7 of the best road trips in KZN
Discover hidden gems while exploring some of Kwa-Zulu Natal's best road
trips.
The holiday season is here - the perfect time to do something fun and adventurous. One of the best ways to ensure you have a fun-filled holiday is to go on a road trip.
READ: Fun activities for kids in KZN this school holidays
To ensure you have the best road trip, it’s crucial that you plan:
- Decide on a destination and choose a route.
- Get your car checked and ensure that it’s in the right condition for you to travel with it – check tyres, battery, and lights.
- Have enough money for petrol, toll gates, and anything that might come along the way.
- Travel during hours when you will get to properly see the road and your surroundings.
- Pack different types of clothing just in case the weather changes.
- Schedule stops and find attractions.
- If you are planning to sleep on the road, book hotels in advance.
- Save map routes offline, just in case your internet fails you while on the road.
- Don’t forget your emergency tool kit.
Below are seven amazing road trips you can enjoy in Kwa-Zulu Natal.
Maloti Drakensberg Route
This is one of KZN’s best road trips. The Maloti Drakensberg route has exotic forests, and the route covers 13 000km of South Africa’s most breath-taking mountain scenery. It also has thousands of San rock art paintings, species of flora, and falls.
The Boston Bulwer Beat Route
Located between the Midlands and the Southern Drakensberg, the Boston Bulwer Beat is an amazing road trip.
Travellers can spoil themselves with abseiling, horse racing, mountain biking, tubing, tandem paragliding and rafting along the way.
The Amble Route
The Amble, also called the Albert Falls Amble, is a complementary route to the Midlands Meander and Boston Beat. At the heart of the route is Albert Falls Dam, and you will also find nature reserves, lakeside resorts, picnic sites, historic buildings, and game farms.
The Valley of Thousand Hills Route
Take a road trip from Durban towards Pietermaritzburg using the R103 to M13.
This route promises to be lots of fun. You will get to see the breath-taking Valley of a Thousand Hills, visit cultural villages to learn about the Zulu culture and you can even stop at the Game Reserve. For adrenalin lovers, there is quad biking, zip lines, and different spots and attractions. Kids can have fun at the Animal Farm.
Kwa-Zulu Natal Birding Route
The Kwa-Zulu Natal birding route is a perfect road trip for the bird lovers. It is considered southern Africa's birding diversity hotspot and conserves over 600 recorded species of South African Birdlife.
The route includes northeast, northwest and southern Zululand, further sub-divided into four birding areas: Eshowe, Melmoth, Mtunzini, and Richards Bay.
The Freedom Route
Learn more about African heroes while enjoying a drive around Kwa-Zulu Natal.
The museums alongside the route provide a unique experience of the historical stories of South African heroes such as Mahatma Gandhi, Alan Paton, Albert Luthuli, and Nelson Mandela.
The Freedom Route starts at Luthuli Museum in Groutville, north of Durban and ends at Nelson Mandela Captured site, at Howick on the R103. The drive is about an hour and a half, but you need to spend time in the museum, to fully enjoy the experience.
The Beer Route
Take a look into the world of beer brewing. The Beer Route offers travellers the opportunity of enjoying a beer tasting and to see beer products produced by the breweries of the Zulu Kingdom.
This route, starting in the Midlands, takes you to several breweries in Durban, Prospecton, Midlands, Wartburg, Battlefields of Dundee, and Eshowe.
To find out more information about Durban, visit http://visitdurban.travel/