Midlands & Frontier Country

Including Grahamstown, Adelaide, Alicedale, Alice, Bedford, Fort Beaufort, Hogsback, Peddie, Riebeeck East, Salem and Sidbury

Grahamstown, the city of 'Scholars and Saints' (some have added a humourous 'Sinners' to this title) is the hub of this region.  It's an area rich in cultural, historical and ethnic significance.  The Eastern Cape's 100-year Frontier Wars took place here.  Border skirmishes.  Racial clashes.  Various cultures met and fought here - Khoi, San, Xhosa, Boer and British.  A turbulent past.  This area has more forts than the rest of South Africa combined.  And many national heritage sites.

Nowadays, it's a melting pot of cultures, education centres and a favourite tourist destination with many heritage towns and villages with wide, tree-lined streets.

It's an area with one of the most diverse ecological regions in the country with spectacular scenery.  There's a wealth of outdoor activities for nature enthusiasts - game viewing, hiking, fishing, hang-gliding, abseiling, mountaineering and river rafting.

Grahamstown itself boasts some of the finest schools, colleges, universities (Rhodes) and educational institutions that can be found in South Africa.  It's also known as Africa's Festival Capital.

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Top 10 Attractions:

• SciFest (Science Festival) - annually in March
• Eastern Cape Eisteddfod - annually in May
• National Arts Festival - annually late June (Children's Arts Festival at the same time)
• National Schools Festival - annually mid July
• Grahamstown Flower Festival - annually early November
• Grahamstown's Observatory Museum and Victorian Camera Obscura - one of only two in the world (other is in Bath, England)
• 'Spirits of the Past' historical tours
• Historical Alicedale with its Victorian buildings and cultural Xhosa Village
• The artistic and enchanting town of Hogsback, in the Amatole mountains
• Fort Beaufort's museum - with weaponry of British and Xhosa

For more info, history of the area and festival programme, visit Grahamstown Tourism


The distinctive 'hog's back' ridges of the Amathole mountains,
framed by artist Diana Graham's unique Eco Shrine
in Hogsback, Eastern Cape.