ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION
Golden Gate Highlands National Park lies nestled in the rolling foothills of the Maluti Mountains of the north-eastern Free State. Loved for its unusual scenery and renowned for its golden aura as the sun lights up the sandstone cliffs and outcrops, the Golden Gate Highlands National Park is central to Johannesburg, Durban and Bloemfontein, making it the ideal escape if you long to stretch your legs, breathe fresh mountain air and let nature lift up your soul.
This is true highlands habitat, home to a variety of mammals – black wildebeest, eland, blesbok, oribi, springbok and Burchell’s zebra – and birds, including the rare bearded vulture (lammergeier) and the equally rare bald ibis, which breed in the ledges of the sandstone cliff.
This area also offers prehistoric fossils from the age around 200 million-years ago when dinosaurs roamed the plains of the eastern Free State, back when what is now South America and Africa formed one giant continent called Gondwana.
Prices quoted are only to for access to the park.
HOW WE RATE IT & WHY WE LIKE IT
This national park offers 1 to 5 hour hikes, game viewing at leisure in your own car, environmental education course (varying from 1 to 5 days), horse-riding, swimming in natural pools and longer hiking trails through beautiful territory.
