From Gauteng
A visit to Bela-Bela (Warm Baths) provides a unique and invigorating family holiday in the heart of the unspoilt Waterberg. The town is only just over an hour’s drive from Gauteng and lies on the Springbok Flats on the highway to the North.
About an hour and a half from Johannesburg on the R 513 lies the town of Cullinan. A small village trapped in time, Cullinan has the distinction of being the location of the discovery of the world’s largest diamond.
Two and a half hours drive from Johannesburg, you will find the village of Dullstroom. A charming little hamlet situated in the heart of the Highlands Meander, a beautiful part of Mpumalanga, noted for it's clear streams, lakes and breathtaking scenery.
If you love being active in the great outdoors Hartbeespoort is the destination for you. Already one of the best inland water sports destinations in the country, there are mountain thrills, sky adventures and once-in-a-lifetime wildlife encounters to take you to a new adrenalin high.
The rather small (blink and you’ll miss it) village of Magaliesburg can be reached by taking a rather picturesque and relaxing hour or so drive westward fom Jo’burg or Pretoria. Within a small stretch of kilometres, a large assortment of activities exists of the kind to entertain any nature of people. Whatever your thing is, if you need a weekend getaway, this area has it.
Tucked away, deep in the Drakensburg, lies the road to a fantasy land. Not quite as enchanting as climbing through the cupboard or jumping down a rabbit hole, a short turn off Nottingham road in the Kwa Zulu-Natal Midlands starts the gentle climb to Cleopatra’s Mountain.
Pilanesberg Game Reserve in the North West Province, is two hours drive from Johannesburg and has the added benefit of being in a malaria free area. Families are catered for at Kwa Maritane, located in the rich and diverse game reserve and not far from the bright lights of Sun City.
Who would have though that only 30 minutes from Johannesburg’s relentless streets lies the origins of mans story on earth- four million years of history. The Cradle of Humankind is a 47 000 hectare area, forty kilometres west of the city, among nondescript dusty koppies, a few shrubs and trees.
Just two hours drive from Johannesburg, spot the 'Big Five' from your safari vehicle or go game-tracking on foot. This is untamed Africa at its finest - the land of wide-open bushveld, big skies and the ever-present thorn tree.
From Cape Town
Barrydale, which lies between Montagu and Ladismith, may appear to be a sleepy place but on closer inspection you will find there is much to make you stop and stay.
Just off the Cape’s beaten track is a largely untouched outpost – Betty’s Bay. Home to a handful of lucky locals and visited by a few travellers in the know, this seaside rustic hamlet is a tranquil weekend getaway or laid-back beach holiday, depending on the time of year.
Bonnievale is a beautiful little town, know for its cheese and wine farms, situated on the banks of the Breede River
If you want to get away from it all, but don’t have time to travel too far, Clanwilliam is your town. At just 212km from Cape Town, the drive takes you through some of the Western Cape’s most scenic countryside.
Approximately an hour’s drive from Langebaan and two from Cape Town, Elands Bay is a surfing hotspot that attracts many a beach bum. Beaches are deserted, wild, unblemished. Seas are lively. And the skyline stretches on forever....
The road through the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth) Valley, between Caledon and Hermanus, is a rollercoaster of gravel and tarmac, dropping in giant steps surrounded by mountains, rows of vineyards, pine and eucalyptus, ruins and a church before eventually reaching the coast.
McGregor is at the end of a road going nowhere and is the home to artists, potters, garagistes, good food, wine and olives. This 19th century village is full of cottages with broekie lace in colourful gardens and separated by irrigation channels.
One of Cape Town’s oldest and most established towns, Paarl - or die Pêrel as it’s known by locals - is located roughly an hour from the Mother City’s CBD. With its culture-rich Afrikaans-heritage and knock-out natural beauty, it’s a welcome getaway for locals and foreigners alike.
Paternoster is a typical, small West Coast fishing village with old white washed fishermen’s cottages. It has a long white beach stretching for kilometres with huge boulders jutting out of the bay, creating a magnificent view.
Just two hours drive from Cape Town it’s one of the province’s more illustrious wine routes and is headlined by a calendar of festivals.
Shelley Point is located on a private peninsula and fringed by three bays – Stompneus, Shelley and Britannia - with beaches, world-class surf and clear water in one of the calmest bays on the West Coast.
With its laid-back atmosphere, diverse selection of locally produced wine, port, olives, fruit and meat, the Riebeek Valley is a wonderful destination at any time of year.
Barely and hour and a half’s drive from Cape Town is the historical country town of Tulbagh. Located among a sea of canola and lush green fields, the town overflows with 1800’s history, peacocks and even a chocalatier.