Sunshine Coast

The Sunshine Coast stretches from Cape St. Francis in the west via Port Elizabeth to East London in the east. Along the coast, small vacation resorts line up next to the two major cities. The hinterland has a few insider tips up its sleeve. Hogsback in the Amatola Mountains is the ideal place for hiking and relaxing. Grahamstown is a pretty town with many old buildings from the Victorian and Georgian era. Depending on your interests, an overnight stay on the Sunshine Coast is usually sufficient.

On the coast

St. Francis Bay is a quiet and pretty little coastal town with many Cape Dutch-style buildings. The striking lighthouse and the small Mediterranean-style marina are popular photo motifs. The surfer's paradise of Jeffreys Bay is much busier. The waves, which are up to three meters high and hundreds of meters long, attract water sports enthusiasts from all over the world. South Africa's fourth largest city, Port Elizabeth, offers lively city beaches, many shopping opportunities and some interesting golf courses. Kenton-On-Sea is one of the most beautiful seaside resorts on this stretch of coast with endless beaches and high sand dunes between the mouths of the Kariega and Boesmans rivers. East London at the mouth of the mighty Buffalo River is home to South Africa's oldest aquarium with many species of fish, penguins and seals.

In the hinterland

Those who prefer to drive through the hinterland rather than along the coast can discover Grahamstown, a pretty town with many old buildings from the Victorian and Georgian era. Several interesting museums can be visited here. The Amatola Mountains are still an absolute insider tip and the small village of Hogsback is a real curiosity. The whole area with its impressive mountain ranges, rugged escarpments, dense forests and countless waterfalls is more reminiscent of Middle Earth than South Africa. Accordingly, one or two esotericists have settled here to help stressed-out city dwellers reconnect with nature.