Mossel Bay, Western Cape

Mossel Bay at a glance

Welcome to Mossel Bay - one of the most beautiful towns along the Garden Route in South Africa. This quaint town offers, travellers, residents and investors natural beauty, historical attractions, adventure, luxury accommodation and mouth-watering restaurants. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Mossel Bay has the second mildest all year-round climate - 2nd only to Hawaii. The town also boasts the only North facing harbour situated on a South coast, and 2 of Mossel Bay's magnificent beaches have been awarded Blue Flag Status. Due to its rich cultural history, there are many interesting museums and architectural marvels scattered around Mossel Bay, enhancing your leisurely stroll around town. This magnificent town was the winner of the much sought-after Kwela Town of the year award in 2017. Mossel Bay Municipality has received 6 consecutive clean audits substantiating the financially sound position that the Mossel Bay Municipality prides itself in.

Justifiably, Mossel Bay is your go to destination for either a well-deserved holiday or a destination to settle down and savour the slow pace of paradise.

Mossel Bay is a coastal village situated on the South Coast of Southern Africa on the Garden Route. It is approximately halfway between the Mother City of Cape Town and the Windy City of Port Elizabeth.

When traveling to Mossel Bay, head North from Cape Town along the N2 passing through many smaller towns along the way, the N2 being one of the major routes in South Africa. Traveling past Mossel Bay continuing along the N2 you will reach the substantially larger town of George which is approximately 30min away, an alternative shopping destination to the Malls of Mossel Bay.  Continuing along the N2, passing picturesque towns of Sedgefield, Kynsna and Plettenberg Bay - these are also well worth a visit. Heading inland from Mossel Bay, over the picturesque Robinson Pass on the R328, about an hour away you will arrive at the historic town of Oudtshoorn, home of the Ostrich and not forgetting the Cango Caves/Swartberg Pass, amongst many other tourist attractions.

There are 2 hospitals in the area, namely Bayview Life Hospital, which is a private hospital and Mossel Bay Provincial hospital which is a government hospital. Both hospitals boast a range of specialized medical practitioners for your peace of mind. 
There are a number of schools in the area, a choice of English, Afrikaans and Bi-lingual, ranging from kindergarten through Primary to High Schools including Curro Private School accommodating babies from 4 months old at Curro Castle right through to High School - all your education needs and requirements are covered right here in Mossel Bay.

Mossel Bay has a variety of activities for the outdoor enthusiast. From shark cage diving, scuba diving, hiking the St Blaize Trail with its breath-taking views and exquisite flora and fauna.  For the more adventurous, dangle from the longest zip line over the ocean, (1.1km in length) followed by a 6km drive to the Mossel Bay aerodrome to jump out of an airplane, either solo or tandem jumps on offer, depending on experience. For the not so adventurous there are boat trips to Seal Island or a leisurely sunset cruise around The Point. For the wine connoisseur, right on our doorstep we boast TWO magnificent wine farms for wine tasting. For the not so adventurous, museums, water parks, heated indoor swimming pools for the kids and magnificent shopping malls for the family. If you are an avid sports enthusiast there are 2 pristine golf courses namely Mossel Bay Golf Course and the award-winning Pinnacle Point Golf Course (2014 & 2015 Best Golf Development in SA, 2016 & 2017 Winners of SA best Golf Course, 2018 & 2019 Nominated for SA Best Golf Course), further to this and unknown to many, Pinnacle Point has been declared a provincial heritage site due to the findings of Middle Stone Age artifacts. Additional activities on offer for the sporting enthusiast, include Squash, Tennis, Horse Riding, Swimming and our magnificent coastline boasts some of the most scenic paragliding sites in the country.

One of the most famous landmarks of Mossel Bay is The Post Office Tree, used by seafarers headed East, they left letters for home in a shoe or in an iron pot. Ships returning to Portugal would collect the letters and this is how the first Post Office in Southern Africa was founded. There is also the Shell Museum, Cultural Museum, Maritime Museum and the spot where Bartholomew Diaz landed in 1488, a replica of the Diaz Caravel is housed at the Diaz Museum. Another attraction in Mossel Bay is the Cape St Blaize lighthouse which is situated 20.5m high on the cliff face; the foundation stone was laid in 1862 by the then Governor Wodenhouse. The lighthouse, with its magnificent view over the bay, has a breath-taking restaurant/wedding venue.

Mossel Bay has a wide variety of restaurants catering for seafood lovers, those that prefer meat as well as restaurants with Middle Eastern influence.   Mossel Bay also caters to the Coffee Connoisseurs with a variety of coffee shops and espresso bars.

The two malls in Mossel Bay namely the Heiderand Mall and Langeberg Mall both offer an extensive variety of shops, including all the retail shops such as Woolworths, Mr Price Home, Mr Price Clothing, Game, Food Lovers Market, Checkers and Pick n Pay and some uniquely Mossel Bay boutique style shops.