South Africa
Port St Johns
Two sandstone sentinels guard a river mouth where Xhosa fishermen cast lines into green, dolphin-heavy swells.
The Umzimvubu River rounds a final bend and the twin sandstone cliffs rise from the water like gateposts, over 160 metres tall. Between them, the river meets the Indian Ocean in a churn of green and white. Port St Johns on South Africa's Wild Coast smells of salt, woodsmoke, and frangipani — a place that operates on its own clock.
Port St Johns sits where the Umzimvubu — the largest undammed river in South Africa — reaches the sea through a dramatic sandstone gorge. Second Beach, sheltered by the southern gate cliff, has no road access from the sea side and no buildings on the forested hillside behind it. The surrounding subtropical bush holds samango monkey troops, spotted along the Bulolo Forest Trail above town, and Xhosa fishermen still run guided trips from the river mouth to offshore bream and kingfish grounds. The town has attracted a slow trickle of artists and wanderers since the 1970s, and their influence lingers in places like Delicious Monster, where wood-fired pizzas are served with parrots in the rafters.
Solo
A place to lose yourself productively. Walk Second Beach alone, eat crayfish negotiated directly from fishermen, and discover what happens when your phone loses signal for days.
Couple
The isolation here is romantic by default — river-mouth sunsets, deserted beaches, and eco-lodges tucked into forest clearings where the only interruption is birdcall.
Friends
Rent a backpacker cottage, hire a boat for the river mouth, and spend a long weekend where the schedule is dictated by tides and the braai, nothing else.
- The Umzimvubu River — the largest undammed river in South Africa — reaches the sea here between two sandstone cliffs rising over 160 metres.
- Second Beach, sheltered by the southern gate cliff, has no road access from the sea side and no buildings on the forested hillside behind it.
- Local Xhosa fishermen run guided trips from the river mouth to the offshore bream and kingfish grounds on small motorised boats.
- The Bulolo Forest Trail above the town follows a river through afromontane forest where Samango monkey troops are audible overhead in the canopy.
Fresh crayfish cooked on the beach by local fishermen — no menu, no price list, just negotiation and fire.
Wood-fired pizza at Delicious Monster, perched above Second Beach with parrots in the rafters.
Musandam Peninsula
Oman
Sheer limestone cliffs plunging into turquoise fjords where dolphins race your dhow.
Mazunte
Mexico
A former turtle-slaughter village turned eco-sanctuary where hatchlings scramble toward moonlit surf.
Santa Maria
Portugal
The Azores' oldest island hides a red clay desert and golden beaches the other islands lack.
Amami Oshima
Japan
Subtropical mangroves and black sugar shochu on an island the guidebooks forgot.
Blyde River Canyon
South Africa
Waterfalls pour into one of Earth's greenest canyons, subtropical forest climbing every wall.
Golden Gate Highlands National Park
South Africa
Sandstone cliffs ignite gold at sunset — the rock face shifts colour every fifteen minutes.
Hogsback
South Africa
A mist-belt village where moss drapes every branch and waterfalls vanish into cloud forest below.
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
South Africa
Black-maned lions hunt gemsbok across red dunes that ripple to the horizon without a single tree.