Adventure inside the caves and beautiful sceneries on the second day of the Garden Route
Something not to be missed while traveling in South Africa is the Garden Route, the scenic stretch between the Western and Eastern Cape. Outdshoorn is not officially part of the Garden Route, but it´s located just nearby and it´s a place worth visiting.
You might also like:
– The amazing Garden Route in South Africa
WHAT TO DO IN OUTDSHOORN
Outdshoorn is known as the ostrich capital of the World, there are over 400 ostrich farms around! There is a good place to watch the biggest birds in the worlds, and maybe even try to ride one!
If you aren´t vegetarian, you can try the ostrich meat (that looks and tastes similar to beef, despite it being a bird)! At the curios shops you can buy many souvenirs made with ostrich eggs, such as lamps or decorative objects.
The surroundings are also very special – to get there you pass through a semi-arid area, known as Little Karoo, with beautiful and dry landscapes.
You´ll may drive also through Route 62, the longest wine route of South Africa. There you can have a break at the small and charming BarryDale, and maybe buy some biltong (local cured meat snack), honey or souvenirs.
BLOGGERS TIP: traveling by car in the Garden Route can be a good option – to compare the prices of different car rentals, check this link. And if you book it through this link, you help to maintain this blog online, and you don´t have to pay anything for that.
If you´re into wine, you can stop at one of the wineries around for a wine tasting – I did it in Karusa, a very beautiful farm. Apart from the local wines, there you can also taste craft beers, produced by themselves! They also have good cheese and charcuterie platters, as well as pizzas, sandwiches and salads for lunch.
But the most know attraction of Outdshoorn is definitely the Cango Caves!
CANGO CAVES
The Cango Caves is a beautiful and mysterious cave, with a wide variety of limestone formations in the large subterranean area.
Some years ago you could attend to live concerts inside the biggest saloon of the cave – it´s a shame people start destroying it so much that they had to prohibit the concerts, it should be amazing to see one there!
You can visit the caves doing either the traditional Heritage tour (1h) or doing the Adventure one (1h30). I´d definitely recommend the Adventure tour, you see the same things you´d see in the other option, but you also have lots of fun!
In the adventure tour you go to some areas of the cave where you first just don´t believe you can fit! Tiny holes, narrow aisles, super low ceilings… In some parts of the tour you gotta literally crawl or even slide with your head down! It´s not recommend if you´re claustrophobic.
They offer regular guided tours daily, you can book it in advance or just join it when you get there. It´s important to wear comfortable clothes and sports tennis shoes or boots.
I visited the Cango Caves during the Garden Route Tour that I did with Earthstompers, it was a great experience! The visit to the cave is included in the tour.
ABOUT THE GARDEN ROUTE TOUR
If you book the Garden Route Tour with Earthstompers, the visit to the Cango Cave and to Outdshoorn happens on the second day. You can read more about the Garden Route here.
During the morning we drove past the semi-arid Little Karoo area, stopped at some viewpoints, drove through the Route 62, and had a break in BarryDale. We had a delicious wine tasting and cheese pairing at Karusa farm, and in the afternoon we visited the Cango Caves. We spent the night at Paradise Backpackers, in Outdshoorn.
The wine tasting and cheese pairing, and also the visit to the Cango Cave, are included in the Garden Route tour.
Btw, we also saw an amazing sunrise in Struisbaai (Cape Agulhas), where we slept on the first night of the tour!
SLEEPING
I spent the night at Paradise Backpackers, in Outdshoorn. It´s inside an antique house, it feels like as if you were at your grandma’s place!
They have a very nice bar and chill out area, with couches and fire place. Outside they have a cool fire bone, perfect to be seated around enjoying some drinks. For dinner they offer ostrich braai (barbecue), it´s a good opportunity for trying it.
How about you? Have you already been to the Garden Route and have some cool tips about the it? Or do you plan to visit it and have some doubts? Share your ideas leaving a comment here!
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Planning your trip:
– Travel Insurance: you have a 15% discount in your travel insurance if you book it using this link, or here you can compare different prices of travel insurances
– Car Rental: compare different prices of car rentals here
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The blogger did the Garden Route Tour by invitation of Earthstompers. I’d like to thank again for the opportunity, and also make it clear that all the opinions present here are independent and personal.
