Tourism Month: 4 Western Cape towns to visit this flower season

August and September marks the southern hemisphere's transition from winter to spring, bringing with it a colourful wonderland in the normally arid West Coast. Picture by Henk Kruger

August and September marks the southern hemisphere's transition from winter to spring, bringing with it a colourful wonderland in the normally arid West Coast. Picture by Henk Kruger

Published Sep 3, 2019

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It's an annual tradition that's always a blooming good way to enjoy a road trip - chasing the blossoms on the West Coast in the Western Cape.

September is the first month of blooms in many towns and national parks in the province and there is a variety of fauna and flora to see.

Whether this is your first floral excursion or you do this every year, it's always a good idea to map your route, know where you're going and what you want to see.

The worse case scenario is that you take the drive out and end up not seeing any of flowers, or the flora you're not interested in for whatever reason.

Chasing the flora is a great day out and a guaranteed way to make your Instagram posts blossom!

Gabriel Peters, six, is surrounded by spring flowers at the Postberg flower reserve in the West Coast National Park. Picture: Katoo Peeters

These are four towns you should consider visiting this Spring:

Barrydale

You'll find Barrydale on Route 62 in the Overberg between the Tradouw Valley and the Klein Karoo. Annually in October the Barrydale in Bloom flower show takes place but there is no reason for you to wait, you can go and smell the daisies (and other flowers) anytime from September. 

Even before you enter the town you'll be greeted by a blanket of fauna and flora so you'll know you've driven in the right direction.

Hopefield

This is the town where you will be able to see the delicate fynbos which is the jewel in the crown of the Cape Floral Kingdom. 

You can take walk on the Langrietvlei and Helderwater trails on farms near the town and really get a sense of what's on offer in this region.

Flowers at Postberg


This is a great start for flower novices. The Kettie Travel Flower 2-Day tour officially launched this month and is an exploration of the l flower display in the Postberg section of the West Coast National Park.

The organisers explain that: "from the West Coast National Park the tour takes you to the Thali Thali Game Lodge for a guided game drive amongst large patches of wildflowers. Expect to see animals such as Cape Buffalo, Kudu, Oryx, Giraffe, Red Hartebeest, Eland, Zebra, Springbok and West Coast birdlife such as the African Black Harrier."

The 2-Day West Coast Way tour offers departure days every Tuesdays and Thursdays and each trip takes a minimum of 3 people and a maximum of 12 – with a per person cost of R4945 per person sharing and R6195 for single supplement.

Details for the 2-Day West Coast Flower Tour is available

Ceres Rail Company

This an adventure for the whole family and you see more than just the flowers on display. Not only do you get to see the Ceres Valley, but the three day West Coast trip takes you from Cape Town to Klawer and on to Graafwater.

You can tailor make the trip to your travelling needs, dine and stay on the train and really get to take in the sights on the West Coast. 

More information is available

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