The Wild Coast offers a striking remote coastline. Families & walkers particularly enjoy this area with family-friendly coastal resorts on offer.
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The Wild Coast of South Africa lies to the east of the Eastern Cape game reserves. It's a beautiful and remote area of Xhosa villages, striking coastline and glorious sandy beaches. More adventurous travellers wishing to relax for a few days in tranquiity will utterly enjoy it, as there are a number of family-friendly Wild Coast hotels offering a traditional beach holiday.
Closest to the game lodges is the Ciskei coast. This is less dramatic than the Transkei part of the Wild Coast. But it still offers supreme stretches of sandy beach. And these are less than an hour from East London and less than 3 hours from most game lodges. So these options are the better choice if you only have 2-3 nights. See Prana Lodge and Crawfords Beach Lodge below.
Important Note: Most of the coastal hotels in Transkei area of the Wild Coast are very remote being well off the main highway (2+ hours in some cases). Consequently we only recommend driving between the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal, if you have at least 4 nights to spend en route.
What an incredibly special place! This luxurious coastal lodge has been a dream for the local people for many years. Its a community-private partnership which means that a considerable portion of the revenue and profit goes directly to a Community Trust. So you can rest assured - that whilst you are enjoying the wonders of GweGwe - your visit is directly contributing to the local community.
I visited just before it opened and in my two action-packed days, I only fitted in some of the activities. As well as the kilometres of unspoit golden sandy beaches, there is a wealth of nature to explore.
The arrival - we did the adventurous boat transfer into the lodge. And we were rewarded with amazing sightings of early arriving humpback whales breeching right by the boat. No guarantee that you will be so lucky. (Whale season is usually mid June to early November). However you probably WILL see the dolphins that love to surf the whales right in front of the lodge.
We enjoyed nature drives with two fantastic guides, Matt and Jade, where we saw a good variety of plains game. We also enjoyed short walks to amazing viewpoints and hidden waterfalls. You can even swim to the waterfall which cascades into the ocean. Bush picnics were also on offer.
We also enjoyed a wonderful early morning kayak up the river, some of us tried the stand-up paddle-boarding and of course swimming in the ocean. Keen mountain bikers will enjoy the range of trails on offer from easy scenic flat trails overlooking the ocean. To some more challenging descents and river crossings.
Soon they are adding the Activity centre with its lovely spa and gym (though there is enough walking and cycling on offer for alfresco workouts). It will also have a curiosity centre for kids and the young at heart as well.
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