Hermanus

Hermanus is a very cozy fisherman’s coastal town located on Walkers Bay in the Western Cape province. Hermanus is the best known place when it comes to whale watching and from July to November it is pleasantly busy here. The wonderful climate and beautiful surroundings, however, attract day visitors and tourists all year round.

The most important attraction of course remains spotting the whales. There are different ways to see them: ashore, with a Whale watching boat trip or even from an airplane. Hermanus is the only place where the Whale Announcer walks around, he honks his horn when whales can be seen in the bay. To celebrate that the whales are back, the Hermanus Whale Festival is held every year (end of September).

In addition to whale watching, you can also do other things in Hermanus such as a boat trip, kayaking, shark cage diving, tandem paragliding, diving, sailing and horse riding. In addition to the weekly fresh food market, there are regular art, antiques and craft markets. There are several kilometers long, wide beaches where you can swim and walk wonderfully.

Grotto Beach is the largest beach in Hermanus, other beaches are; Voëlklip, Onrus, Kamma Bay and Langbaai. Along the coast the Hermanus Cliff Path runs all the way to Hermanus. On this cliff path, which has been declared a nature reserve, the view of the sea and mountains is spectacular. Here you can spot the whales and you can also regularly see dolphins. It is also an excellent place for fishing.
Where you can also enjoy hiking is the Fernkloof Nature Reserve, here you will find 40 kilometers of hiking trails in various difficulty categories. Here you can walk between the protected and unique fynbos and have a beautiful view of the coast.

If you love to play golf then you are at the right place. Hermanus itself has the well-attended Hermanus golf course, Bobbeans themselves feel at home here and will follow your game at a safe distance. And just a little further away is the beautiful Arabella golf course, where you certainly have to play 18 holes!

There are 2 ports in Hermanus. The Old Harbor was no longer used after 1958 and was declared a national monument in 1970. In the museum you can still see how it used to go in Hermanus. The museum is divided into The Historical Old Fishing Harbor and Fishermen’s Village. In the New Harbor you can still see the fishermen unloading their catch every day. There is a fish shop where you can buy fresh fish, shellfish and crustaceans.

The villages of Gansbaai and Stanford are close by and worth a visit. The adjacent Heaven and Earth Valley should not be missed if you like delicious food and beautiful wines.

Information about the whales:
The Southern Right Whale is the most common but the Brydes and Humpback Whale are also seen. Around May they come to the coast of South Africa to calve and mate.

Most whales can be seen in October after which they leave. The name Southern Right Whale (Zuidkapers) is so named, because the whalers found this whale the right whale and because it was easy to kill. Southern hijackers can become between 14 and 17 meters long and weigh between 45 and 70 tonnes. An easy way to recognize this whale is the way it frees its lungs from fluid. He blows out the water in a V-shape. This is also the only one of its kind that has no dorsal fin.

The Zuidkaper and Noordkaper have been protected since 1935. They were hunted intensively for this. The Zuidkaper is an easy prey for the whalers because it mates in shallow waters and moves slowly. To know more about whales, visit the whale museum in the middle of the village.
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