Where ever you are, you've most probably heard about the Garden Route in the Western Cape ... and rightly so, for this is one of the most magnificent, awe-inspiring stretches of land in South Africa, if not the world.

The Garden Route offers you majestic mountains, breathtaking views, a natural garden of rich, colourful vistas, with valleys and lakes, rivers and forests, a paradise for bird-lovers and nature lovers, an eco-destination like few others in the world, with miles upon miles of beautiful, white sandy beaches and a zillion things to do and explore.

It is situated about 280km from Cape Town and is one of South Africa's richest botanical treasures, where you can lose yourself in nature amid the grandeur of giant Yellowwood or Milkwood trees in one of the indigenous forests.

Garden Route Accommodation

Garden Route Accommodation options are many and varied. It has a well-developed tourist infrastructure with magnificent towns dotted all along the coast - all offering a variety of accommodation options.

It also offers game viewing at Oudtshoorn, Albertinia near Mossel Bay and at Plettenberg Bay near Tsitsikamma.

Fynbos

The Garden Route forms part of the Cape Floral Heritage Site

Between July and December each year, the scenic and tranquil areas of the region form a spectacular backdrop for a multitude of blooms, such as the Proteas, Ericas, Vygies, Bluebells, Pin-Cushions, Aloes, Tubers and various other species of Fynbos, as it is a matter of record that the floral kingdom of this area is the most varied in the world.

Eco-Destination & Holiday Mecca

The Garden Route is renowned for vast stretches of beach, enclosed by mountains, lakes, valleys, nature reserves and the sea - an eco-destination par excellence catering for the nature lover.

And it is a holidaymaker's mecca. If you do not feel like swimming at one of the wonderful beaches, or surfing, or fishing, you can always go for air-flips and trips to experience a bird's-eye view of the majestic surroundings, with charters available in George, Knysna and Mossel Bay.

Or go abseiling in Sedgefield or Riversdale, or boating, canoeing and yachting around Great Brak River, Sedgefield, Plettenberg Bay, Wilderness, Witsand or Keurbooms River.

If the adrenalin is still not surging, consider bridge and bungi-jumping, or black water rafting or tubing.