What is the Garden Route?
The Garden Route stretches about 200 km (125 miles) along the Southeastern Coast of South Africa. It officially starts in Mossel Bay and ends in Storms River.
The landscape along this route is incredible, with national parks, beautiful beaches, lakes and lovely towns.
With a plethora of things to see and countless outdoor activities to take part in, planning is essential if you only have a few days.
How long do you need?
I think I underestimated the distance of this road trip as we only allowed ourselves 3 full days. That being said it was still great, but given that it takes about 4 hours to drive from Cape Town to Mossel Bay, and then was about a 6 hour drive from Plettenberg Bay back to Cape Town on our last day, in hindsight I might have budgeted one more day!
So…… I’d recommend 4 full days minimum and more if you want to do some extended hikes or other activities.
Self drive or not?
We rented a car upon arriving in Cape Town, knowing that we would be doing this road trip as well and I always prefer to see things at my own pace. We didn’t look into pre-packaged tours from Cape Town to the Garden Route, but there are options if doing a self-drive is not for you.
We found renting a car to be very affordable (we used Avis) so I’d totally recommend doing the self-drive option if you can.
Stop 1: Mossel Bay
The harbor town, Mossel Bay, is the official start of the Garden Route and we decided to stay one night here. Here’s a few of my recommendations if you also choose to spend some time here.
Accomodation
Aquamarine Guest House
Definitely recommend where we stayed as we had great views of the cape, an incredible back garden with a pool, and a wonderful breakfast included . It was a short walk to the harbor from here as well. Aquamarine Guest House
Food and drinks
Kaai 4
After an early afternoon arrival, and checking into our lodge, we decided to walk down to the harbor. This restaurant has some great views of the water and loads of seats in the sun, so we didn’t hesitate to pop in and enjoy some afternoon drinks. We didn’t try their grill menu, but it did look pretty tasty. Kaai4.co.za
The Blue Shed Coffee Roastery
We stumbled upon this place post afternoon cocktails, and I don’t normally follow cocktails with coffee, but this place was just too unique and cool not to go inside and try some. It is embellished with a load of eclectic antiques, such as cars, gas pumps, bikes, signs, you name it! That and its prime positioning along the coast with a huge garden area to sit and enjoy the sun, made this place a unique stop. The sweet treats and coffee were pretty great as well. Blueshedroasters.co.za
The Kingfisher Restaurant
This restaurant was recommended by the place we were staying, and it did not disappoint! If it hadn’t been so windy that day sitting outside would have been lovely as the water was full of surfers honing their craft. thekingfisher.co.za
Things to do in Mossel Bay
St. Blaize Hiking Trail
We drove to the start of this trail on our 1st morning and parked nearby. We did not have time to walk the full trail, which is 13.5km and can take 6 hours, but we did walk up to the Cave and a bit beyond to enjoy the beautiful views of the Cape below. The bonus on this trail was seeing all the Dassies (Rock Hyrax)– I had never seen one of these animals before and they were so cute!! These furry little mammals were hiding in the rocks along the trail. St Blaize Hiking Trail in Mossel Bay (visitmosselbay.co.za)
Mossel Bay Zipline
I will preface by saying we did not do this, and this is simply because I didn’t know it existed and hadn’t planned ahead of time. But truly gutted that we didn’t as it looks pretty awesome!! It’s classified as the longest over-the-ocean zip line in the world. The start is from the cliffs above and travels 1150 meters to the platform below! Mossel Bay Zipline
Cape St Blaize Lighthouse
This lighthouse was built in 1864 and you can enjoy the views with a coffee, dinner, tour the lighthouse itself or even book a stay here. Driving to the lighthouse isn’t signposted very well and when you do finally find the entrance of it, it’s a very steep narrow road where cars must park in a single file. This short drive/parking experience was quite nerve racking especially in a standard drive rental car, with very limited space to turn around and park. Be careful!
Upon walking into the lighthouse, we had some coffee outside on the terrace with some spectacular views. Should you want a tour, simply ask the staff, where you will be provided with a brief history and then given free rein to climb a series of ladders to reach the viewing platform. Any chance to get to walk to the top of something for a view and I’m in. Despite having to maneuver past a swarm of live and dead moths to reach the top, the views were beautiful, providing a 360 view of the Cape. Cape St. Blaize Lighthouse (stblaize.co.za)
I felt we barely scratched the surface of Mossel Bay with all that it has to offer, however with our short time frame we were off for our next stop on the Garden Route.
Stop 2: Knysna
This town is one of the most popular and scenic destination along the garden route. We didn’t stay a night here, but stopped en route to Plettenberg Bay for lunch and a few hours to explore.
We enjoyed walking through the cute shops in Knysna Harbour, and having a relaxing lunch in the sun. You may want to consider staying a night here if you’re interested in doing one of the many boat trips/excursions, and to break up the drive.
The Heads
The Heads are the rocky headlands located at the eastern and western peninsulas of the Knysna basin forming the mouth of the Knysna River Estuary.
You can take in majestic views of these headlands and the lagoon below by heading up to the lookout point at the top of the Eastern Head.
To get there, follow George Dex Drive and then follow the signs to the lookout, where you’ll find a small parking lot. From there, its a relatively short walk to three decked areas with amazing views. You’ll also come across a cafe should you need a quick lunch / coffee kick.
Stop 3: Plettenberg Bay
Plettenberg Bay often referred to as ‘Plett’, is a seaside resort town, known for its pristine beaches, nature reserves, hiking, and ocean activities from whale watching to cape fur seal swimming. We chose Plett as our base for the next two days primarily due to its proximity to Storms River and Tsitsikamma National Park.
Accomodation
Lookout Lodge
Lookout Lodge Plettenberg Bay (hmaccommodation.wixsite.com)
Food and drink
The LookOut
This was a great restaurant right on Lookout Beach. They have a lovely outdoor deck with plenty of tables in the sun to enjoy some sundowners and delicious seafood. The Kingklip (their specialty) and seared tuna went down a treat! From our accommodation this was a short 10-minute walk. The Lookout – Restaurant Plettenberg Bay
Nineteen89
Located in the main city center of Plett, this is vibrant place with an exciting menu. Being a pescatarian in South Africa isn’t so bad as everywhere we went had plenty of seafood choices! This restaurant is always busy, so would recommend making a reservation.
Things to do
Cape Fur Seal Swimming
We couldn’t pass up an opportunity to get up close and personal with the cute Cape Fur seals.
This adventure starts out getting wet suited up and listening to the guide explain safety tips on interactions with the seals while in the water (tip: keep your hands close to you!). This is followed by an exciting boat launch from the beach, and a speed boat drive to the cliffs where the Cape Fur Seals hang out.
It was exciting, albeit a bit nerve wracking, seeing the sheer number of these seals lounging on the rocks as our boat pulled up and then watching them dive one by one into the water as our boat stopped.
Jumping in was a bit of a shock as the water was freezing. I wasn’t sure what to expect with so many seals swimming about, but we found they were just curious and wanted to swim around us and see what we were about. The swim is about 15-30 minutes before everyone is back on the boat headed back to the beach. The fast drive on the boat up onto the shore was quite exhilarating and I thought an added bonus to the whole adventure.
The water is a bit choppy, but for any non-seasick snorkeling enthusiasts don’t pass up this excursion as it was pretty epic! Offshore Adventures – Swim With Seals in Plettenberg Bay
Other ideas
On our second day we headed to Tsitsikamma National Park (see below), so unfortunately had to miss out on some other amazing things to do while in Plett. If you have more time I would recommend looking into the following:
Robberg Nature Reserve – Robberg Nature Reserve – Capenature
Telluric Wine Estate – winetots.com
South Africa’s Highest Bungee Jump – Bloukrans Bridge bungy
Stop 4: Storms River
We chose Storms River and Tsitsikamma National Park as our final stop on the Garden Route as it’s renowned for the hiking trails. We decided to tackle two different hikes: Storms River Mouth Trail and The Waterfall Trail.
Storms River Mouth Trail
The Storms River Mouth Trail is relatively short, takes about 1 hour and has stunning views of the Storms River Mouth, the surrounding coastal landscape, and a very cool walk across the suspension bridge that spans the river. Once you cross the suspension bridge and to the pebble beach, you will see signs to continue the hike up the lookout point for some awesome views of the bridge and water below. The hike up to the lookout point is quite steep so definitely for those without fear of heights.
The Waterfall Trail
The Waterfall Trail comprises the first 3 km of the famous Otter Trail and is roughly 1.5 hr hike there and back. The total time takes roughly 3 hours and the hike itself is considered fairly strenuous. The difficulty in this hike lies in the fact there is quite a bit of rock traversing. The trail is not entirely flat nor is it steep, but it’s scrambling across rocks where you really need to balance yourself and be mindful of every step.
We saw hikers who were embarking on the full length of the Otter Trail with poles and huge backpacks on and I couldn’t even imagine walking across the rugged terrain with any more to balance other than myself. The views along the coastline were beautiful and the arduous journey finally led us to a beautiful waterfall. In hindsight part of me wished we brought our swimsuits to jump into the water and cool off as we saw several people doing this.
We really enjoyed this hike and the reward of seeing the gorgeous waterfall was worth the difficulty of it all. I definitely it but want to caution that appropriate shoes and a certain level of fitness is necessary given the requirement to scramble across rock and boulders that can be slippery.
Storms River Village
A short drive from Tsitsikamma National Park and you will arrive in this cute village on the edge of the Garden Route. The village has several places to stay, restaurants and even a small brewery.
It’s hard not to miss Marilyn’s 60’s Diner when you arrive. The diner is complete with neon signage and a pink Cadillac out front, a juke box inside, vintage Chevy car, motor bikes and a plethora of 50’s and 60’s memorabilia. I mean who wouldn’t want to enjoy an assortment of milkshake options, burgers or hot dogs post hiking. Do not miss stopping in even if it’s just for a look around.
As pescatarians, food choices at Marilyn’s were a bit limited for us so we crossed the street over to Woodfired Pizza – Papa Africa. This rustic family-owned pizza place was really cool, the pizza was delicious, and the service was wonderful. Creating our own pizza alongside a cold beer was a perfect post hiking treat. If you are a beer enthusiast don’t miss the Tsitsikamma Microbrewery too which is next door to Marilyn’s.
Marilyn’s 60’s Diner – Storms River Village
Final takeaways
The Garden Route was nothing short of amazing with so many beautiful towns, places to see and unlimited activities to take part in. I can completely understand how people can spend a lot more time exploring the area.
Given we had a limited number of days for our trip, and also included Cape Town and Botswana, we struggled to find more time. Ideally I’d throw in an extra night or two somewhere along the way, to either spend more time on the hiking trails, try some water sports or just to break up the long drive back to Cape Town!
I would definitely consider 3 nights as a minimum when planning your trip.