The Hermanus Whale Festival, a prestigious Eco-Art festival in South Africa usually takes place annually at the end of September and the beginning of October. This fabulous event brings the town alive during the weekend-long festivities. This year’s event officially kicks off on Friday, 30 September to Sunday, 2 October 2022.
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Attracting well over 130 000 visitors to the pretty South African seaside town, with so many attractions for everyone to enjoy and explore. Traditionally, this renowned festival has been running since 1992 in Hermanus.
The breathtaking seaside town offers spectacular coastlines, stunning beaches and the cherry-on-the-cake is it’s tradition of Whale watching and hosting the annual Hermanus Whale Festival. Thousands of eager whale-watchers and animal-lovers from all over the world flock to this quiet seaside town every year to witness the beauty of the Southern Right Whale.
The Hermanus Whale Festival is the oldest and largest celebration on the South African whale coast calendar. With a wide range of activities for everyone throughout the day, including educational shows by specialist environmental scientists and researchers in the Eco-Marine tent, where guests can learn more about the endangered animals and conservation which is the focus of the festival.
When watching the majestic creatures close to the shore, throughout the 3-day festival visitors can walk through craft markets, food halls, wine and beer tents; enjoy live bands, DJs and music arts. While kids play in large arenas and watch magic shows, go on fair-ground rides and attend art classes, adults can watch vintage car shows; sports events like bike races, marathons and athletics.
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Of course, the largest highlight of this festival is the whale itself. Southern Right Whales come to the waters of Hermanus every year and they can sometimes be viewed just a few metres from the shore as they rear their young babies and play in the shallow waters.
Hermanus also boasts the worlds only Whale Crier, a man employed expressly to wander the towns cliff-tops announcing the presence and whereabouts of the Whales during the six month annual Whale watching season of June to December each year and the Whale Festival.
Although they arrive in June, the Southern Right Whales become much more visible from September to October, before leaving the southern tip in December. Visitors are guaranteed to see a whale during this time. Even if you’re not looking, the blast of the only whale cries in the world’s kelp horn will alert you to their latest movements.
A perfect Spring road trip for the family and kids. So start planning and booking your accommodation, with the beautiful seaside town offering a wide range of accommodations to settle in for the weekend festivities.
It goes without saying, this event cannot be missed and we’ve got you covered.
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