Garden Route
25 best things to do on the Garden Route
The highlights of the most beautiful 200 km of coastline in South Africa, arranged from west to east, with honest notes on what is worth your time.
Wilderness sits in the middle of the route: most of this list is less than an hour from our cottages.
The short answer
The best things to do on the Garden Route include kayaking the Touw River to a waterfall in Wilderness, paragliding from the Map of Africa, walking the Robberg peninsula in Plettenberg Bay, crossing the Storms River Mouth suspension bridge in Tsitsikamma, whale watching from June to November, visiting the Knysna Heads, eating oysters in Knysna and driving over the Outeniqua Pass to the Cango Caves. Wilderness, halfway along the route, is the most central base.
- Route length
- About 200 km of N2, Mossel Bay to Storms River
- Most central base
- Wilderness / Sedgefield
- Time needed
- 5 to 10 days to do it justice
- Must-book ahead
- Otter Trail, whale boat trips in season, tandem flights
- Park fees
- SANParks conservation fees apply in national park sections
In this guide
The Garden Route is usually defined as the stretch of the N2 between Mossel Bay and the Storms River, roughly 200 km of coast pinned between the Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma mountains and the Indian Ocean. It packs in lagoons, indigenous forest, cliffs, beaches, lakes and a surprising amount of adventure.
The list below runs from west to east, the way most people drive it. We have marked the distance from Wilderness, which sits almost exactly in the middle.
Mossel Bay and George
1. Walk into human history at Pinnacle Point
About 45 minutes west of Wilderness · book ahead
The caves at Pinnacle Point near Mossel Bay contain some of the earliest evidence of modern human behaviour anywhere, going back around 160,000 years: shellfish meals, ochre pigment and finely made stone tools. The sites can only be visited with a guide through the Point of Human Origins experience, including tours led by the archaeologist who helped discover them. Expect about 200 steps each way to Cave 13B.
2. See where Europe first landed in Mossel Bay
About 45 minutes west
Bartolomeu Dias anchored here in 1488. The Dias Museum complex holds a full-size replica of his caravel and the Post Office Tree, a milkwood where sailors left letters for passing ships. You can still post a letter from the shoe-shaped postbox beneath it.
3. Surf or swim at Victoria Bay
About 15 minutes west
A tiny cove between George and Wilderness with a right-hand point break that is one of the most consistent waves on the coast, and a sheltered tidal pool for children on the other side.
4. Drive the Montagu and Outeniqua passes
About 30 minutes to the start
Two roads over the same mountains, a century apart. The gravel Montagu Pass, finished in 1847, is the oldest unaltered pass in South Africa. The tarred Outeniqua Pass is the fast way to Oudtshoorn. Go up one and down the other. See the mountain passes guide.
Wilderness and Sedgefield
5. Kayak to the Touw River waterfall
About 10 minutes
The perfect half day: paddle upstream through the forest, then walk a boardwalk to a waterfall and rock pools. Full details in our kayak guide.
6. Paraglide from the Map of Africa
Right next to our cottages
Fly tandem with a qualified pilot above Wilderness Beach, no experience needed. From about R850, depending on flight length. See paragliding on the Garden Route.
7. Watch the sunrise at the Map of Africa
Right next door
A river bend shaped like a continent, and one of the best sunrise spots on the coast. Here is how to get there.
8. Bird the Wilderness lakes
About 15 minutes
Five kingfisher species, fish eagles and flocks of waterbirds. The hide at Rondevlei is free and rarely busy.
9. Walk Wilderness Beach end to end
About 10 minutes
Kilometres of empty sand, named on the 2026 Corona Beach 100 list. Go at low tide and bring a windbreaker.
10. Saturday morning at the Wild Oats market
About 30 minutes
The Garden Route's favourite farmers market in Sedgefield: organic vegetables, bread, cheese, coffee and live music from 07:30 until noon.
11. Hike to Gericke's Point
About 30 minutes
A beach walk from Sedgefield to a fossilised dune headland with rock pools, and often paragliders overhead.
Knysna
12. Stand on the Knysna Heads
About 50 minutes
Two sandstone cliffs guard the narrow mouth of the Knysna lagoon, one of the most dangerous harbour entrances in the world. Drive up the East Head for the view, or take the ferry to the private Featherbed Nature Reserve on the western side.
13. Eat oysters in Knysna
About 50 minutes
The estuary has been farmed for oysters for generations. Try them at the Waterfront or on Thesen Island. Our restaurant guide has the best tables.
14. Walk among giant yellowwoods
About 30 to 60 minutes
The Garden Route has the largest indigenous forest in South Africa. The Woodville Big Tree near Hoekwil, an Outeniqua yellowwood of around 800 years and 33 m tall, is a short, easy walk. Deeper in the Knysna forest, the Diepwalle and Harkerville trails are wonderfully quiet.
15. Meet the people of Knysna
About 50 minutes
Community-run tours visit the townships above Knysna, including Judah Square, one of South Africa's largest Rastafarian communities. See travel that gives back.
Plettenberg Bay and the Crags
16. Walk the Robberg peninsula
About 1 hour 15 minutes
A rocky peninsula in the sea with a 9 km circuit, a colony of Cape fur seals and huge views of the bay. One of the best walks in South Africa. Start early, it has no shade.
17. Go whale watching
About 1 hour 15 minutes · June to November
Plettenberg Bay has southern right and humpback whales in season, Bryde's whales most of the year and dolphins year-round. Licensed boats have special permits to approach whales. See whale watching on the Garden Route.
18. Lunch on a Plett wine farm
About 1 hour 10 minutes
Cool-climate sparkling wine and long vineyard lunches at estates like Bramon and Newstead.
19. Birds of Eden and Monkeyland
About 1 hour 30 minutes
Birds of Eden calls itself the largest free-flight aviary in the world, a 3.2 ha dome of mesh over a forested gorge with more than 1,500 birds. Next door, Monkeyland lets you walk through forest with free-roaming primates on guided tours. Great with children.
Tsitsikamma
20. Cross the Storms River Mouth suspension bridge
About 1 hour 50 minutes
A boardwalk through coastal forest leads to a suspension bridge swaying over the mouth of the Storms River, with waves smashing into the gorge below. The first morning of the Otter Trail starts here, and day visitors can walk the first stretch to a waterfall.
21. Bungee off the Bloukrans Bridge
About 1 hour 40 minutes
At 216 m, the Bloukrans bridge bungee is one of the highest commercial bridge bungees in the world. Watching is free, and almost as nerve-racking.
22. Hike the Otter Trail
Book months ahead
Five days, 45 km of coastline from Storms River Mouth to Nature's Valley, with a waist-deep river crossing. South Africa's most famous hike. See the best hikes on the Garden Route.
23. Swim in the lagoon at Nature's Valley
About 1 hour 30 minutes
A tiny village in the forest at the edge of a lagoon and a long, wild beach. One of the quietest places on the whole route.
Over the mountains
24. The Cango Caves
About 1 hour 30 minutes
The most famous show caves in Africa, north of Oudtshoorn. The standard Heritage Tour walks through huge dripstone halls; the Adventure Tour squeezes through tunnels with names like the Devil's Chimney. Not for the claustrophobic.
25. Ostriches and the Swartberg Pass
About 1 hour 15 minutes
Oudtshoorn built its fortune on ostrich feathers. Visit a farm, then drive the gravel Swartberg Pass, built by Thomas Bain in the 1880s, to the Karoo village of Prince Albert.
Stay where this story happensOne base, no packing and unpacking: Wilderness is right in the middle of this list.Three self-catering places on 21 hectares above Wilderness. Book direct for the best rate.Check dates →
How to plan it
You can drive the Garden Route in a day, but you would see almost none of this. Plan at least five nights, ideally in one or two bases rather than a new town every night. Wilderness and Sedgefield sit in the middle, with everything from Mossel Bay to Plettenberg Bay within about an hour. For Tsitsikamma, either do a long day or add two nights in Plett or Nature's Valley.
Our 7-day Garden Route itinerary turns this list into a plan.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Garden Route famous for?
Its mix of lagoons, lakes, indigenous forest, beaches and cliffs along about 200 km of coast between Mossel Bay and Storms River, plus a mild climate, whales in winter and spring, and adventure activities like paragliding, kayaking and bungee jumping.
How many days do you need for the Garden Route?
At least five days, ideally seven to ten. That allows time for a few hikes, a kayak trip, a whale or dolphin trip and a day over the mountains to Oudtshoorn.
Where is the best place to stay on the Garden Route?
Wilderness and Sedgefield are the most central bases. Knysna and Plettenberg Bay are livelier and closer to Tsitsikamma.
What is the best free thing to do on the Garden Route?
Walking. The Map of Africa viewpoint, Wilderness Beach, Gericke's Point, the Knysna Heads and the Woodville Big Tree cost nothing. National park and nature reserve trails charge conservation fees.
Is the Garden Route good for families?
Very. Calm lagoons, easy forest walks, Birds of Eden, Monkeyland, the Cango Caves and a steam-train museum in George all work well with children. See our guide to the Garden Route with kids.
We live on the Garden Route and update this guide every season. Something changed? Tell us.
