Destinations / The Wild Coast >>

The Wild Coast is so-named because it’s absolutely furious more people don’t come to marvel at its pristine coastline.

That’s actually not true, but indeed very few international tourists other than backpackers make it into the Eastern Cape. Which is a shame because wonderful natural beauty, a great climate and historical circumstance have combined to make this a traveller’s paradise. If you want a beach holiday and a feel of real ‘Africa’, this is the place to come.

Travelling north from East London, the first highlight is Cintsa for deserted beaches, great dining and self-catering options. Then the N2 highway moves inland, so you have to take your pick of a number of excellent beach towns to head for – travelling between them is mostly only possible by foot. Indeed there are a number of superb hiking options, such as the Stranloper Trails, which allow you to see the some of the most remote and awe-inspiring coastal scenery in South Africa.

Morgan’s Bay and Hagga Hagga are the next most accessible resort towns and both offer spectacular coastline and white sand beaches.

Large parts of the Wild Coast were formerly a black homeland – The Transkei – under apartheid. Many families were forcibly settled in this area and investment in infrastructure was negligible. The flipside of the poverty and poor roads there today is that there are many virtually untouched idyllic beaches where you can walk all day and hardly see another person. Coffee Bay is justifiably popular with backpackers and South African tourists, as is Port St Johns (however recent rapid development and reports of shark attacks have led to this former idyll losing some of its appeal). Mboyti and Msikaba further north are even more beautiful, if very remote and rustic.

We recommend taking your time when driving along the Wild Coast. We weren’t the first and won’t be the last to round a corner, swerve to avoid a sun-bathing goat, and hit a pothole.