The Agulhas National Park offers visitors several nature trails, an environmental education centre and a world-class museum. Among the many other attractions in the park you’ll find the southern most tip of Africa, the famous Agulhas lighthouse and various interesting shipwrecks. Tourists also flock to this fascinating location to view the abundant fynbos of the area.
De Hoop Nature Reserve This reserve is situated east of Bredasdorp and is about 34 000ha in size. The De Hoop Marine Protected Area is located next to the reserve and stretches around three nautical miles (5 km) out to sea. The reserve can be explored on four walking trails, an 11km circular drive, on mountain bikes or while snorkelling in the clear rock pools. Whale watching is one of the highlights at the reserve where 120 Southern Right Whales return to the coast annually to mate and calve.
Shark Cage Diving Situated around 50 km from Struisbaai you’ll find Gansbaai. Thousands of adrenaline junkies flock to this fisherman’s village to come face to face with the Great White Shark. Shark diving is a major attraction in the Overberg and includes up close and personal encounters with sharks from the safety of a boat or while in a cage under water.
The Blue Crane South Africa’s national bird, the Blue Crane, is indigenous to southern Africa, with more than 99% of the population occurring within South Africa. In the town of Napier in the Overberg one can often see these fascinating birds gathered together in large flocks.
Shipwreck Museum in Bredasdorp The museum draws crowds from all over the world and pays tribute to the estimated 250 vessels and 2500 people that lost their lives on the southern most coastline of Africa. The museum is housed in a historical building in the centre of Bredasdorp where a series of scale models demonstrates the death throes of a ship. The bulk of the exhibits are the artefacts and remains from four of the area's biggest wrecks, notably the Arniston, the Birkenhead, the Queen of the Thames and the Oriental Pioneer.
