31 Best Sights in The Eastern Cape, South Africa

Tucked away in the Eastern Cape, near the historic university "city" of Makhanda (formerly known as Grahamstown, and now increasingly run down), Kwandwe is a conservation triumph as more than 55,000 acres of various vegetation types and scenic diversity, including rocky outcrops, great plains, thorn thickets, forests, desert scrub, and the Great Fish River were just ravaged farmland and goat-ridden semidesert two decades ago. Today it's home to more than 7,000 mammals, including the Big Five and the elusive black rhino, and it's likely you'll see fauna you don't always see elsewhere, such as black wildebeest, bat-eared foxes, and the endangered blue crane (Kwandwe means "place of the blue crane" in isiXhosa). If you spend more than a couple of nights here, you'll likely see a huge and impressive array of animals, including leopards, lions, and herds of elephants marching across the terrain. If you come in winter, you'll see one of nature's finest floral displays, when thousands of scarlet, orange, and fiery-red aloes are in bloom, attended by colorful sunbirds. The reserve also has a strong focus on community development, as evinced by the Community Centre and village within the reserve, both of which are worth a visit.

Surrounded by the melancholic beauty of the Great Karoo with its scattered koppies and ridges of flat-topped mountains, Samara is a 67,000-acre private game reserve tucked beneath the Sneeuberg mountain range in the fabled plains of Camdeboo National Park some 45 minutes from the historic town of Graaff-Reinet. Owners Sarah and Mark Tompkins opened the reserve in 2005 with a promise to return former farmland to its natural state—the malaria-free reserve encompasses 11 former farms and is home to a variety of reintroduced species, including cheetah, lion, Cape mountain zebra, white rhino and desert-adapted black rhino, giraffe, black wildebeest, and a variety of antelope; there are also meerkats and aardvarks. By day, it’s a build-your-own-adventure of game drives, picnics atop the lofty heights of Mount Kondoa, and exploring the reserve’s topographical diversity at a civilized pace. Due to the lower density of predators and the sparseness of vegetation, rangers stop the game-viewers often so that guests can experience some of their safari on foot. One of its signature experiences is the opportunity to track a telemetry-collared rehabilitated cheetah and her family, and then get within whispering distance of them. The relatively low density of dangerous game also means this reserve is well-suited to families with children.

This is what Nieu Bethesda is best known for, and why tourists began traveling to this small, once-forgotten hamlet in the first place. Its creator, Helen Martins, was the subject of the Athol Fugard play, The Road to Mecca, which was made into a film starring Kathy Bates. The story of Helen Martins, who was born in 1897 and died in 1976, has been extensively elaborated upon, and the truth may never be known. Whether she was mad with grief, a visionary, or a mystic genius, the reclusive Martins externalized her loneliness by spending the last 30 years of her life (she eventually committed suicide) transforming her home into a jewel-box with bits of mirror and colorful crushed glass all designed to beautifully reflect the candlelight. Her wondrous vision then spread into her backyard, where she and her assistant Koos Malgas spent over a decade creating the country's most famous sculpture garden, a mystical world cluttered with concrete sirens (which everyone mistakenly calls mermaids), sphinxes, serpents, glittering peacocks, camels, owls, and wise men. The figures and scenes find their inspiration in the Bible, in William Blake, in the poetry of Omar Khayyam, and also in the visions and personal obsessions of Martins herself.  Her house and yard are now a gallery and museum at the heart of the village and worthy of an hour or two of your time. 

This company lets you get up close and personal with a small group of trained African elephants. You get to do a short elephant ride and then go for a scenic walk through the bush with them. You can touch them, feed them, and watch them as they bathe themselves with sand, water, or both (i.e., mud). The whole experience lasts about two to three hours and includes a meal either before or after the safari. You can also arrange for a fly-in day-trip from Port Elizabeth.

Smack in the middle of a citrus-growing and horse-breeding area, Addo Elephant National Park is home to more than 600 elephants, not to mention plenty of buffalo (around 400 of them), black rhino, leopards, spotted hyena, hundreds of kudu and other antelopes, and lions. At present the park has just under 445,000 acres, including two islands, St Croix and Bird, which can be visited as part of tours out of Gqeberha. The most accessible parts of the park are the original, main section and the Colchester, Kabouga, Woody Cape, and Zuurberg sections.

The original section of Addo still holds most of the game and is served by Addo Main Camp. The Colchester section, in the south, which has one SANParks camp, is contiguous with the main area. The scenic Nyathi section is separated from the main section by a road and railway line. Just north of Nyathi is the mountainous Zuurberg section, which doesn't have a large variety of game but is particularly scenic, with fabulous hiking trails and horse trails, and it's where you might glimpse Cape mountain zebra, mountain reedbuck, blue duiker, red rock rabbits, and—if you are extremely fortunate—aardwolf. There are also hippos in the Sundays River, at the base of the Zuurberg range.

You can explore the park in your own vehicle, in which case you need to heed the road signs that claim "dung beetles have right of way." Addo is home to the almost-endemic and extremely rare flightless dung beetle, which can often be seen rolling its unusual incubator across the roads. Watch out for them (they're only about 2 inches long), and watch them: they're fascinating. Instead of driving you could take a night or day game drive with a park ranger in an open vehicle from the main camp. A more adventurous option is to ride a horse among the elephants. Warning: no citrus fruit may be brought into the park, as elephants find it irresistible and can smell it for miles.

Home to the Valley of Desolation, and some 43 different mammal species, this game-viewing area covers 19,000 hectares (46,950 acres). You may see the endangered Cape mountain zebra, or catch a glimpse quizzical bat-eared foxes, see klipspringers bounding over rocks, and can spend time in the Kwelimanzi hide if you're especially interested in birds. There are a few picnic areas in the park as well as some hiking trails that vary in length and difficulty. 

The entire protected area can be explored by car, on foot (the Crag Lizard walking trail is just under a mile and starts at the Valley of Desolation parking lot), or even by mountain bike (cyclists from Graaff-Reinet can be seen puffing up the reserve's inclines most mornings). Summers are very hot (plan your visit in the early morning or late afternoon) and winters can be very cold. 

This is Grahamstown's most prominent landmark, as much by virtue of its steeple—the highest in South Africa at 176 feet—as the strict geometry of the town. High Street runs in a straight line from the cathedral doors through the Drostdy Arch to the doors of the administration buildings of Rhodes University. The cathedral's eight bells, which you can hear ringing out on Sundays, were the first and still are the heaviest in Africa. Though construction on the cathedral started in 1824, it wasn't completed until 1952.

When Grahamstown was a garrison town, the Drostdy Arch, erected in 1841, was the original entrance to the military parade ground. Now it is the gateway through which thousands of Rhodes students pass when leaving campus for town. There is a small crafts market "under the Arch" on weekdays 9–5 and Saturday 9–1.

There's definitely something fishy going on at the East London Museum. In addition to a whole section on the discovery of the coelacanth, the museum has a large display of preserved fish, including an enormous manta ray. For a different kind of fishy, check out what is claimed to be the world's only surviving dodo egg. Probably the most worthwhile exhibit, though, is the extensive beadwork collection; it's culturally interesting and just plain beautiful.

Gonubie Beach is at the mouth of the Gonubie River, about half an hour northeast of the city. The riverbank is covered in dense forest, with giant strelitzias (wild banana trees) growing right to the water's edge. A lovely white sandy beach, tidal pools, and a 500-yard-long wooden walkway make this a fantastically user-friendly beach. It's also a good place to watch whales and dolphins, and compared to some of the more central beaches it's pretty quiet. There are picnic tables, fire pits, and a playground. Gonubie is ultimately not just a beach destination, but quite likely the closest to downtown East London you should consider staying. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguard; parking (free); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

The 137-meter (450-feet) long Shark Rock Pier is a Gqeberha landmark and definitely worth traversing for the view back towards Summerstrand it affords. It also marks one end of Hobie Beach, where sailing catamarans and jet skis launch, and where some of the city's best-loved annual sporting events and festivals are held. The section of beach nearest the pier is great for swimming and sunbathing, and there are also rock pools to explore; it can get very busy on a hot summer's day. With a view of the pier, Blue Waters Café serves very good food and is a great spot at sunset; you will doubtless also witness countless joggers making use of the long promenade strip that stretch along the seafront. There are plenty of restaurants along the other side of the promenade, including Ginger (offering what's considered the city's most upmarket dining) at the Beach Hotel; next door, the Boardwalk Casino and Entertainment World is a major draw for families, with places to eat, drink, shop, play, and even spend the night. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking; showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; sunbathing; walking.

What makes Coffee Bay stand out from all the other lovely destinations is its proximity—only 9 km (5½ miles)—to the spectacular Hole-in-the-Wall, a natural sea arch through a solid rock island. You can go here on a rather adventurous road from Coffee Bay, and it's included on almost any tour of the Wild Coast. The Xhosa name, Esikaleni, means "place of the water people," and it is believed to be a gateway to the world of the ancestors. If you try swimming through it in rough seas, it certainly will be, but some intrepid souls have made it on calm (very calm) days.

Humewood Beach runs from King's Beach to Shark Rock Pier. This beach has fine white sand and is a great place for families, with shaded areas supplied by an overhead promenade. A convenient parking lot is behind the beach, and there are excellent facilities, including picnic tables, plus lifeguards on duty during peak times. Some grassy areas lead into Happy Valley, but it's not recommended that you walk into the valley, as it's often completely deserted and you may be in danger of being mugged. The beach slipway has a little reef, and the water beside it is great for snorkeling. Humewood Beach is close to the bustling Boardwalk Hotel and all its facilities (including a casino and mall) and the Beach Hotel, where Ginger Restaurant is located. Amenities: lifeguards; parking (free); showers; toilets. Best for: snorkeling; swimming.

A teaching and research center for indigenous music, the library has a collection of more than 200 traditional African musical instruments, including djembes (drums), mbiras (thumb pianos), and marimbas (xylophones).

Within the bay and starting closest to the city center and harbor (which is best avoided), the first beach you come to is King's Beach, so named because King George VI slept in the Royal Train here during a visit to the city before World War II. You may want to avoid the far end of King's Beach, as it can get pretty crowded. The beach is one of three Blue Flag beaches in Gqeberha (along with Hobie Beach and Humewood Beach), meaning that it has met international standards of cleanliness, safety, and facilities. It's another very family-friendly beach, too. The Macarthurs Baths pool complex is along the promenade. The Garden Court King's Beach Hotel offers rooms with views across King's Beach. Amenities: lifeguard; parking (free); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.

The section of beach near McArthur Baths is great for swimming and very popular. If you'd rather swim in flat water, head for the bath complex. Open from September through April, for a small fee you can use a range of pools, two of which are heated to a few degrees above sea temperature. There's no natural grass here, however, so you will need to rent a lounge chair to be comfortable. Amenities: lifeguard; showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

Nahoon Beach, at the mouth of the Nahoon River, is about a 10-minute drive from the city. There's some fantastic surf—but only for people who know what they're doing. It's also just a beautiful beach for sunbathing, watching surfers, and evening walks, and the lagoon is good for swimming and snorkeling. The walk from the parking lot to the beach takes you through a beautiful forest, which helps make the beach feel secluded despite its proximity to the city. There are picnic tables, fire pits, and a playground, making a perfect spot for a braai. Nearby, The Beach Break cafe sells wonderful coffee and breakfasts and all kinds of scrumptious wraps, burgers, toasted sandwiches (or sarnies, as they call them here), and excellent cakes. It's a very pleasant spot pre- or post-beach. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (free); toilets. Best for: sunsets; surfing; walking.

The 10-day National Arts Festival, which takes place in late June and/or early July and is purported to be second in size only to the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland, is the country's premier cultural event.

The National English Literary Museum houses a comprehensive collection of books, articles, and press clippings on South African writers in the English language, including some unpublished works. There is also a bookshop.

The Nelson Mandela Museum stands as evidence of the love and respect that this awesome statesman inspired in people all over the world, from rural schoolchildren to royalty. The many gifts Mandela received through his life say more about the givers than the receiver, and the exhibitions display the political and personal journey of this beloved politician. In addition to the recently renovated building in Mthatha, there are three other sites. Qunu, the area where Mandela spent part of his childhood, was also the site of his family residence in the years prior to his death; the house can be seen from the N2, 32 km (20 miles) south of Mthatha, as can his grave on the hill inside the property behind the house. On another hill on the opposite side of the road is the Nelson Mandela Youth and Heritage Centre, a beautifully designed building that combines natural stone and unfinished wattle branches to create an interesting pattern of light and shade that complements the black-and-white photographs documenting Mandela's early life and his period of activism and incarceration. There's also a reconstruction of his prison cell on Robben Island. Huge glass windows overlook the fields where Madiba (an affectionate sobriquet for Mandela) herded cattle as a boy, and you can also take a short walk to a smooth rock face that he and his young friends used to use as a slide, and maybe even have a go at it yourself. Mvezo was the birthplace of Mandela. Although the foundations of the house in which Mandela was born are visible and there is a small open-air museum, Mvezo is more a place of pilgrimage than a museum (since there isn't very much to see here). It's best to visit Mvezo as part of a tour—both because it's hard to find and because you'll get much more out of it with a knowledgeable guide—which you can arrange through the museum, or with Imonti Tours. But you can get directions from the museum in Mthatha if you want to go on your own. You'll need to travel down a 19-km (12-mile) gravel road, but a 4x4 is not required. You can take a similar gravel road north of the N2 to Mqhekezweni, which is where Mandela went to live with his cousin under the guardianship of Jongintaba Dalindyebo, regent of the Tembu people, and where he began his education. The rondavel he and his cousin shared remains exactly as it would have been then, as does the great tree where Mandela used to sneak up and secretly listen to the elders during their meetings.

It's possible to visit the Nelson Mandela Museum on Saturday and Sunday afternoon if you make an arrangement in advance.

This astonishing cactus and succulent specialty nursery is worth getting lost in for a while, as its expansive garden wends and winds like a fantastical maze among thousands upon thousands of spiky plants and quirky sculptures and animal skulls. Johan Bouwer, a retired lawyer with eccentric tendencies and very strong, colorful opinions on just about everything (including American politics—you've been warned), started his cactus collection in about 1960. The garden, which is believed to house over 2 million plants and around 5,500 different species (some of them extremely rare) is the result of a relentless obsession and unfettered passion. 

An intriguing study of Victorian-era cutting-edge science, the building was constructed by a watchmaker and amateur astronomer H. C. Gulpin, who built a cupola above his shop to house his instruments. The museum contains a two-story pendulum and the only genuine Victorian camera obscura in the Southern Hemisphere. You can stand in the tower and watch what's happening in the town below—pretty useful if you've lost your companions.

Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve is set on 2,471 verdant and rolling acres of land that hug 7 km (4 miles) of private beach and pristine Indian Ocean. Though this isn't Big Five country, the reserve is home to white rhino, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, blue wildebeest, and a variety of antelope. The reserve's close proximity to both Port Elizabeth and East London make this a great game-viewing option for those who have only a few hours. The pristine, untouched beach is guaranteed to be unlike anything you've experienced in the States. There are no lifeguards or signs to restrict you from walking on the dunes, which are vertical not horizontal. Be sure to wear shoes, as the sand is peppered with coral. Swimming is prohibited, but this is a great place for rock and surf fishing.

Adjacent to the suburb of Summerstrand, Pollock Beach is one of the better swimming beaches, with a lovely small natural tidal pool. It also offers great surfing. (Generally the surfing in Gqeberha isn't too challenging, unlike at Jeffreys Bay, just over an hour's drive to the west, which has some pretty exciting waves.) The far end of Pollock Beach is best avoided, as it can get crowded with somewhat boisterous, picnicking, partying crowds. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguard; parking (free); toilets. Best for: partiers; surfing.

Consisting of 67 public artworks by the Eastern Cape's local artists, the route symbolizes the 67 years that the late Nelson Mandela dedicated to the South African fight for freedom. The route runs from the city center to Donkin Reserve and the old lighthouse above that overlook the harbor and the ocean beyond. Here there's a large pyramid built by the city's former governor Rufane Shaw Donkin in honor of his deceased wife, Elizabeth, for whom the city—originally called Port Elizabeth—was named. Stretching from the pyramid toward a towering South African flag is a long and colorful mosaic that references various important aspects of the historic and cultural legacy of the city and the Eastern Cape. Beneath the huge flag is a life-size metal cutout of Mandela (he was taller than you might think) with his fist raised in triumph, and snaking down the steps behind him is a line of South Africans (also life-size) of all ages, colors, and creeds lining up to vote in the 1994 elections. Sixty-seven colored steps lead from this point back to the city below, and along the way you'll find a number of inspiring quotes from Mandela on sheets of metal made to look like pages ripped from a book. Combined with all the other colorful wall paintings, sculptures, and texts, the route has both revitalized and contextualized some of the previously more run-down areas of central Gqeberha, and tells important stories about where South Africa came from and where it is headed.

For a truly fantastic Gqeberha beach experience, very little can beat Sardinia Bay Beach, outside the bay and about a 20-minute drive from the main beaches. Here, miles and miles of deserted, snow-white sand are great for long walks. It's best to come on weekends, however, as during the week it can be isolated and there have been a few incidents of muggings. On weekends there are plenty of people, and you will be perfectly safe. It's also a popular beach for scuba-diving and this part of the coast has been declared a marine reserve, so no fishing is allowed. There are also fire pits so come prepared for a braai. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguard; parking (free); toilets. Best for: snorkeling; swimming; walking.

South End was once the most vibrant part of Gqeberha, until it was flattened by the apartheid-era government to "tidy up" the city and put everything and everyone in their places. At the South End Museum a map, photographs, and paintings give you an idea of what the old South End was like in its heyday.

If you'd like to glimpse penguins up close, this dedicated seabird rehab facility at the Cape Recife Nature Reserve offers informative small-group tours, on the hour, from 9 am until 2 pm. Guests learn about the habits and behaviors of African penguins, and watch them waddle, hear them squawk, and—during certain hours—see them being fed. The tour also offers insight into the many threats facing these endangered birds. Be sure to schedule time to explore the nature reserve, a coastal conservancy with excellent bird-watching, and a lighthouse built in 1849.

The state-of-the-art heritage center, which opened in 2012, is in Ginsberg township in King William's Town (now officially known as Qonce), where Steve Biko grew up. It's actually about a 40-minute drive out of East London, but it's well worth a visit for anyone interested in South Africa's "struggle" history, as well as the development of its young democracy. There's a museum, an archive, a library resource center, a commemorative garden honoring human rights activists, performance and production spaces, training rooms, and a community media center. The center is also the focal point for a heritage trail that consists of various sites that pay tribute to Steve Biko, the South African activist and leading Black Consciousness Movement proponent who died in police custody in 1977 at the age of 31. Biko has often been held up as one of the greatest martyrs of the anti-apartheid movement. Imonti Tours offers a Buffalo City Heritage Tour which includes stops at the center, as well as historic sites in East London, Mdantsane, and Bisho.

Within Camdeboo National Park, these tall, slender dolerite towers stand some 150 meters (492 feet) tall, rising from the valley floor like russet-colored sentinels at attention, as they have for around 200 million years; in the background, the Sneeuberg mountain range is simply sublime. The scene is extraordinary, and it's no less mystifying any time of day, but try to time your visit for sunset as the rock towers glow crimson in the softening pink light of the Camdeboo dusk. There are a few picnic areas.