South Africa Holidays

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After a few grim decades, when the thought of schlepping to South Africa and feeling the sun on your face was heavily tempered by the spectre of violent crime, the country is once again back on the map (the world cup is happening here next year), having firmly established itself as a travellers' haven.

And rightly so. South Africa has awesome mountains (from the snow capped peaks of the Drakensberg Range to Table Mountain which overlooks 'the fairest cape' of them all), world class beaches (Durban), excellent surf spots (KwaZulu-Natal), game reserves galore (although for the greatest diversity of animals Kruger National Park can't be beaten) and vibrant cities: step forward Johannesburg and Cape Town. For a change of pace, tour along the garden route to go whale watching in Hermanus or sip a superb wine in Stellenbosch or Franschoek.

Of course it's not all vines and fine wines and certainly there's no getting away from the fact the country has another face; aids is all pervasive (South Africa has one of the highest HIV/AIDS infection rates in the world) and poverty is very real. Nonetheless don't be deterred from visiting because above all a triumphant spirit prevails. What's more despite the hassle of a relatively long flight (swallow some sleeping pills and you'll be none the wiser), with On the Beach's tempting deals, getting there is actually the easy part. The hardest part is coming back...