Go Self-Drive Tours

23/12/2024

Today we travel west to the little town of Loxton, one of the rare Karoo towns with plenty of trees. The streets are lined with 100-year old trees, and narrow water channels are used to flood-irrigate residents gardens. Here you can still see donkey carts passing by. Many of the original 100+year-old houses remain and are good examples of typical vernacular Karoo architecture. The unique stone Corbelled houses that are shaped like old-fashioned beehives are also found around Loxton. This is one of the two largest garlic-producing areas in the country. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

22/12/2024

Our next stop, Victoria West, is a pleasant small Karoo town nestled between two high ridges and built alongside the seldom-flowing Brak River. Sandwiched between two parallel hills, the town is consequently long and narrow with the main road in the town bisecting the valley almost equally. The town was established in 1843 and was named after Queen Victoria of England. Later, when a similarly named district was formed in the Eastern Cape, "West" was added to the back of the name in order to distinguish it from its eastern counterpart. The town in the Eastern Cape was then called Victoria East. There are a number of beautiful Victorian buildings to be seen in town. The Apollo Theatre town is also the only surviving Art Deco Theatre in South Africa. The theatre has a red velvet curtain that is still opened for film shows. The Apollo Theatre was built in 1928 by Andrew Aristides Bassil, a Greek immigrant who arrived in the town in 1923. In the 1950s it was renovated according to the then fashionable art deco style. It was declared a heritage site by the National Monuments Council. Victoria West is also the home of Springbok rugby legend Mannetjies Roux. He is the owner of the Victoria Trading Post and the Mannetjies Roux Museum, which is packed with interesting memorabilia from his days as one of South Africa's greatest Springboks. The Victoria West Nature Reserve on the outskirts of the town incorporates the Victoria West Dam and a number of antelope and other wildlife species endemic to the Karoo can be seen. The nature reserve is also an important breeding area for the endangered Riverine rabbit. The dam is a birding hotspot. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

21/12/2024

There are some 60 towns and cities worldwide named Richmond. The South African Richmond is situated next to the N1 in the Northern Cape Province approximately halfway between Cape Town and Johannesburg, and is our stop for today. Richmond is a lovely Karoo town surrounded that boasts several Edwardian and Victorian Karoo style houses with romantic verandahs. Richmond is the ideal destination for booklovers as it was recently proclaimed South Africa's first Book Town and is Africa’s only Booktown. Life in the village revolves around the thriving farming community. Richmond is surrounded by miles and miles of beautiful mountains and vast plains, which were once filled with herds of springbok. The grazing has now been taken over by large flocks of sheep, which give rise to the world famous Karoo Lamb. Most sheep farmers also keep herds of Springbok, Kudu, Gemsbok, Blesbok, and Hartebeest. During the unconventional, or guerrilla phase, of the Anglo-Boer War (1900-1902) the Richmond area saw many skirmishes between Boer and Brit. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

20/12/2024

https://youtu.be/eXXkcX72hro?si=W8JcXYOFzCX266BR

Nestled in the north-eastern regions of South Africa, the Blyde River Canyon is one of the greenest, and oldest, canyons in the world. It's beauty surpasses...

20/12/2024

We travel further to the little Karoo town of Hanover, often described as the town in the middle of South Africa. It lies halfway between Johannesburg and Cape Town; between Cape Town and Durban, and between Upington and Port Elizabeth. Before the advent of cars, all roads led to Hanover and virtually all travellers passed through the town. No wonder then that, Hanover in its heyday was home to the wealthy and eccentric. Trappieskop, a koppie just outside the town, was the site on which the country's first observatory stood, before it was moved to Sutherland. Hanover is a small, interesting town that seems to linger in the late 19th century in places as the fine examples of architecture from this era attest to. Hanover is one of those typical little Karoo towns that one simply has to stop at to enjoy the character of. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

19/12/2024

Today we visit the interesting town of De Aar. De Aar is a Dutch word that means “artery” and it refers to an underground watercourse in the area. De Aar was originally established on the Farm “De Aar”, and because of it’s central location, the government bought the farm in 1881 and built the first railway line from Cape Town to Kimberley. Today De Aar is the second-most important railway junction in the country, as the lines from the Eastern and Western Cape, the northern provinces, Zimbabwe and Namibia meet here. The junction was of very strategic importance for the English during the Second Boer War. The town has 110 km of track and a high traffic rate of trains every day. Major production activities of the area include wool production and livestock farming. The area is also popular for hunting, although the region is rather arid. There are ancient Khoisan rock engravings on the Nooitgedacht and Brandfontein farms, and a "Garden of Remembrance", which honours the British troops killed in the Anglo-Boer War. De Aar is famous amongst Paragliding & Hang-Gliding pilots worldwide as it holds 2 World records and many countries' National Distance records. During the summer months De Aar is home for several thousand Kestrels. Every evening the birds fill the sky above town and land in the big trees just as the sun sets to spend the night. Olive Schreiner, the famous South African author and feminist who wrote “Women and Labour”, lived in De Aar and her house in Grundlingh has been converted to a museum and restaurant. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

18/12/2024

Our next stop is Britstown, a small farming town situated in the Northern Cape province. The town is named after Hans Brits, who accompanied David Livingstone on a venture to the interior and then settled on the farm, Gemsbokfontein. Brits realised that the diamond boom happening in Kimberley would bring a lot of people to this part of the country hoping to strike it lucky (Kimberley is 250 km north east of Britstown). He was smart, and his town ended up right in the middle of the diamond route between Cape Town and Kimberley, functioning as a half-way station. A little later gold was discovered on the Witwatersrand, which brought an even greater rush of people via Britstown. The building of the Great Trans-Karoo Railway Line brought this fortune to a stop as it became easier for prospectors and diggers to travel by train. Today visitors to the town can view this history in the interesting museum housed in the old Holy Trinity Church. Other activities include visiting the local Khoisan rock art in evidence on many of the local farms, hiking/walking in the area and stargazing. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

17/12/2024

Today we travel to the town of Prieska on the south bank of the Orange River, south-east of Upington. The unusual name is a derivative of a Koranna word that apparently means 'place of the lost she-goat'. Prieska was established in 1878 and is renowned for its semiprecious stones. The British Stone Fort on the top of Prieska Koppie overlooking the town, is made entirely of tiger's eye. The fort was built during the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. The Schumann Rock Collection, including semiprecious stones and Khoisan stone implements, can be viewed at the municipal offices. Other places to visit in and around Prieska include Die Bos Nature Reserve (filled with local indigenous trees, shrubs, birds and picnic spots as well as suspended bridges across the Prieska River); Wonderdraai (wonder corner) is an unusual occurrence where the Orange River forms a U around an island in the shape of a horse shoe that creates the illusion of the river flowing upstream;
a memorial garden in town that hold a number of British soldiers' graves; and the Ria Husiamen Aloe Garden with its wonderful collection of succulents. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

16/12/2024

Today we visit Groblershoop, another town in the Green Kalahari, and a main source of export for large table grapes and sultanas. The Groblershoop region is also a major wine producing area. The nearby Boegoeberg Dam is like a green oasis in the desert and is a popular hotspot for camping, angling, skiing, canoeing and sailing. Though small, there is plenty to discover in this town and the surrounding area. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further ….. 🌵

16/12/2024

https://youtu.be/G0LoIufMXaQ Check out our guide and partner's channel for quirky mini documentaries and fantastic Africa travel content!

The magnificent, and the bizarre. The African Giraffe boasts some strange yet impressive features, so hop aboard for a quick lap around the plains for some ...

15/12/2024

Today we travel deeper into the Northern Cape to Upington is situated on the banks of the mighty Orange River. Upington is rich in culture and history. The town was originally called Olyvenhoutsdrif (‘Olive wood drift’) due to the large number of olivewood trees in the area, but was renamed Upington in 1898 after the Cape Colony’s attorney general at the time, Sir Thomas Upington. Like Wild West towns, Upington had its share of skirmishes and its share of fortune-seeking scoundrels. One of these was a man called George St Leger Gordon Lenox, alias ‘Scotty Smith’. An adventurer born in Scotland, he especially bought and sold illegal diamonds, stole horses and masterminded highway robberies. His gravestone is one of Upington’s tourist attractions.
Another noteworthy historic attraction is the spectacular Date Palm Avenue. Two rows of more than 200 date palm trees es**rt visitors over 1 000m to the entrance of Die Eiland Holiday Resort on the banks of the Orange River. The town is best known for its export-quality grapes, raisins and wines, which are cultivated on the rich flood plains of the Orange River. Upington is also well positioned for reaching the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Richtersveld, the flowers of Namaqualand and the Augrabies National Park. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

14/12/2024

Further along the road we get to Keimoes, a pretty little village situated in the Northern Cape Province in an area called the Green Kalahari – where semi-desert is contrasted with lush vineyards fed by the Orange River. Keimoes is situated on the biggest island in the lower Orange River region. One of the greatest attractions in Keimoes is the Tierberg Nature Reserve situated just 4km outside the town. This beautiful reserve includes Tierberg, meaning “Tiger Mountain”, which affords the visitor with a magnificent view of the Orange River Valley, its beautiful islands as well as its irrigation scheme. The reserve is home to several species of antelopes and indigenous plants. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further ….. 🌵

13/12/2024

After visiting the most northern coastal town yesterday, today we turn back inland to the town of Pofadder, a very small town in the Boesmanland region of the Northern Cape province. Some claim that Pofadder was named in after Klaas Pofadder, a Koranna (Koi-Koi) Captain of the area. Others suggest that the village was not named after the venomous snake that is common in the district. The surrounding areas are arid, sparsely populated, rugged and picturesque. Local farmers run sheep and goats for a living. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

12/12/2024

Next we travel to the most northerly town, Alexander Bay, way up the west coast, virtually on the border with Namibia. This seaside town lies on the mouth of the Mighty Orange River and was in the thick of the ‘diamond rush’ that gripped this part of the coast after diamonds were discovered here in 1925. Nowadays Alexander Bay organizes historic diamond tours and markets itself as the ‘Diamond Coast – forever Namaqualand’. But the town is more than diamonds and mining and a closer look at the surrounds yield a feast of indigenous plants, animals and insects. And the wild, totally unspoilt coastline really aids “getting away from it all”. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

11/12/2024

Today we return to the coast to visit Port Nolloth is a town and small domestic seaport in the Namaqualand region on the northwestern coast of South Africa. McDougalls Bay is home to clean beaches and calm seas. Swimming, walking, kayaking and boating; and fishing for snoek or yellowtail (if you have a permit) are popular activities. A trip inland to the little town of Lekkersing, just north of Port Nolloth, offers a ‘look in’ to a community workgroup ‘rusoord’ where local craft in the form of ‘velskoene’, mats, huts, dresses and ‘riempie’ chairs is available. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

10/12/2024

Today we travel further north to the town of Steinkopf, situated in the mountainous Richtersveld semi-desert, although not as arid as the rest of the Richtersveld. The town was founded by reverend Heinrich Schmelen of the London Missionary Society in 1818 at a spot where the Khoi Khoi had settled previously. The place was called 'Tarrakois' which means 'a peculiar girl' and it was later renamed after Doctor Karl Steinkopf of London who donated money for the new missionary station. Interesting sites to visit here are the Succulent Nursery (run by the Immanuel home for disabled); Kookfontein Eye (the spring in the hill above Steinkopf that is still flowing after many years); and Klipfontein Anglo-Boer War graves. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

09/12/2024

Today we visit Springbok. The town is known as the capital of Namaqualand and is the gateway to Namibia. It is also the commercial and cultural centre of Namaqualand. It lies in a deep low plain between rugged mountains. The town owes its existence to copper-mining undertaken after1850 and a ready supply of water. Today the main income generators are tourism, mining activities, commerce and farming. Springbok offers many attractions, historical sites, and museums. For the more energetic there are hiking trails and mountain biking trails. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..

08/12/2024

We end the week back on the coast at Hondeklip Bay where the shoreline extends for some 14 kilometers and boasts stunning views as well as many tidal pools and rock pools that are full of marine life. The town got its name from a rock resembled a sitting dog. The Dog Stone remains an attraction despite having lost a ‘nose' and ‘ear' over the years. The Aristea Shipwreck of 1945 is a haunting reminder and Spitfire Rock creates a dramatic backdrop to photographs as the water sprays powerfully when it hits the rock face. Visitors can immerse themselves in peace and tranquillity the town and surrounding area offer. Contact us on [email protected] for more information or to have us design a bespoke tour based on your requirements. Tomorrow we travel further …..