With Meiringspoort currently closed and access over the Swartberg Pass limited, we recommend following the N12 via Oudtshoorn, then the N1 through Beaufort West to Prince Albert. While the journey is longer, but it is the safest and most reliable route for standard vehicles. Please allow an additional 2–2½ hours travel time and check the latest Western Cape road updates before departing. Fully tarred and suitable for all vehicles.
The R407 from Willomore to Klaarstroom is shorter, but it is a gravel road.
See the route maps with driving times indicated (below).
Oudtshoorn was once the richest town in South Africa during the ostrich feather boom of the late 1800s: earning it the nickname The Feather Capital of the World.
It is home to magnificent “Feather Palaces” that still line the streets today – some of the grandest Victorian homes in the country.
De Rust is nestled between the Swartberg and Kammanassie Mountains; and sometimes Sometimes the smallest towns leave the biggest impressions.
Despite its size, De Rust has become one of the Klein Karoo’s favourite food stops, with cafés, galleries and artisan shops giving visitors every reason to linger a little longer.
Willowmore sits on the edge of the Great Karoo and the Baviaanskloof, making it a natural crossroads between mountains, valleys and wide-open plains.
The town is famous for traditional Karoo hospitality, where homemade pies, farm stalls and warm welcomes have greeted travellers for generations.
Aberdeen/Xamdeboo boasts one of the best-preserved collections of Victorian architecture in South Africa, with more than 200 heritage buildings.
Its Dutch Reformed Church is one of the tallest in the Karoo, with a striking 60-metre spire that has welcomed travellers since 1907.
Beaufort West is South Africa’s oldest municipality, established in 1837.
Just outside town lies one of the world’s richest fossil regions, where scientists continue to uncover evidence of life that existed more than 250 million years ago.
Safe travels and see you on the Camino!
