The Karoo is vast and places to visit in the Karoo are myriad...
Divided into the Succulent, Nama, Klein and Grassy Karoo it straddles most of South Africaโs inner country.
Hogging the west coast, sprawling as far east as Cradock and Smithfield, extending northwards as far as Putsonderwater, and encroaching south on the Western Cape towns of Barrydale, Oudtshoorn and Robertson.
Picturesque places to visit in the Karoo, some would argue, depend on the eye of the beholder, but we think youโll agree that none of these is worth passing over.
The 15 most picturesque places to visit in the Karoo
The view from Ronnies Sex Shop
Ronnies Sex Shop, on a lesser-known bit of Route 62 just beyond Barrydale, has little to do with sex, and everything to do with getting passersby to stop.
Enjoy a beer, a dip in the pool or a great slice of carrot cake while youโre at it. And the views from here are pretty spectacular too, particularly late afternoon during autumn.
The pass into Die Hel
The Swartberg valley cleft down into a valley where time stood still, quite literally for years (read up on the story), is a difficult but beautiful drive, particularly on an off-road bike.
The windpumps of Loeriesfontein
Get your camera out for this one, best seen in autumn or winter for those brilliant blue skies.
If the creaking blades donโt get to you, the stillness of this little town soon will, but the Fred Turner Windpump Museum is a MUST.
The worldโs southernmost Quiver tree forest
Youโll find signposts to Gannabos quiver tree forest just outside Nieuwoudtville, the little town up on the plateau above Vanrhynsdorp in the heart of the Hantam Karoo.
Donโt miss out on the nearby waterfall and Nieuwoudtvilleโs bulb nursery!
Cradockโs Market street on a Karoo morning
Lined with prettily restored and painted Victorian Karoo โhuisiesโ (houses), including the Victoria Manor Hotel and Olive Schreiner Museum (just around the corner).
The Cradock Market Street Precinct is particularly pretty in the right light.
Hondeklipbaai at high tide
Described as a โrough and ready fishing villageโ, Hondeklipbaai is a diamond in the rough, quite literally (itโs on the Diamond Coast where most of the sand and sea has been combed for diamonds).
Watch the old jetty at high tide and marvel at how the building remains standing.
The Compassberg from Nieu Bethesda
The Compassberg literally looms over the Karoo village of Nieu Bethesda (where youโll also find Helen Martinโs Owl House and a cheesery and brewery worth visiting).
From the top of the mountain you can see forever. If you donโt fancy a walk, the road into town gives you fine views of the mountain.
Graaff-Reinetโs Groot Kerk when the sky is blue
Just up the road from Nieu Bethesda is the historical town of Graaff-Reinet that lies within a nature reserve.
You canโt miss the beautiful Dutch Reformed Church on the corner of Caledon and Church streets.
SKAโs Square Kilometre Array
Its beauty is debatable.
But regardless of whether or not you like how it looks, this mega-science project – a square kilometreโs worth of radio telescopes – just outside Carnarvon.
I’s is drawing visitors from all around the world.
The open road, anywhere, everywhere in the Karoo
If thereโs one thing youโll get your fill of in the Karoo, itโs the open road.
Whether itโs tar or dirt there is plenty of it. And that feeling of โroad tripโ is written all over it.
The twisted and buckled mountains of the Karooโs passes
The Swartberg Pass, Seweweekspoort and Meiringspoort have in common the crumpled Cape Fold Mountains that divide the Groot Karoo from the Klein Karoo.
Itโs a long line of peaks that were once apparently part of the seafloor (weโre talking millions of years ago). Explore these passes to get the full measure of its rugged beauty.
Klaarstroom at sunrise
The little town on the edge of Meiringspoort is often overlooked, swept through on the way somewhere else.
It describes itself as โan authentic Victorian, working farm village and if you want to experience โdowntimeโ, hereโs as good a place as any.
The night skies of Sutherland
Itโs got something to do with the little townโs height above sea level and the weather – generally cloudless – that makes Sutherland a prime place to stargaze – from here the milky way is very milky.
Youโll even see the odd gas cloud if you gaze through a telescope at SKA.
The dolerite pillars of the Valley of Desolation
This is a particularly popular spot at sunset, and easy to get to and from, if you stay in Graaff-Reinet.
The unusually stacked dolerite pillars stand sentry over the valley, as they have for millenia.
Explore More
- Plan your trip through the Karoo
- 10 Top natural attractions in the Karoo
- Find other places to stay in the Karoo
