Rediscovering the Cape Floral Kingdom and the Garden Route

  • by Jacqueline van Strijp
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  • 25 Sept, 2022
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The Garden Route is one of South Africa’s most popular and interesting stretches of coastline, a temperate landscape of sandy beaches, indigenous forests, rocky shores and quaint towns where you can do everything from savour fresh oysters to watch southern right whales at play.
Our Mirjam, Carmen and Victoria set out to explore South Africa’s most iconic road trips, and gain a better understanding of the Garden Route and the Cape Floral Kingdom. They discovered that, in addition to long and winds past beautiful lagoons, beaches, forests, jaw-dropping fauna and flora and mountains, it's is also a bustle of excitement and entertainment just waiting to be discovered.  Here’s what they experienced:

We departed from Cape Town to explore one of our country’s most scenic regions on National Women's Day, heading towards the Mosaic Lagoon Lodge. Hidden amongst ancient milkwood trees, and tucked away near the picturesque village of Stanford, Mosaic is a boutique guest resort where luxury is laced with earthly beauty and heavenly night skies.Midday, our National Women's Day celebrations continued by taking a picturesque cruise on Lady Stanford down the Klein River to the Hermanus Estuary bird refuge and back. Lady Stanford is a spacious eco-friendly riverboat with a sheltered lower deck and an open-top deck that provides excellent photo opportunities.

After dinner, we joined our guide for a fynbos quad biking tour, and drove along the lagoon's edge and up to high points on Mosaic. We were accompanied by 360-degree views of the ocean, lagoon, and mountains and learned about the wonderful vegetation, birds, mammals, and lagoon wetlands along the journey. These stunning traits are inherent in the fynbos ecosystem of South Africa's southern coast, making it a genuinely unique terrain. The beauty on this excursion is one you will not want to miss during your stay at Mosaic.
The following day, we drove to Grootbos Private Nature Reserve; despite the rain, the panoramic vistas of mountain and sea took our breath away. Grootbos Private Nature Reserve is a magnificent unspoiled wonderland that showcases the splendour of the Cape Floral Kingdom as well as the spectacular marine life of Africa's southernmost tip.

A guided cave trip along the magnificent limestone cliffs of De Kelders welcomed us to a Stone Age World, where Khoi bushmen previously lived. This is one of just three spots in South Africa where such old remains have been discovered, and our knowledgeable guide transported us back in time. During dinner, we were treated to a Wine Cellar Tour, where guests can choose from a vast selection of bottles in their cellar and enjoy the most perfect expression of the landscape and its people, whether they're sampling a food and wine pairing, hearing from one of their sommeliers on what makes this vintage particularly special, or going on a guided tour to the wine farm itself.

After a delicious breakfast the following day, we set out on a 4x4 botanical safari in an open-top Land Rover to soak up the richest temperate flora in the world and six completely new species never discovered by science before. Our time at Grootbos meant that we'll never look at plants and flowers in quite the same way again. Followed by the 4 x 4 Botanical Safari our Carmen and Victoria took a slow trot on a Horseback Safari through the Fynbos to appreciate the views and ride down the sweeping sand dunes, with fresh air filling their lungs and exhilaration pumping through their veins.

Next, we made our way to Simbavati Fynbos on Sea. Situated above the quaint town of Sedgefield, along South Africa’s Garden Route, this eco-paradise offers sweeping views over beaches, mountains, lagoons, and a fynbos wonderland.Upon arrival we went on a short trip to Knysna. Surrounded by rolling hills and famous for the two craggy cliffs known as The Heads, which protect its secluded lagoon from the sea, the colourful and quirky town of Knysna combines a thriving artistic and foodie vibe with spectacular scenery and marine adventures.

Arguably the best way to explore Knysna is via the world-renowned Featherbed Nature Reserve Exo-Experience Tour as this Tour gives visitors to the Garden Route an unforgettable experience on the Knysna Lagoon. The Lagoon, more accurately defined as an estuary, has five fresh water rivers flowing in from the surrounding Outeniqua Mountains meeting with the surge of sea water from the Indian Ocean through the mighty headlands

We stopped at the Wild Oats Community Farmers Market after a fantastic lunch at Tube ‘n Axe Boutique Lodge before continuing our Garden Route adventure to Gqeberha. We were met by a blast of wind as we approached the Cape Recife Lighthouse, this was the first lighthouse constructed in the Gqeberha area and is situated on the southern point of Algoa Bay. Cape Recife is the turning point into Algoa Bay and several dangers such as Thunderbolt Reef and Roman Rock, not far offshore, have claimed many a fine ship.

Now, looking a little more “ruffled” than before, we ventured on, after a fresh cup of coffee from Addo Brauhaus. We were not prepared for what was waiting for us next, so the cup of coffee was a terrific opportunity to relax. A short distance away, located in the beautiful malaria-free of the Eastern Cape, South Africa is Bellevue Forest Reserve! We had an exhilarating, true African experience by participating in a giraffe tracking safari on foot on their private game reserve of 2,500 acres. Giraffes are quite remarkable creatures and much more so from the perspective of being on the ground looking up


Following that amazing experience, our Amazing Africa Team settled down for a quiet evening of beautiful vistas and delicious meals at Camp Figtree Mountain Safari Lodge, this exclusive mountain safari lodge prides itself on an excellent reputation for cuisine, hospitality and luxurious accommodation. Our journey to the Garden Route came to a close with a visit to Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve, outside of Port Alfred. Set in a spectacular and unique environment, Oceana offers a truly special luxury boutique experience.

The property is perfectly positioned within a sprawling wildlife sanctuary, fronted by a pristine 7km stretch of private beach. With absolutely everything taken care of by our discreet staff, this private and intimate destination is where guests go for a “holiday whilst on holiday”.Our Carmen and Victoria were quite ecstatic. They got the option to stay in a new luxury suite with unrivalled views of the Reserve and Indian Ocean from their own private plunge pool and what better way to explore this gorgeous reserve than on a daily game drive. Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve is home to more than 220 bird and 30 animal species and offers sightings of giraffes, zebras and much more.

Just like that, our time in the Garden Route and the Cape Floral Kingdom came to an end. Popular as a holiday destination as well as a permanent one, it is like none other with no two journeys ever being the same, and I hope that we have inspired and encouraged you to pack your bags and travel to hidden jewels, like this one!