KwaZulu-Natal has it all: a long coastline of beautiful beaches, rolling green midlands inland, a wealth of African culture, the magnificent Drakensberg range of mountains, and game reserves stocked with the Big Five – all to be enjoyed with 320 days of sunshine a year.
The Amphitheatre in the Drakensberg Mountains. The uKhahlamba-Drakensberg National Park is a Unesco World Heritage Site. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Compiled by Mary Alexander
A thriving tourism industry means South Africa is closer to achieving its National Development Plan goals of skills development and creating decent employment through inclusive economic growth.
KwaZulu-Natal offers a heady mix of cultural, historical and natural attractions. Durban is a seaside city with Blue Flag beaches, and entertainment and activities of all kinds.
The province also has deep and varied cultural heritage – once home to the legendary King Shaka, it has one of the largest Indian communities outside India, and a strong British colonial heritage. You’ll see this rich mix of cultures on the streets of Durban and Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal’s major cities.
The Durban waterfront at sunset. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
A surfing lesson at Addington Beach in Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
A dolphin performs for tourists at uShaka Sea World, part of the uShaka Marine World development in Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Rolling sugarcane fields, a signature landscape of KwaZulu-Natal. (Image: Brand South Africa)
Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban was built for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Bungee jumping from the roof of the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
The Nelson Mandela Capture Site, outside, commemorates the statesman’s arrest in August 1962 at a roadblock near the KwaZulu-Natal town of Howick. Mandela would spend the next 28 years in jail. He was released in February 1990. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
The Durban yacht basin, with the city’s central business district skyline behind. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
The historic city hall in Pietermaritzburg, the capital of KwaZulu-Natal. (Image: Brand South Africa)
Traditional Zulu dancing. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
An Indian spice shop in Durban offers a range of delights. Durban has the country’s largest population of Indian South Africans, making it the largest “Indian” city outside of India itself. (Image: Brand South Africa)
Panoramic view of the 18-hole golf course at the Champagne Sports Resort in the Central Drakensberg. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
A colourful mural at the Durban Snake and Reptile Park. (Image: Brand South Africa)
A traditional homestead in Zululand. (Image: Brand South Africa)
Karkloof Canopy Tours in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands takes visitors on a zipline adventure through the second-largest indigenous forest in South Africa. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
The beach and lighthouse in Umhlanga, north of Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Umhlanga pier, north of Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Schoolchildren get a lesson in the aquarium at uShaka Marine World in Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
Bioluminescent jellyfish in a display tank at the uShaka Marine World aquarium in Durban. (Image: South African Tourism, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr)
