with afternoon showers and thunderstorms from mid October to mid February when autumn sets in. Autumn has the best weather with very little precipitation. The month of May comes with the winter, when the days are dry and crisp and the nights are cold. Spring is the most beautiful time to tour the region and lasts from August to mid October.
Gaming is at its best in late spring.

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