Port Elizabeth & Coast, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Port Elizabeth is the gateway to the Eastern Cape, offering lovely sandy beaches, fascinating cultural tours to the informal settlements and the wonderful links golf course at Humewood. You may need to stay overnight in Port Elizabeth, or nearby St Francis Bay, at the beginning or end of an Eastern Cape safari, or a tour along the Garden Route. This is no hardship as there are a number of very pleasant boutique hotels to choose from such as La Provence or The Windermere, and fascinating tours such as The Real City Tour or the Shebeen Tour from Paul at Calabash Tours. 

Port Elizabeth was founded in 1820 to receive the 5000 English settlers however it didn’t begin its transition to a major port city until the late 19th century, when farming in the frontier region became sufficiently established to create a regular supply of meat, maize and wool for export. Though the city centre is somewhat marred by the freeway, hotels in Port Elizabeth are located in the attractive quiet suburbs close to the beaches.

An alternative to Port Elizabeth are the attractive coastal resort towns of St Francis Bay or Jeffreys Bay, 45 minutes west of Port Elizabeth on the way to the Garden Route. Jeffrey’s Bay is internationally famous for its majestic waves - regarded by surfers as some of the finest in the world – and attracts a young surfing crowd. A more attractive, quieter option is St Francis Bay - a homogenous composition of white-washed thatched cottages on the coast, where you enjoy swimming, surfing and beach walks. We recommend The Sands 

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