South Africa

Travel to South Africa for an Unforgettable Experience

Blyde River Canyon, Mpumalanga Province

For an exotic vacation, outdoor lovers could do a lot worse than travel to South Africa. With sunshine almost guaranteed whenever you plan your visit, beaches, forests, mountains, and wildlife, South Africa is the perfect nature lover's destination. Despite the huge expanse of country, your destination will be limited to the airports accessible by aircraft. It is possible to get further off the usual tourist track by taking smaller internal flights once you arrive in the country, but make sure you research your final destination fully before making the reservation as what is "out of the way" in your home country will probably be overflowing with amenities when compared with an "out of the way" location in South Africa!

The Penguins of Boulders Beach

For those who want to take advantage of the oceans which surround Africa, you can do everything from sailing, to surfing to shark diving. However, one of the main pulls for anyone wishing to travel to South Africa is the chance to wonder at the wildlife in its natural environment. Conservation is a big issue in South Africa and so it's no longer necessary to put yourself in danger by travelling out into the bush in order to observe elephants at play - of course there are always safety precautions to take, but being able to see the animals in one of the country's game reserves with qualified personnel makes the trip less hazardous. Another of South Africa's tourist gems are the diamond mines such as those at Kimberley where you aren't only able to see the mine, but also walk around its small restored city.

Travel to South Africa isn't for the faint hearted, but for those who want a little more from their holiday than two weeks on a beach; it combines a tapestry of urban life with a rich history stitched onto a background of natural wonder.

 Capital: Pretoria
Languages: IsiZulu, IsiXhosa, Afrikaans, Sepedi, English + others
Time: GMT +4 hrs
Currency: South African rand (ZAR)