Cape Whale Route

Description

Imagine looking out across the Atlantic Ocean from the boardwalk and you spot a dark figure gliding through the surf in front of you. As more start to appear, you realize that this is your first sighting of a pod of Southern Right whales. Every year they come into the Cape waters to give birth between June and October. A more special and moving sight is hard to come by, and seeing these large animals so up close and personal will forever be implanted in your memory.

Begin your journey in Strand, a coastal town located approximately 50 kilometers southeast of Cape Town. From Strand, head eastward on the R44 onto Clarence Drive a scenic coastal road offering breathtaking views of False Bay and the Kogelberg Mountains. As you drive along Clarence Drive, you’ll pass through coastal cliffs, pristine beaches, and charming seaside villages.

The Cape Whale Route is the perfect outdoor family adventure. On this route, you’ll check-in to charming towns like Betty’s Bay, Kleinmond, Hermanus, Pringle Bay, Stanford Gansbaai and Baardskeerdersbos. Finally, continue south to Struisbaai along the R319 until you reach L’Agulhas, the southernmost town on the African continent. Visit the iconic Cape Agulhas Lighthouse, where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet, and take a walk along the rugged coastline of the Agulhas National Park. The route offers some of the best land-based whale watching spots on the planet, but it doesn’t stop there.

The road trip from Strand, along the coast towards the other towns on the Cape Whale Route, is an idyllic experience, with the Atlantic Ocean on the one side and mountainous Fynbos terrain on the other. The Fynbos in this region is the epitome of unique as most species exist nowhere else on earth. Travelers will pass through several quaint villages in between the more established towns.

STAYenRoute have identified the following towns and places of  “personalized accommodation” options on this Route.

Strand

Rooi Els

Kleinmond

Hermanus

Stanford

Gansbaai

Pearly Beach

Struisbaai

L’Agulhas