KWAZULU-NATAL
Drakensberg
A thousand-metre basalt wall running the length of KwaZulu-Natal, with San rock art in the caves beneath it. A World Heritage Site on both counts.
Best time to visitApril to September
The uKhahlamba-Drakensberg is listed by UNESCO twice over — once for the landscape, once for the largest concentration of San rock paintings anywhere. The Amphitheatre in the northern range is a five-kilometre wall of rock, and the Tugela Falls dropping off it is among the highest waterfalls on earth.
Walking is the point. Trails run from gentle valley paths to the chain ladders up the Amphitheatre, so it suits mixed-ability groups better than most mountain destinations.
Winter, from May to August, brings clear dry days, cold nights and occasional snow on the high peaks. Summer afternoons bring dramatic thunderstorms that roll in fast — hike early.