Hermanus and its surrounding towns offer a huge variety of tourism activities beyond beaches and whale-watching: culinary experiences, wine-tasting, walking tours and hiking, among others. But it can be difficult to experience all these activities during a short trip because they are so widespread. A local tourism company called ChillGuru has moved to solve that problem with its own version of the world-famous hop-on-hop-off bus.
HERMANUS FEATURE: Four Things to Do in Hermanus’ Old Harbour (with whales or without)
Hermanus is a stunningly beautiful town, with green mountains soaring over sandy, boulder-strewn beaches and of course the best whale-watching on earth. But even before arriving in Hermanus, visitors can enjoy one of the world’s most scenic drives on the road from Cape Town. If taken at a leisurely pace, this drive can fill up the better part of a day.
Hermanus, a small town in itself, is surrounded by even smaller, quainter towns.
Hermanus is a holiday town and there is certainly no shortage of touristy restaurants along the water where visitors can enjoy a good breakfast. But if you want to go where the locals go in the morning, for a serious cup of coffee, conversation and an unbelievably good meal, Tulip Coffe Bar is the place.
The Soweto Towers (also known as the Orlando Cooling Towers or the Orlando Power Station) are the most visually striking structures in Soweto — often portrayed in silhouette as a symbol of Soweto’s historical and cultural heritage.
Soweto’s appeal as a tourist destination is all about its history. Nowhere is that sense of history more palpable than at the Mandela House Museum at 8115 Vilakazi Street.
The iconic Sakhumzi opened in 2001 as the first full-service restaurant on Vilakazi Street, the most famous street in South Africa. Vilakazi Street is the only street in the world that was once home to two Nobel Peace Prize winners — President Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu — and today is one of the country’s busiest tourism centres.
