The Green Kalahari Region, Northern Cape

The Green Kalahari is a world full of wonders and contrasts. Here is where the lush green vineyards stand proud in the valley bearing magical fruits not far from where the shimmering Orange River thunders into a deep granite gorge to create the mighty Augrabies Falls.

Did you know? Once you've booked your hotel or Green Kalahari accommodation, explore the destination pages below for info on attractions, activities and things to do when you visit the Green Kalahari.

The Green Kalahari is a land of genuine natural beauty where the lions and the leopard, cheetah, gemsbok, springbok, and hyena roam free through beckoning bushman grass, camel thorn and shepherd trees. As you enter this land, you will soon understand and come to appreciate the land we call the Green Kalahari.

The Green Kalahari boasts the best of both worlds: unspoiled semi-desert against the lush vineyards that fill the fertile valleys of the Orange River. This massive body of water makes its way through this harsh and dry landscape bringing life to the region and an oasis to locals and animals alike.

The history of the Southern Kalahari blends with the history of the people. The San (also known as the Bushmen) are Southern Africa’s original inhabitants. Many years ago, these hunter-gatherer people roamed the plains of the Southern Kalahari managing to live happily in these harsh landscapes.

Did you know? The Green Kalahari is a word that provokes both the traveller’s imagination and emotions. It’s a completely different world boasting huge vistas, climatic extremes and fascinating adaptations to harsh conditions. Nowhere else in South Africa is the build-up of a thunderstorm as beautiful and dramatic.

Today, there are only a few San people living near the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park. Their ancestors have left behind many unique attractions detailing their lives and hunting antics. These include the remains of permanent settlements on the farm Bitterputs in the Verneuk Pan near the town Kenhardt as well as many fascinating cave drawings and engravings.

Other historical attractions in the Green Kalari include Schröder’s and other old mission churches, his original home, the first water-driven mill, hand-built irrigation tunnels, waterwheels, an Egyptian-styled hydro power transformer station, a historical camel thorn tree under which the first town in the region was found, war graves as well as a date palm avenue in Upington.

Life in the green Kalahari is not only provided by the rare and strange plants, animal life or vineyards but also comes in a package full of sunlit travel delights. These include camel back trips, thrilling white water rafting, parasailing on the many pans in the region, as well as a spectacular afternoon microlight glides above the undulating red dunes and jagged mountains of Riemvasmaak and the Mier Kalahari with its 35 to 40 meters high sand dunes.

There is plenty to do and see here and something for all different tastes. For the less adventurous traveller one can explore the abundance of hiking trails or enjoy canoeing, mountain biking, bird watching, game drives in the national and many exquisite private game reserves, camping and fly-in safaris.

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Destinations in the Green Kalahari Region

Augrabies

Overnight? Augrabies accommodation
The little town of Augrabies that lies on the banks of the Orange River has been totally overshadowed by the Augrabies Falls National Park. Not only does it lie on the border of the park with which people assume it is synonymous, but very few people know ...

Danielskuil

Overnight? Danielskuil accommodation
Danielskuil is a rather quiet little town situated in the Northern Cape in South Africa. Fantastic fertile soil and an abundance of water saw to it that man dwelled in the Daniëlskuil area since prehistoric times. According to tradition, the name of t...

Groblershoop

Situated in a land of contrasts, at the gateway to the Green Kalahari you will find the little village of Groblershoop. Imagine arid, undulating hills penetrated by the shimmering Orange River valley creating a green strip right through and providing life...

Grootdrink

Despite the town's allusion to bigness - Grootdrink, translated from the Afrikaans, means 'big drink' - it is little more than a small town in the nether reaches of the Northern Cape on the N10, which leaves the N14 linking Upington with Kuruman, just out...

Kakamas

Overnight? Kakamas accommodation
Kakamas is a rather small town situated in the Northern Cape of South Africa. This interesting town was originally built by a church and named after the Khoi word for 'poor pasture'. Today, this name poorly reflects on a fertile valley in the lower Orange...

Kanoneiland

Overnight? Kanoneiland accommodation
Kanoneiland is a beautiful settlement situated in the Northern Cape. What makes this settlement stand out from the rest is that it is situated on the largest inland island in the gorgeous Orange River Valley. It is, in fact, the biggest river settlement i...

Keimoes

Overnight? Keimoes accommodation
Keimoes is a beautiful little village which probably owes its name and attractiveness to the local shimmering fountain. Situated in the Northern Cape in South Africa, Keimoes boasts an abundance of green foliage and undulating hills complemented by warm w...

Kenhardt

Interestingly, the area in which Kenhardt is situated was home to outlaws in the frontier days. In 1868, the Cape Government established a post here under magistrate Maximillian Jackson as well as 50 policemen in order to get to the place the policemen ha...

Olifantshoek

Olifantshoek lies at the foot of the spectacular Lange Mountains, on the Namakwari Route. It was officially founded in 1912. Olifantshoek is named after the tusk of an elephant which was used as payment for the farm on which the town was built. In additio...

Postmasburg

Overnight? Postmasburg accommodation
Situated in the Northern Cape in South Africa, Postmasburg is completely surrounded by beautiful green foliage fed by a dam and several shimmering fountains. Postmasburg was proclaimed a town in 1892 and named after Rev J Postma, a founding member of ...

Upington

Overnight? Upington accommodation
Upington is the chief city in the Northern Region of South Africa. This dry and hot area is characterised by desolate deserts and harsh landscapes. However, do not let that deter you. Upington boasts a marvellous oasis: the fertile and lush Orange Riv...

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