Maybe it’s because I’m a South African, always thinking in terms of the precarious state of my country’s currency and what it can buy overseas. Or maybe it’s because I’ve been a freelance journalist for so long, scraping by on a meagre income. Either way, I’ve always sought out the free or cheap in New York […]

Several parts of the Cape Peninsula’s parks have reopened to visitors, six months after devastating fires tore across Table Mountain and vast stretches of Constantia and Silvermine, and engulfed the mountainside above Muizenberg and False Bay. All of the Cape Peninsula, including Silvermine (which reopened yesterday), Table Mountain and the beaches as well as Cape Point, fall […]

This is no five-step waltz, no quadrille, and by no means is it a cakewalk. It’s more like a cactus tango or a dusty Jitterbug, this Nama Riel dance they do so well out here in the Northern Cape Karoo. It’s ‘Stomp the Yard’ in Calvinia, Williston, Brandvlei and beyond. The cheering crowd forms a square […]

According to a list compiled by BuzzFeed, four of the world’s most secluded hotels are in Africa. The list was put together by the website’s Photo Essay Editor Gabriel H. Sanchez who describes the 22 locations as “perfect for people who hate people”. The list – which begins with “pretty much the most photogenic hotel in the world” Explora […]

American actress Uma Thurman has joined the ranks of celebrities putting their names behind save-the-rhino causes, with the magazine Town & Country dedicating its entire October Issue to the rhino, including a long feature in which Thurman is shown on a trip to relocate a pair of rhino. Thurman, who has acted in “Kill Bill” and is […]

Meet Table Mountain, KwaZulu-Natal… The entire planet knows about Cape Town’s iconic version…but not many people in and out of South Africa have ever seen or heard of Pietermaritzburgs’ own Table Mountain. These photos, captured by Peter de Groot from PdGPix, reveal the incredible views from Pietermaritzburg’s Table Mountain over KwaZulu-Natal… “Awesome views of the Msunduzi and […]

While the falling rand is bad news for South Africans, tourists from abroad – or South Africans living overseas – can score big during the currency’s slump. While other safari destinations in Southern and East Africa quote their prices in U.S. dollars, South Africa still quotes in rand, making it more attractive, according to safari operator Onne […]

In June this year, four months after Al-Shabaab militants massacred 148 people at Garissa, South African safari-operator Steve Fitzgerald welcomed the first guests to Angama Mara in Kenya. Fitzgerald maintains there’s simply no comparable super-luxury lodge in the Mara. ‘If Angama is successful, it could do the same for Kenya as the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge […]

Sunsets, yachts and fabulous flowers…just a few things that make Langebaan one of the most beautiful spots to visit in South Africa. If you’re in the Western Cape area this weekend, the flowers are in full bloom! And if you’re not…we hope you enjoy these fabulous flower photos instead. Taken by John Cronje on Wednesday (2 […]

It was fast. It was fun. It was clearly something people in our lovely country should do. And thanks to Kia SA for making it possible after my trusty SUV broke down just in time to not leave! Read about the trip down memory lane – Part One and Part Two. Despite all the bad […]

Travel tips seem to be a dime a dozen these days and most people probably know it all when it comes to booking and organising their next holiday, or at least think they do. But what about travelling when you are migrating? Suddenly it’s a whole new ball game as you aren’t just thinking about […]

Well, that was a whistle-stop tour of the country. And yes, would have loved to have been able to take much more time doing it, revisiting every little fun thing I’ve seen over the years, but alas, time constraints and a couple of pre-teens (my twins, the Pixies) filled with ennui precluded that from happening… […]

Sometimes things come about because you’re tired of the fast pace of life, the continual “mission mission mission, get there quickly,” rush around…and then you come back from a holiday feeling like you need one. And dragging two fractious Pixies around while you do it is no fun. The Pixies are my daughters. Twins. So […]

Many of us probably think of Hillbrow in Johannesburg as a no-go zone, but Nick Bauer and Mike Luptak are making a point of taking people to its very heart. And to Ponte City too. And beyond. Through their company, Dlala Nje, Bauer and Luptak offer two increasingly popular tours – This is Hillbrow and The Taste […]

The new immigration regulations concerning travelling with children in and out of South Africa, implemented on 1 June 2015, have caused some confusion and a flood of questions. Here’s a guide that should make it simple and hassle-free so that you can focus on having a holiday while the SA government can focus on ensuring […]

There is a name on the American website GhostTowns.com that looks very familiar: Randsburg, California. Not far away is – you guessed it – Johannesburg! There’s also CapeTown…and over the Atlantic, in France, is a town called Durban. Randsburg, California The small town of Randsburg is nearly a ghost town today (although one reference puts the population at […]

It’s official. The rest of the world has finally woken up to what Durbanites knew all along – Durban is cool. Earlier this year the New York Times featured Durban as 7th on its 52 places to go in 2015 list. A little bit Rio, a little bit Miami, eThekwini in South Africa is in a class of […]

Along with the recently announced Health Surcharge, the United Kingdom has announced a series of amendments to its immigration rules, many of which will impact South Africans and most of which will begin to come into effect as soon as April 2015. The UK Government says most of these visa application changes are aimed at ensuring the […]

Cape Town has been ranked by National Geographic as the world’s second-best beach city in their latest Top 10 list. The international magazine places Cape Town’s beaches behind Barcelona’s “eight white-sand beaches that rim its Mediterranean coastline”. But the South African “capital of cool” pips Hawai’s Honolulu, Nice in France, Miami in the US, Rio […]

Most of us in South Africa are aware that as cute as it sounds, cuddling a lion cub is a no no. It just feeds the ‘Canned Hunting’ industry (where lions that are no longer cute are turned in to soft targets for wealthy hunters to kill). But did you know that taking part in […]

The Drostdy has always been one of the select few grand old hotels of the Karoo. As the prime accommodation in Graaff-Reinet, it began its “hotel life” as Kromm’s Drostdy Hotel back in 1876. The Drostdy had many re-models and facelifts over the century to come, the latest being an intensive upgrade that has taken […]

That South Africa punches well above its weight in the global luxury travel market was again confirmed with the release of this year’s prestigious Condé Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Awards.The country garnered the top spot in the best 100 hotels and resorts, and Cape Town was voted fourth out of the world’s 25 must-see cities. […]

So this is a true Karoo Moment… Jules and I are sitting on the front stoep of the Karroo Theatrical Hotel. We’re spending the entire afternoon on this stoep, drinking much wine and shooting the breeze with the innovative hotel owners, Mark Hinds and Jacques Rabie. But lest you think we’re a bunch of old […]

Karoo towns are never the first choice for those seeking the bright lights. Prince Albert, though, is an exception. It’s worth waiting until dark to drive down the main road and wait until the magic moment just after dusk, when the neon outside the Showroom Theatre flickers to life, highlighting its distinctive Art Deco lines. […]

Looking out at the vast and sunny Karoo Heartland today, you’d never think that less than two weeks ago we were all snow-stormed in. Which takes me back exactly 33 years to the day, when I was sitting at a bar in Montana, USA, called The Cherokee Strip. The locals who drank at The Strip, […]