Local knowledge

Taxis

Out in the Garden Route towns, taxis are expensive and difficult to flag down. Find one in a taxi bay or ring ahead and book.

Tipping culture

Service is generally very friendly and deserving of a 10–15 per cent tip. If you accept an offer from someone who approaches you wanting to watch your car or pack your shopping, give them a few rand.

Siesta and fiesta

Shops and banks generally close at 5pm and on Sundays; in larger towns or malls they may stay open till 7pm. Outside big towns, where bars and restaurants are still buzzing late at night, life on the Garden Route is pretty rural and remote, so your options will be limited.

Packing tips

Don’t bother with ballgowns: with the exception of a few Cape Town hotspots, South Africa is very laid-back. You will see a few people dressed to the nines, but walking boots or trainers, golf clubs and your favourite beach kit are a much better use of your suitcase. The wind can be quite cold, so bring something warmer for winter evenings on the coast.

Recommended reads

The Conservationist by Nadine Gordimer; Nelson Mandela’s autobiography A Long Walk to Freedom; JM Coetzee’s Life and Times of Michael K or Disgrace.

Cuisine

With miles of coast and open spaces, serious seafood and red meat are the mainstays of South African cuisine, with more unusual options including ostrich and kudu. Afrikaners like their meat roasted, typically on a braai (a type of barbecue), and their portions large (no doubt to help them hike over, swim round, ride across or climb up one of the region’s many large topographical features. The main discernible influences on modern cuisine are European, particularly Portuguese, but there is a growing trend in restaurants to get back to basics and revisit South African staples, such as corn, millet, sweet potatoes and pap, a maize porridge.

Currency

South African rand (ZAR). The exchange rate is roughly R14 to £1; R7 to $1.

Time zone

GMT +2.

Dialling codes

Country code for South Africa: +27. Cape Town area: (0)21. Garden Route: (0)44.

Do go/don't go

There’s no bad time to go, as the climate is Mediterranean and you’ll get about 300 days of sunshine a year. However, areas such as Plettenberg Bay can get crowded in peak season, particularly at Christmas and Easter. Winter days from March to November will still be warm but temperatures dip sharply at night. July to November is the best time for whale-watching.