29 Blue Flag Beaches in South Africa

The new season of Blue Flag South Africa was launched at Muizenberg beach in Cape Town yesterday where it was announced that 29 of South Africa’s beaches have achieved Blue Flag status – an increase from 19 to 29 this year … Continued

Favourite South African Beaches

Langebaan

After this weeks cold spell, a day at the beach is probably not high on the agenda but summer will roll around again so here are a few of my favourite beaches …

In the Overberg, Nanny’s Beach, also known as Kammabaai, is a well loved Hermanus beach.  A firm favourite for a family day on the beach, Nanny’s Beach has great waves for surfing and body boarding and also has safe swimming for the kids.  Milkwoods provide shade for the picnic and braai spots and to work off your lunch you can climb the many rocks around the beach! Continued

The KwaZulu Natal South Coast

South Coast

It is easy, when driving through most of the South Coast area of KwaZulu Natal, to imagine that you have been transported to a tropical island. Roads are edged with lush green vegetation, or the ubiquitous sugar cane and banana plantations. Towns such as Umkomaas, renowned for its angling, as well as a top class golf course, Shelly Beach, named for the prevalence of shells found on beaches in the area, and Margate enjoy the year round bustle of tourists, as does Port Edward.

In fact, the climate of this area is very much like a tropical island, and even in the middle of winter, it is not uncommon to see tourists on the beach, dressed not much more warmly than they would be in the summer months. These beaches are often the first draw card for any visitor. The warm waters are enticing, and there are excellent waves in many places, making it ideal for surfers, bodyboarders and other water sport enthusiasts. Continued

Glorious Gordons Bay

Gordons Bay

The area known today as Gordon’s Bay was named after Captain Robert James Gordon, an officer in the Dutch East India Company, who explored the area in 1778, however, for many years before that, the area was known as Fish Hoek – the same name as another town on the opposite side of False Bay. This little known fact is evidenced by the name on the wall outside the local Post Office. Another common misconception about the town is that the initials GB (see photograph below), inscribed large on the mountain above the town, stand for Gordon’s Bay, however, they commemorate the General Botha, a decommissioned warship that used to be anchored in the harbour, and was used for training of navy cadets, who still reside at the Naval College, located near the Old Harbour.

Long the home to a rather elite group of locals, who live in the palatial homes clustered around the Old Harbour, Marina and Bikini Beach area of the town, the Mediterranean climate and warm water enjoyed in the bay in summer makes it a popular destination for visitors too. Continued

The Story of the Cape Coast

Muizenberg

To the first indigenous people of the Cape, the Khoisan, Table Mountain held a particular sacred significance. There are many stories about the great mountain, and in some of these, the moutain itself is a storyteller, overlooking the surrounding area and telling about what it sees. Looking down from the mountain one can see the Cape coastline weaving a jagged boundary between the land and the sea.

Perhaps one of the stories that the mountain would tell would be about the thousands of people that come every year to visit those ephemeral patches of sand that line the coast. If Johannesburg is Egoli, (the city of gold in Sotho and is defined by its most precious resource), then surely Cape Town is no different? Perhaps then Cape Town is the city of silver, her most precious resource being the silver-sand beaches that seem to hold so many in thrall. Continued

Top 10 Topless Beaches

Forbes.com has again compiled their annual list of Top Topless Beaches.

To make the Forbes Top 10 Topless Beach list, a set of criteria are imposed which include: a recognized consensus to go topless, consistently sunny weather, beautiful scenery, a young, fun crowd and easily accessible bars, restaurants and boutiques.

And The Top 10 Topless Beaches for 2006 are … Continued