Hermanus & The Whale Coast
Hermanus sits on Walker Bay to the south-east of Cape Town, and owes its reputation to an accident of geology: the sea floor drops away so steeply here that Southern Right Whales come remarkably close to shore. Between July and November, the bay becomes a calving ground, and whales can often be watched directly from the cliff path without needing to board a boat. It is one of the more reliable spots in the world for shore-based whale watching, and the town itself makes a pleasant stop along the way.
