Garden Route Galleries and Museums

Watch renowned local artists at work while you shop to your heart's content. The Craft Art Workshop in Mossel Bay is committed to empowering township folk though transferring skills and creating opportunities. You'll find beautiful gifts made of paper, cardboard, glass, ostrich eggs, shells, feathers, wood, pearls, fabric, wool, recycled material, porcupine quills and lots more.

History buffs and anyone keen to get clued up about South Africa’s heritage should make this museum part of their Garden Route itinerary. The Hartenbos Museum is one of the oldest museums in Mossel Bay and focuses on the Great Trek. Interesting dioramas and exhibitions showcase beautiful antiquities that give evidence of the lifestyle of the Voortrekker pioneers during the mid 1800s. A notable feature is the commemoration hall for the 1938 Symbolic Ox Wagon Trek and a remarkable exhibit of a typical traditional store. Majuba Avenue, Hartenbos +27 (0)44 695 2183

Dinner theatre aficionados in George have a new state-of-the-art theatre to visit for good times, delicious food and quality entertainment. The Kalahari Restaurant and Theatre opened its doors in September 2010 to cater for discerning theatre fans and music lovers in the Garden Route. The 400 seater theatre will stage the latest productions from the main circuit in a warm and friendly environment. The theatre complex houses a separate bar and a 120-seater family restaurant with an outdoor deck. A beautiful grand piano mounted on a circular stage steals the limelight in the restaurant which also functions as a cocktail bar and entertainment area. Bookings for shows can be done at the theatre or through Computicket. Patrons are advised to pre-order snack platters and pizzas to enjoy in the theatre.

View a life-sized replica of the caravel that brought master mariner and explorer Bartolomeu Dias to the shores of Mossel Bay from Portugal. Diaz is reputed to be the first European explorer to set foot on South African soil in Mossel Bay on 3 February 1488. He named Mossel Bay ‘The Watering Place of Saint Blaize’ after collecting fresh water from the spring on the day of the patron Saint Blaize. Today the spring still flows and can be seen in the Diaz Museum complex grounds. The caravel replica sailed into Mossel Bay in 1987 with much festivity, a gift from the Government of Portugal. Another treasure is a 1595 map of Mossel Bay by the early Dutch sailor, Cornelius de Houtman. Also on view are interesting artefacts and displays of maritime history during the time of the early Portuguese, Dutch and English navigators. Monday to Friday 09:00 – 16:45 Public Holidays and Weekends 09:00 – 15:45 1 Market Street, Mossel Bay +27 (0) 44 691 1067

Take a trip down memory lane at the Outeniqua Transport Museum. You will be able to see 13 different steam locomotives including a narrow gauge, the Emil Kessler- Johannesburg’s first steam locomotive and the impressive GL Garrett. Also on view are beautiful old carriages such as a coach from the Royal Train of 1947, Paul Kruger’s coach and private saloons. A photographic exhibition displays stunning photos of South African steam. There’s also train travel poetry and displays of crockery and cutlery previously used on main line trains and station restaurants. Road motor vehicles and a private vintage car collection complete the displays. Summer season (1 September to 30 April) Daily excluding Sundays 08:00 – 17:00 Off peak season (1 May to 31 August) Mon to Friday 08:00 – 16:00 Sat 08:00 – 14:00 Closed Sundays 2 Mission Street, George +27 (0) 44 801 8288

Friendship, good food, wine and brilliant entertainment. Plett's Barnyard Theatre is where it all comes together. The Barnyard started as a homely, rustic farm theatre right in Plettenberg Bay where friends and family could be entertained and eat, drink and talk into the small hours of the morning. It proved to be such a winner that more Barnyard Theatres started popping up all over the country. There are currently twelve Barnyard Theatres in South Africa. While each theatre is a product of its individual setting, they all retain the quaint rustic charm of the original farm theatre’s humble beginning. Arrive well before curtain up, bring your own picnic basket supper and enjoy your meal around heavy wooden tables in the warm atmosphere of this unique barnyard theatre. Sip some wine, kick back and be entertained. Teas, coffees and scrumptious cakes are available. Booking Office: +27 (0) 44 533 5432 Cell: 082 973 1246 (enquiries)