South Africa: George area or Cape Town?

[pfpedersen]

Hi -- we are going on safari in Botswana and want to spend the week of Christmas in South Africa in a rented house. Does anyone have any suggestions about where to stay? We are looking for beautiful coastline, lots of day trips and good eating. We have 4 boys in tow ages 19-11.



Patty P.

[kyshel]

try travelforum.org and search boards.
You may get very good referrals there.

[jashermd]

Hello,

If you want great scenery and outdoor activities, I'd recommend the Garden Route (but Knysna, not George -- there's not much to do in George other than play golf). There would be lots of opportunities for day trips to places like Oudtshoorn and the Cango Caves, and you could also explore the Featherbed Nature Reserve. Knysna is known for its fresh oysters which are lovely.

If you want to have the option of some cultural activities as well as outdoor activities, I'd recommend Cape Town. The coast will be lovely during Christmas, and there will be the beaches and Table Mountain for outdoor activities and museums and markets for cultural activities. The food will definitely be better in Cape Town in terms of both variety and quality -- many of the best restaurants in SA are found in the Cape Winelands. If you enjoy food and wine I'd suggest spending at least one night in the Winelands as it's hard to enjoy your wine when you know you have a 45-minute drive back to Cape Town along some winding country roads. There's stuff for the kids as well, including the opportunity to pet cheetahs at Spier (they are part of an educational project). LL has some nice deals with hotels in Cape Town, but Christmas is high season so you may find that they are blacked out.

One other recommendation -- if you're looking at Christmas 2007, I'd book ASAP as Christmas in SA is very popular with Europeans who are trying to escape the cold wet winter at home, and things book up fast.

Where are you going in Botswana? I love Botswana and have gone on safari there several times.

Cheers,
Julian

[jim ellis]

Gootbos is a wonderful location for families.....near the shore, great activities, and terrific food. Not a house per se but their cottages are wonderful. My wife and I were there in April and enjoyed it tremendously. Perhaps you can review it on the website if interested in a marine-life oriented location...it is about a 4 hour drive east of Cape Town.