General Information
- Hermanus - Whales, Sharks, Beach
and much, much more!
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Watch whales from On the Cliff Guest House
situated right on the seafront of
Hermanus. Step out of the front gate
onto the cliff path and stroll to the village or the harbour .
The cliff path extends past our front gate for about 10km along the coast and boasts beautiful fauna and flora.
The cliff paths offer excellent whale watching opportunities as
the whales bask literally meters from the cliffs below you.
Some whale facts - the open mouth of an adult Southern Right
whale can be 2 meters wide
Every time a whale jumps out of the water (breaches) it uses up
the same amount of energy a human does in 2 days
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All our rooms have
beautiful sea and cliff views and face directly onto the
sea -refer photo above.
- Each year from the month of
June to the end of November our whales, the gentle giants of the deep glide
into the bay,
as Walker Bay is the breeding ground of the Southern Right
Whale, returning each year to meet with the same mate, to
produce, and then later, spawn the off-spring of their labour, each one heralded on arrival by the Whale Crier - the
only one in the world. The whales often sleep
or laze the day away almost within touching distance while the
more energetic entertain the crowds launching their huge bodies
out of the water to come crashing down in massive displays of
strength or waving their tales in the air.
- The Hermanus whale festival usually is about the 25 September
for a week.
-
Shark cage diving
or viewing from boats is available throughout the year with
especially good sightings during our Winter (May, June, July)
when the larger females tend to be back. We can pre-book
for you if you prefer. In season this is advisable. Should bad
weather prevent the boat from going out you usually are
accommodated the next day or when the weather clears.
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Hermanus beaches are
sandy paradises of sun and sea offering swimming , surfing ,sun
bathing ,horse riding and walks. Grotto beach stretches for about 20 km's and for most of the 20 km's you won't see anyone.
Kite surfing is very popular and spectacular to watch.
-
Hermanus has over 50
restaurants available offering stunning food and our local wines.
-
Whale watching
boats leave from Hermanus, in season, about 3 times daily and
should be pre booked.
-
Penguin
colony (Photo gallery) at Betty's Bay about 30 mins. drive away where
they are free but overhead walkways allow you an insight into their
lives.
- Abalone Capital of South
Africa. We are surrounded by abalone farms and abalone grows
wild in the sea all around us. Tours can be arranged. It is
commercially dived by local fishermen as well.
-
Golf is popular
and there are several local courses available including the
world class Arabella golf course home to the Nelson Mandela
Challenge. Golf clubs can be hired at some courses if necessary
and 18 holes will cost about 350 Rand at the Hermanus golf club. Golf clubs can be hired from "On the Cliffs" guest house or from the Hermanus golf club. Refer our golf button for more information.
- Wine route - our little known, but widely consumed, wine route boasts some of the best wine produced in the country, regularly winning awards. Hermanus is virtually surrounded by vineyards producing high quality, low cost to exceptional pretty high cost
wine. We do not have any large scale vineyards more the smaller family run type operation producing unique wines. Wine is relatively cheap in South Africa and is on a par with the best anywhere. Please enjoy, but don't drink and drive - there are tours, shuttles and taxi's that will transport you, otherwise just buy some
and enjoy it at your restaurant etc. Corkage will be charged but this is
usually not much. We stock some very nice local wine from our area in the guest house bar so you can experience the quality of our home grown wines.
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Sea kayaking is
very popular and no experience is necessary. Very stable kayaks
are used with highly experienced guides.
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Paragliding is
very popular with the hill directly behind the town used as a
take off area making full use of the sea breeze. The sky is
often full of brightly colored paragliders. Tandem with
instructors is hugely popular.
- Picnic on the beach or cliffs
of De Kelders. By prior arrangement we will take you by 4x4
along the dunes or cliff tops for a picnic at virtually deserted
beach areas. Not accessible to normal vehicles.
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Nightclubs,
restaurants, walks in the mountain, lots of wine, it is
difficult to imagine what more you could want.
- It is important to note that
we are about 1 to 2 km walk from the restaurants, nightclubs,
main road and village center so we do not have the noise they
generate. Whilst great to visit it is nice to have a quiet
nights sleep after.
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