Eastern Cape Beaches

Not only is Bonza Bay Beach pristine and stunningly beautiful, it has really great rock and surf fishing spots. A tidal river runs to it!

One of South Africa's Blue Flag beaches, Gonubie Beach is one of the best secrets of the Sunshine Coast. Access to this beach is along a 500 meter long raised boardwalk leading down to a beautiful tidal pool. The boardwalk is a fantastic lookout spot for watching dolphins and whales as well as surfers and windsurfers. Gonubie lagoon is popular with families, providing kids with many hours of fascinating exploration as they discover small fish, shells and other marine creatures. Situated only eight kilometers from East London, the coastal village of Gonubie is often considered to be a suburb of the city. But the chilled vibe and awesome scenery of Gonubie belies this. Lying on the estuary of the Gonubie River and enjoying a wonderful climate, Gonubie is a small piece of paradise on the Eastern Cape Coast.

All the rage for swimming, sunbathing and body surfing, Hobie Beach is the venue for the annual Splash Festival as well as the Beach Volleyball and World Boardsailing Championships. The calm seas, blissfully warm water (between 18 to 21 degrees in summer) and beaches patrolled by professional lifeguards provide the perfect combination for a family holiday. Hobie Beach is a good choice for swimming or simply sunbathing but if you’re a water sports junkie there’s no end to the thrills here - choose from scuba diving, windsurfing, kiting, surfing, jet skiing or surf skiing.At low tide the Shark Rock Pier side of Hobie Beach is a great place to explore, offering sheltered rock pools with interesting inter-tidal sea life. Kids love spending time here looking for creatures like starfish and octopus. Hobie Beach is situated in Summerstrand which is an ideal base from which to explore Port Elizabeth and its beautiful coastline.

Send your kids to Jonginenge Eco Adventures for an action-packed day while you take a much-needed break. The Jonginenge team will keep the children busy with exciting activities at Nahoon Beach. Trained lifeguards give surfing lessons and provide other beach-based action ranging from sand boarding to paddling, snorkeling to fishing and environmental appreciation. 083 305 2590 / 083 565 0514 www.jonginenge.co.za

At the mouth of the Maitland River lies a magnificent bathing beach backed by huge sand dunes stretching for about 5 km West from Beachview to beyond Blue Water Bay. Kids love the dunes for tobogganing and sand boarding. Maitland River Beach is ideal for leisurely strolls along the waters edge where you can collect sand mussels.

Nahoon Beach is part of the pristine Buffalo City coastline that encompasses secluded beaches and an estuary offering mild to wild experiences. Perfect for simply soaking up the sun or extreme big wave surfing, kite surfing, short hikes and fly fishing in the estuary. Join the team at Jonginenge Eco Education, or call a surf school and learn to catch the waves at this legendary spot.

Paradise Beach is a long sandy beach situated between Jeffreys Bay and St Francis Bay (7 km west of Jeffreys Bay and 7 km east of St Francis Bay). It’s actually a suburb of J-Bay but is relatively untouched by development. Surrounded by nature reserves and estuaries, you can often spot tiny buck, tortoises, numerous birds, rabbits, mongoose and otters – all much loved by locals. It’s an awesome place for windsurfers and kite boarders with good wind all year round. A not-yet-discovered windsurfing and kite surfing spot! Paradise Beach is one of the coastal towns where you are guaranteed to spend a relaxing day on a pristine white beach. The name explains it all – it really feels like paradise.

Pollock Beach is yet another beautiful Sunshine Coast beach that stretches from the Summerstrand lifesaving club to the beacon at the bottom of Admiralty Way. Beachcombers will find numerous shells walking along this wild shore. There are some good snorkelling spots close to the Humewood golf course - rated one of South Africa’s Top 10 Golf courses. Pollock Beach is favourite for swimming, sunbathing and body surfing. It also offers sheltered rock pools with interesting inter-tidal sea life. Known locally by surfers as the "Pipe" because of its excellent waves and surfing opportunities. It is the first place to pick up swell and the last place to loose it. Pipe is a sand covered reef that delivers a very descent left as well as a right. Along the beach you will find a cyclist path and new walkway stretching from within the dunes all the way to Hobie Beach and the Boardwalk. The Summerstrand Village Shopping Centre with a Pick ‘n Pay family supermarket, several restaurants, banks and gift shops is close by.

The estuary of the incredibly scenic Sundays River with its spectacular sand dunes and views of Algoa Bay is a knock out! Situated at the southern boundary of the Addo Elephant National Park, the Sundays River Mouth is calm and peaceful and offers a relaxing and memorable experience. The beach is exquisite - totally pristine with some of the highest dunefields in South Africa.If you're visiting this area a wonderful thing to do is go cruising on The Sundays River Ferry. The double decker ferry features a raised viewing deck which is a great place from which to watch the bird life along the river banks and game in the bush. Contact Les Kingma to book a cruise on 041 4680945 or 082 4654391.

Wild Coast Horse Trails offer lovely rides on horseback along the beaches of Kei Mouth and Morgan Bay. Overnight horse trails along the Wild Coast start and are based at Sunray Farm. This experience is considered one of the most glorious horseback beach riding holidays in the world! Book your riding holiday at Sunray Farm and Guest Lodge.