Oudtshoorn is known for its ostrich farms, and the Little Karoo town is full of historic charm. You’ll undeniably enjoy every moment of your visit to this town.
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Dubbed the ostrich capital of the world, it lies approximately 420km from Cape Town. While its museums tell of days past, there are dozens of adrenaline-pumping activities that will get your blood rushing and heart racing.
And in Oudtshoorn, you get to experience this incredible feeling in some of the most beautiful settings in the world.
For those who like living life to the extreme, these activities will get your heart racing and actually take you a notch above your usual adventures:
1. Caving
- Location: Cango Caves R328 Cango Valley, Oudtshoorn
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Departure: Every hour from 9am to 4pm
- Route: Van Zyl and Botha Halls
- Fitness Level: Easy
- Restrictions: None
Adventure tour:
- Duration: 90 minutes
- Departure: Every hour on the half-hour from 09.30am to 3.30pm
- Route: Entire Cango 1
- Fitness Level: Moderate
- Restrictions: Not suitable for those suffering from claustrophobia or back ailments.
All tours are led by experienced, knowledgeable and accredited Cave Guides. Tours are offered in English but Afrikaans, German, French and other language guides may be available (check guide availability when making reservations).
2. Camel ride
Take a drive to Wilgewandel Holiday farm, ideally located 2km from the Cango Caves which offers various fun activities. But one that stands out the most is definitely taking a ride on the humped animal.
Both the young and the old can experience a memorable ride on the back of the popular desert animal in the semi-desert Klein Karoo.
- Location: Cango Caves road, R328 north, Oudtshoorn
3. Crocodile cage diving
If you thought shark cage diving was a little crazy, try getting up close and personal to crocodiles while doing a cage dive with a difference. Yes believe it or not a croc cage dive….Scary but a safe adrenaline-pumping adventure.
- Location: 191 Baron Van Reede Street, Oudtshoorn
4. Hot Air ballooning
Oudtshoorn might be famous for its ostrich rides but they can’t fly. A hot air balloon trip over the time-sculptured land of the ancient Little Karoo, with its old farmsteads and distant mountains, will give you a birds-eye perspective of the unique semi-arid landscape that lies between the Swartberg and Outeniqua mountain ranges.
No other form of flying comes anywhere close to its calm, serene nature.
- Location: Hangar C3 Mosselbay Airport, Aalwyndal, Mossel Bay
Experience the quiet stillness of the morning sunrise whilst soaring among birds and clouds. Make it an outing for the day, with an 87km drive just outside Outshoorn to NOVA Hot Air Balloons.
5. Skydiving
Do a jump of a lifetime and discover a whole new way to appreciate the awesome landscape of the Klein Karoo. Challenge yourself to a free fall with speeds of up to 220km/h from 10 000 feet while attached to a highly qualified tandem instructor with thousands of jumps behind them.
And of course, the instructor will give you a twenty-minute briefing to explain what to do during the skydive and then they’ll get you kitted up to go. Gliding back safely to mother earth will be thrilling yet rewarding too.
- Location: 145 Park Road, Oudtshoorn
Few things are as exhilarating and adrenaline filled as falling safely out of a perfectly good aeroplane.
With its backdrop of picturesque mountains, year-round sunshine and relaxed local vibes, Oudtshoorn and its surroundings offer the ideal setting to tick off all these activities from your adrenalin junkie bucket list.
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Picture: Skydive Oudtshoorn/Facebook