Natural

Augrabies flat lizards

Even if you’re not into reptiles, you’ll find the Augrabies flat lizard quite fascinating. The advantage is they’re easy to see, and live in a startlingly beautiful place. more
Emmarentia Dam, Johannesburg

Emmarentia Dam is where you can watch an open-air music concert, paddle around in a canoe, try your hand at sailing, or simply have a peaceful stroll along the banks. more
Thonga Beach Lodge, KwaZulu-Natal

Thonga Beach Lodge is close to Mabibi, part of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. It is a place that thrums with birdlife, marine life and fascinating mammals. more
Rocktail Beach Camp, KwaZulu-Natal

Set back from deserted golden beaches in a coastal forest, Rocktail Beach Camp has a well-deserved reputation as one of the South Africa’s loveliest beach escapes. more

More about Natural

Modderfontein Nature Reserve, Gauteng

The Modderfontein Nature Reserve – once the hub of a dynamite factory – is Gauteng’s second-largest private reserve with open grasslands, hills and small dams brimming with water birds. more

Great trees of South Africa

Discover the great trees of South Africa as you travel, from the mighty baobabs in the north, to the giant yellowwoods in the south. more

Leliefontein to Kleinzee – the 'shipwreck and daisies route'

Pack the picnic bag, haul out the roadmap and GPS, and hit the back roads of Namaqualand for a taste of local flavours and photogenic landscapes. more

Natural attractions in North West

1Pilanesberg Game Reserve

Located in the crater of an extinct volcano, the 55 000 hectare Pilanesberg Nature Reserve Pilanesberg is home to the Big 5 – elephant, lion, buffalo, leopard and rhino. Apart from prolific birdlife, you'll also see African wild dogs, brown hyenas and sable antelope.

2Magliesberg Mountain Range

The scenic Magaliesberg is made up of rocky kloofs, undulating hills and sheer outcrops, all of which have created a fantastic destination for walking, hiking, swimming, exploring and rock climbing. Excellent birdlife and scenic waterfalls complete the picture.

3Madikwe Game Reserve

Close to the Botswana border, this Big 5 reserve (which was once farmland) is home to abundant wildlife, and a great diversity of landscapes and vegetation. Apart from lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopard, there are smaller mammals like the pangolin and rare species such as the wild dog.

4Barberspan Bird Sanctuary

A birder’s paradise, this pan is provides an important sanctuary for migratory birds and boasts the country's largest waterfowl congregation. It's home to more than 320 bird species including flamingo, heron, stork, ibis, maccoa duck, chestnut-banded plover and black-necked grebe.

5Taung Heritage Site (including the Blue Pools)

Tau means ‘the place of the lion’ (and the area named after the legendary chief of the Bataung people). The site is famous for Professor Raymond Dart’s discovery of the Taung skull, while the surrounding 'blue pools' constitute a natural wonder.

6Bloemhof Dam Nature Reserve

Along Bloemhof Dam's vast shoreline visitors fish for carp and barbel, while others take out their binoculars to see how many of its 250 bird species they can spot. For bigger fare, take a self-drive safari to view black and white rhino, eland, oryx, springbok, black wildebeest and smaller antelope herds.

7Hartbeespoort Dam

Hartbeespoort Dam and its surrounding areas are hugged by the scenic Magaliesburg Mountain range. Sailing, windsurfing, jet skiing, parasailing and water skiing are popular activities, along with sundowner cruises. Quad biking is offered on the surrounding rugged terrain.

8The Tswaing Crater

The most visible meteor impact site in South Africa today is the Tswaing Crater, 40-km north of Pretoria. Resulting from a meteor strike some 200 000 years ago, today the site looks like a big swimming pool surrounded by dense bush.

9Kgaswane Mountain Reserve

At Kgaswane Mountain Reserve is most famous for its breeding herd of sable antelope, but is not shy when it comes to birds. Birds of prey such as martial and Verreaux's eagles as well as a breeding colony of Cape vultures are just some of the birds found here.

10Boskop Dam Nature Reserve

Situated over 3 000 hectares of grassland, this nature reserve is a popular spot for nature-lovers and bird-watchers. Angling, canoeing and game viewing are all on offer at Boskop which is best known as a recreational spot for anglers, campers, yachtsmen and canoeists.