East London (Buffalo City) Adventures and things to do.
In this sunny laidback corner of South Africa, the city of East London, manages to retain its small-town friendly feel even though it has a bustling manufacturing industry. It is the gateway to some of the country’s most beautiful places. The pristine paradise of the Wild Coast, the snowy peaks, trout streams and thick forests of the Amatola Mountains and the pineapple covered hills and wide beaches of the Sunshine Coast are all…
East London (Buffalo City) Adventures and things to do.
In this sunny laidback corner of South Africa, the city of East London, manages to retain its small-town friendly feel even though it has a bustling manufacturing industry. It is the gateway to some of the country’s most beautiful places. The pristine paradise of the Wild Coast, the snowy peaks, trout streams and thick forests of the Amatola Mountains and the pineapple covered hills and wide beaches of the Sunshine Coast are all easily accessed from East London. Many excellent holiday resorts and private game reserves can be found in the wild and untouched landscapes within easy driving distance from the town.
You don’t have to head out of East London to have a wonderful holiday! The town is flanked by two significant rivers and has a lot to offer in the way of scenic beauty and outdoor activities. Its stunning unspoilt beaches, remarkably uncrowded for their proximity to the city, are undoubtably East London’s top asset. Lazy rivers intersect wide tide-rippled beaches, creating calm bodies of water where children play and swim while fish eagles freewheel overhead.
There’s a vibrant water sports culture, especially surfing and paddle skiing and some of the top surf spots in South Africa can be found along this coast. There are also many protected natural areas to be explored. It’s hard to believe that a place as tranquil and scenic as the paleontologically important Nahoon Point Nature reserve can exist so close to a busy city.
A visit to the East London Museum is a useful way to start your east coast adventure and will give you a deeper sense of this very distinct region. Two displays of great importance, the coelecanth and the oldest human footprints in the world, can be seen here. Exhibits provide interpretation of the unique cultural history of the area, the clashing of the AmaXhosa and the English settlers and the arrival of the Germans. You’ll have more understanding into why there are place names around East London like Hamburg, Berlin and Stutterheim and insights into the traditional Xhosa practices you might see on your journey. The museum also shares the stories of two of South Africa’s greatest anti-apartheids activists, Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko, who had roots here.
East London might be one of South Africa’s less renown towns, but its temperate weather, warm Indian Ocean and uncrowded and lovely landscapes have attracted many adventure operators, making it a natural choice of destination for the sporty and adventurous.
