Fall in LOVE with the Eastern Cape as you enjoy the best of both safari and beach experiences on your dream holiday!
The Eastern Cape Province, located on the southeast coast of South Africa and towards the end of the Garden Route, is immensely diverse, offering incredible holiday activities and natural spaces for visitors to explore, from ancient indigenous forests and wide open valleys to rocky sea cliffs and the 800km (497 miles) coastline stretching from the Tsitsikamma to the subtropical Wild Coast.
Wildlife Safari in the Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape offers unique safari lodges located either on luxurious private game reserves or within the national parks stretching from the Garden Route into the nine tourism regions of the Eastern Cape. As a malaria-free zone, and with world-famous attractions and activities the Eastern Cape offers exactly what you are looking for when it comes to a Safari Experience. Choose from award-winning private reserves to the national parks including world-famous Addo Elephant National Park.
Big 7 Safari
The Addo Elephant National Park is the only wildlife park in the world that is home to the Big 7. This means that the park is home to the land-based Big 5 (elephant, rhino, lion, leopard and buffalo) and the marine animals the great white shark and the southern right whales. The Addo Elephant National Park is home to over 600 elephants making it the most concentrated elephant reserve in Africa.Â
TRAVEL TIP: Travellers should consider participating in a morning marine safari experience out of the city of Gqeberha (formerly known as Port Elizabeth) leaving plenty of time to check into the Addo Elephant National Park or one of the privately-owned Big 5 reserves in the afternoon to complete having a Big 7 experience. Be sure to use a licensed tour operator to make the most of your marine safari. Gqeberha is the bottlenose dolphin capital of the world and is also home to seals, endangered African penguins and orcas.
Luxury Safari Experience
Safari in style on a deluxe retreat at the Eastern Cape’s wide range of luxurious privately-owned safari lodges such as Gorah Elephant Camp, Riverbend Lodge, Shamwari Private Game Reserve, Pumba Private Game Reserve and many more. These luxury safari lodges exude comfort, charm, and private intimacy. The reserves cover diverse ecosystems allowing you to appreciate different landscapes. Guests can enjoy personal service where all their needs will be taken care of, fine dining, relaxing spa treatments and incredible wildlife experiences that will leave guests humbled.
The Family Safari
With the Eastern Cape being malaria-free it is an unrivalled family safari destination. Families can combine safari experiences with a variety of activities including beach holiday options, adventure experiences and cultural activities. Family-friendly Eastern Cape lodges offer specially designed children safari packages where a ranger will take care of the children whilst the parents can enjoy the longer safari drives. Here are a few of the privately owned game reserves for your consideration:
There is no safari fatigue in the Eastern Cape as many of the reserves offer a variety of activities!
- Safari game drives (morning, afternoon & night)
- Guided walks & hikes
- Mountain biking
- Horseback safari
- Bird watching
- River cruises
- Cheetah tracking
- Giraffe safari
- Vet safaris
Beaches and coastline in the Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape in South Africa boasts some of the world’s best beaches and 800km (497 miles) of unspoilt picturesque coastlines where blue oceans tumble onto quiet beaches. Our beaches are naturally more wild and untouched when compared to the many commercial beaches in South Africa. Visit these pristine beaches and experience something different. The Eastern Cape coastline is a mecca to all water sports enthusiasts and has a thriving surfing culture.
Surf Culture
The world famous Jefferys Bay beach offers a long stretch of pristine beaches with fantastic waves and swells. The waves that hit these shores are so incredible that this town hosts an annual Pro Surf competition and has done so for many years. Popular spots include Kitchen Windows, Magna Tubes, Boneyards, Supertubes and Tubes. Neighbouring Jeffreys Bay is Cape St Francis that also boasts incredible beaches, a working lighthouse experience and surf spots such as the well-known Bruce’s Beauties, featured in the 1966 documentary film Endless Summer.
What is the best time to see the Sardine Run?
The sardine run is a totally wild, unpredictable event but as a general rule the action moves from up from the south so plan your viewing point based on your travel dates:
- April-May: look to Gqeberha and East London.
- May to July: look at Coffee Bay, Port St Johns and Mboyti.
Sardine Run
The sardine run is a seasonal movement of fish and predators along the Eastern Cape coastline to the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal. The unique migration of millions of sardines attracts an array of marine predators and creates spectacular marine game viewing. Watch dolphins whipping the ocean surface into whitecaps, thousands of birds diving, and whales and sharks lunge feeding through shoals of scattering fish. In these moments time becomes meaningless, as you observe this amazing play of life and death unfolding.
Witness the greatest shoal on earth!
Coastal City Beaches
South Africa’s friendly city of Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) offers magnificent beaches with a perfect combination of warmer waters, calm seas and fair breezes. These beaches offer safe and sheltered swimming, body surfing, sun tanning, boardsailing, excellent waves, and surfing opportunities as well as fantastic inter-tidal sea life. Gqeberha is known as the Bottlenose dolphin Capital of the World, and they were also recently award Whale Heritage Status.
On the wilder side, visit Maitlands, Seaview and Sardinia Bay. These beaches are virtually untouched. Catch a glimpse of the southern right whales and their calves, regularly spotted from the high dunes at Maitlands and Seaview, usually between May and November. Bottlenose dolphins are often seen close to shore and if you’re lucky you might get to swim with these beautiful creatures.Â
East London has a thriving beach culture boasting magnificent sand dunes, rocky outcrops, and ocean views. Nahoon Beach and Gonubie Beach are popular family destinations and well-known as surf spots that boast awesome waves.
Blue Flag Beaches
Blue Flag status is an internationally recognised standard for beaches and marinas, earned only when stringent environmental, educational, safety, and accessibility criteria are met and sustained. The Eastern Cape has 9 pristine, golden sandy Blue Flag beaches:
- Hobie Beach, Gqeberha
- Humewood Beach, Gqeberha
- Kings Beach, Gqeberha
- Dolphin Beach, Jeffreys Bay
- Kariega Beach, Kenton on Sea
- Kelly’s Beach, Port Alfred
- Hamburg Beach, Sunshine Coast
- Cape St Francis Marina
- Royal Alfred Marina
Fall in LOVE with the Eastern Cape
#ECYours2Explore
