The Garden Route is one of the most beautiful road trips in South Africa. Along the south coast, you will find wonderful places to hike, vast beaches, and mountains by the sea. You have a wide choice of hotels, and you will find charming cafes and restaurants everywhere. Plettenberg Bay is centrally located on the Garden Route, just a day’s drive from Cape Town (520 km) and half a day from Addo Elephant Park (300 km). But we definitely recommend taking a longer drive to get there. Plettenberg Bay is the perfect stopover on the Garden Route and a destination in itself. The coast between Plettenberg Bay and Stormsrivier (Tsitsikamma National Park) encompasses some of the most beautiful spots here. Read all our personal tips now for the most beautiful places and hotels from Knysna to Plettenberg Bay and Tsitsikamma National Park: The Garden Route highlights.
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Your Garden Route road trip: Garden Route highlights
The Garden Route is a route along the south coast of South Africa, east of Cape Town. We did this road trip driving along the Garden Route from Cape Town. We loved combining it with driving the Karoo Highlands. And near Cape Town, on the way to the Garden Route, you will also find Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, and Route 64, passing through villages and vineyards.
We drove a complete route from Cape Town to Addo and back through the Karoo in four weeks, including a week in Cape Town. Even with two weeks, you can see a lot along this coast. You can further extend your road trip along the Garden Route with Addo National Park. Driving on or flying to Johannesburg and then visiting Kruger National Park will turn your trip into a true dream trip.
TIP – Also read our other South Africa blogs
- Cape Town’s Best Neighborhoods to Stay in – Now with Our Personal Tips!
- Self-drive in Kruger National Park: Now the best routes, our practical tips and unique places to sleep
Renting a car for the Garden Route
Renting a car in Cape Town is very easy. You can pick up your rental car at the airport. A small car or sedan is good enough for the roads along the Garden Route. Often, slightly sturdier cars are also quite affordable in South Africa. The roads are usually good in this part of South Africa. A large proportion of the roads are motorways or good, wide provincial roads. Recommended car rental platforms are:
- Sunny Cars: All-inclusive with insurance and good service at a Dutch company
- Discover Cars: Good deals with the choice of whether or not to insure all-in
Our Top 5 Garden Route highlights with accommodation tips
It is difficult to choose, but for us, there really are a few highlights along the Garden Route. For us, these are all places in nature. Each of these places also offers beautiful spots to stay nearby. If you want to choose one place as a base, Plettenberg Bay is the most central location for this part of the Garden Route. It is just over an hour’s drive from Plettenberg to Stormsrivier (Tsitsikamma National Park). Going the other way, it is just over half an hour to Knysna.
1. Hiking in Robberg Nature Reserve
Perhaps one of the most beautiful hiking trails in South Africa is located in the compact Robberg Nature Reserve. Here, you can walk along the edges of this small peninsula, over cliffs, a sand dune, and through unique forests. Scrambling over rocks, climbing up and down stairs, and watching sea lions on the rocks and in the surrounding water are all part of the experience. The first part of the hike is manageable for almost everyone, although it does involve stairs.
The Robberg Nature Reserve is located just outside Plettenberg. So you can stay nearby in Plettenberg. However, there are also a few beautiful, more rural accommodation options in the surrounding area. Sea views are no exception, just like a kitchenette for self-catering.
- Budget/mid-range: Casetta del Fuoco – Eco Container Cottage
- Luxury: Trinity Farm Ocean view Cottage
2. Plettenberg Bay & Keurboom Beach: beach, sea and sea lions
Plettenberg Bay forms the heart of this part of the Garden Route. This quiet beach town is a perfect base for exploring the attractions along this coast. The beach at Plettenberg Bay is five kilometers long, making it wonderful for a good beach walk.
There is plenty to do around Plettenberg Bay. For example, you can take a small boat out to sea or into the estuary. You can also kayak with sea lions. Robberg Nature Reserve is also located nearby, and you will find various beaches.
Staying in the village of Plettenberg Bay is the most budget-friendly option. Our accommodation tips for Plettenberg Bay:
- Budget – Nothando Backpackers Lodge
- Mid-range – Bliss In The Bay Guesthouse
- Luxury – Periwinkle Lodge Guesthouse
Garden Route highlights: Beach life at Keurboomstrand
You will find the most beautiful beaches of this area not far from Plettenberg Bay at Keurboomstrand. Large rocks adorn the beaches here, and there are a few small coves where you can walk from beach to beach at low tide. We might even consider Keurboomstrand the best place to stay near Plettenberg Bay.
Keurboomstrand is the best choice for relaxation and a laid-back beach life. Here, you don’t have to do much more than walk back and forth between your hotel and the beach. You can also enjoy beautiful walks here, for example to Arch Rock Beach and the private nature reserve. At the same time, Plettenberg Bay, the Robberg, and Tsitsikamma are not far away.
Our accommodation tips in Keurboomstrand
- Budget – Plett Dunes 41
- Mid-range – Arch Rock Resort (kamers met zeezicht!)
- Luxury – Choose your own villa at Forest Escape or Villa Mare Nostrum
- Exceptional – On top of the cliffs with panoramic views and the modern private lodge Cliffhanger Estate
TIP – The most budget-friendly places to stay around Plettenberg Bay are the campsites. For example, we stayed at the Arch Rock Resort. campsite near Keurboomstrand. This resort also has beautiful rooms.
3. Hiking at Nature’s Valley
This, literally, hidden spot is just a 45-minute drive from Plettenberg Bay. At the end of a small road that winds through a valley to the beach lies the village of Nature’s Valley, full of small houses within crawling distance of the beach. There are only a few restaurants and it is barely developed. It is mainly South Africans themselves who come here.
At the end of the small village, a sandy path winds through the dunes to the beach. It is lovely to stroll here, and there are a few beautiful spots to sit by the rocks on the beach. A few hundred meters further on, you can find a small path that winds back up from the beach. This forest path leads you up to a trail from which you have beautiful views of the beach. You can walk a loop through the hills here; the path is also known as the Salt River Hiking Trail.
In Nature’s Valley, there aren’t that many places to sleep. You will mainly find chalets here, and other small holiday homes. Our tips in Nature’s Valley.
4. The bridges and paths of Tsitsikamma (Storms River)
An absolute highlight of the Garden Route is a visit to the mouth of the Storms River. The valley where this river flows between high, steep hills to the sea is part of the Tsitsikamma National Park. You pay an entrance fee for the national park here (see SAN Parks for current prices). Unless you have a Wild Card, the annual pass for national parks in South Africa.
Tsitsikamma is a tourist spot. The photogenic suspension bridges around the river mouth, in particular, attract many visitors. But there is more to do here. This is also the place where several long-distance hiking trails start. You can walk a section of those if you only want to do a day hike.
TIP – A popular activity here is kayaking. Upon arrival, you will receive brief instructions. You then paddle up and down the river between the steep rock walls in a group, under the footbridges.
Firstly, you can stay in three different areas here. Most hotels are located at the top of the valley in the village of Stormsrivier. This is situated outside the national park. These are a few nice options in the village:
- Budget – Tsitsikamma Garden Chalets
- Mid-range – Tsitsikhaya Lodge
- Mid-range – Storms River Guest Lodge
The second option is in the national park. Here, you can sleep in a cabin, a beach house, or at the SAN Parks campground. These are located right by the sea and within walking distance of the suspension bridges. You can book a place to stay directly via SAN Parks. That is what we did.
The third option is to look for a beautiful, secluded lodge in nature on the cliffs east of Stormsrivier. Here are a few of the exceptional places you can find there:
5. Knysna’s viewpoints
Knysna is one of the most beautifully situated towns on the Garden Route. Near Knysna, you will find stunning viewpoints from the cliffs overlooking the Knysna Lagoon. Visit, for example, Margaret’s Viewpoint, Featherbed Nature Reserve, or Easthead Viewpoint.
The old village center of tourist Knysna is charming, with small shops and cafes. In brand-new Thesen Harbour Town (Thesen Island), you will find modern holiday homes and restaurants.
In and around Knysna, there are many beautiful places to stay. Here are a few of our tips for hotels in Knysna:
- La Lupa Nera
- St. James of Knysna
- The Lofts Boutique Hotel (Thesen Island)
How to get to the Garden Route highlights around Plettenberg Bay?
To Plettenberg Bay from Cape Town
It is approximately a 520km drive from Cape Town to Plettenberg Bay. This can be done in a long day, as the roads are good. However, we recommend taking your time. You could, for example, take the coastal route R44 Clarence Drive.
It is also worth making stops in Betty’s Bay (penguins!), Hermanus, Wilderness, and Knysna. On the way there or back, it is also nice to drive from village to village along Route 62, a little further inland.
To Plettenberg Bay from the Karoo
Are you coming from the Karoo? From Graaff-Reinet to Plettenberg Bay, it is about a 300km drive. You cross the mountains that separate the Karoo from the coast via the town of Uniondale. It is also possible that you are arriving at Karoo National Park from Beaufort-West. In that case, it is about a 330km drive. You can choose whether to cross the mountains via the paved N12 road or the adventurous, unpaved Swartberg Pass.
Route 62 to Plettenberg Bay
From Swellendam, it is approximately 300 km to Plettenberg Bay. This is a route along good, paved country roads. There are charming villages to stop at, such as Montagu and Barrydale. Take your time, sleep somewhere along the way, and enjoy the beautiful views of the landscape.
From Addo Elephant Park to Plettenberg Bay
Are you choosing to stop in Plettenberg on your way to Cape Town? Then it is about a 270km drive from Colchester near Addo Elephant Park. That is easily doable in half a day. Do pay attention around Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha): the R335 through the Motherwell district (township) is not a safe route, even though Google Maps sometimes directs you along it if you want to drive via the northern gate of Addo.
○ BONUS: Books to read for your South Africa road trip
Lonely Planet – South Africa, eSwatini and Lesotho
Trevor Noah – Born a Crime
Nelson Mandela – A Long Walk to Freedom
Dervla Murphy – South from the Limpopo
All books by J.M. Coetzee
Marlène van Niekerk – Triomf
Paul Theroux – Last train to Zona Verde and Dark Star Safari
Antjie Krog – Country of my Skull
