August 31

Explore South Africa

August 31, 2011

South Africa. It’s the Rainbow Nation. The land of everything. Where first world meets third. Where desert meets wetland, mountain meets beach and where the Big 5 meets 5 Star Luxury. It has a rich and fascinating history and an exciting present and future. Come to South Africa and you’ll not just find what you’re looking for from a holiday, but more – much more.

Watch our latest video to whet your appetite:

10 Did You Knows about South Africa

  • South Africa is twice the size of France, five times the size of Japan and three times the size of Texas, and is the 25th-largest country in the world!
  • So diverse is it that it has deserts, mountains, escarpments, plateaus, grasslands, bush, wetlands and subtropical forests.
  • South Africa has the oldest meteor scar in the world, just across the Vaal River near Parys, called the Vredefort Dome. The meteor plummeted to Earth nearly two billion years ago.
  • Mafadi in the Drakensberg at 3,450 m is the country’s highest peak.
  • South Africa has the oldest wine industry outside of Europe and the Mediterranean and also the longest wine route in the world – the R62 wine route. Disney World even serves exclusively South African wine at its 73-acre Animal Kingdom Lodge in the United States.
  • Cape Town‘s famous Table Mountain was first floodlit in 1947 to mark the Royal Visit by Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.
  • The Tugela Falls is the second highest waterfall in the world, where the water tumbles down 850 metres.
  • South Africa has many famous people: Dr. Christian Barnard (a surgeon who completed the world’s first heart transplant in 1967), Miriam Makeba (singer), Nelson Mandela (former president, activist), Nadine Gordimer (writer), Athol Fugard (writer), Zola Budd (sportswoman), Charlize Theron (actress), Arnold Vosloo (actor), Alan Paton (author), Johnny Clegg (musician) and many more!
  • South Africa is the only country in the world to voluntarily abandon its nuclear weapons programme.
  • Vilakazi Street in Soweto is the only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace prize winners – Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Now you know…

Cape Town's V&A Waterfront is a major attraction

Take a leisurely drive along the coastline in Cape Town

Where to go

South Africa’s attractions are many and varied. We recommend speaking with a travel consultant to help you decide what to see and do during your holiday. But the country can basically be broken up into these main destinations:

  • Cape Town: beaches, restaurants, nature reserves, museums, galleries and events
  • Cape Winelands: wine farms, nature reserves, restaurants , galleries and events
  • Kruger National Park: Big 5 game viewing, luxury safari lodges, birdlife and unspoilt wilderness
  • Garden Route: beaches, whale watching, Route 62, Karoo, forests, nature reserves, hiking trails, birdwatching, malaria-free Big 5 safaris
  • Sun City, Madikwe Game Reserve and Pilanesburg Game Reserve: family fun, golf, casinos, waterslides and malaria-free Big 5 safaris
  • Kwazulu Natal: sub-tropical beaches, nature reserves, Big 5 game reserves, Drakensberg Mountains, battlefields and Zululand history
  • Johannesburg : restaurants, galleries, museums, shopping, Cradle of Humankind, Soweto and the Apartheid Museum
  • West Coast: spring flowers, unspoilt Atlantic Coast, Northern Cape Kalahari and Nama-Karoo

Since we at Rhino Africa are based here in South Africa, we know it well and can answer any questions you might have – whether about accommodation, tours or activities. Click here to speak to one of our travel experts! For more facts and info about South Africa, visit our website.

Go on a game safari at Singita

What to do

Everything! Jump into the ocean and swim alongside dolphins, go shark cage diving, spot the Big 5 from a safari vehicle, bungee jump off the world’s highest bungee bridge, track rhino, stroke cheetahs, play golf on luxury courses, experience township life, drink wine and sun tan on white sandy beaches and much more… To make it simpler and let you combine several activities into one holiday, we’ve created some great South African tour itineraries but we specialise in tailor-made itineraries and will happily create your itinerary from scratch for you. Enquire now.

Go fishing in spectacular rivers


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About the author 

Tamlin Wightman

Tamlin has been exploring, writing about and photographing Africa ever since her first job as a photojournalist for Getaway Magazine. She's lived on an island, eaten with lions, sailed catamarans in the Indian Ocean, tracked wild dogs with Kinglsey Holgate, and white water rafted down the Zambezi and has kept just about every airplane ticket that has crossed her hands.

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