3 Best Sights in The Western Cape and Winelands, South Africa

This 440-acre nature reserve is in the heart of the coastal fynbos, where the Cape floral kingdom is at its richest. The profusion of plants supports 96 species of birds and a wide range of small mammals, including troops of chacma baboons. You couldn't ask for a more fantastic setting, cradled between the Atlantic and the towering peaks of the 3,000-foot Kogelberg Range. Walking trails wind through the reserve and into the mountains via Disa and Leopard's kloofs, which echo with the sound of waterfalls. Back at the main buildings, a pleasant restaurant serves light meals. Book at least two weeks in advance for a guided tour to take you around the gardens.

With several hundred species of indigenous flora, including succulents, bulbs, aloes, and trees, the Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden has been billed as one of the most important such collections in the world. If you phone ahead, you can arrange a guided tour through the gardens and the collection houses for around R60 per person. The garden lies on the opposite side of the N1 highway from the town of Worcester, but is easy to find if you follow the signs eastward from the last set of traffic lights on High Street. Follow the road from the entrance to the garden to the main parking area, the starting point of three clearly marked walks. There is also a Braille Garden geared toward the visually impaired.

At its best in August—when the Clanwilliam Flower Show takes place at the old Dutch Reformed church—the Ramskop Wildflower Garden is a wonderful opportunity to see many of the region's flowers all growing in one place. The best time to go is between 11 am and 3 pm, when the sun is at its apex and the flowers are open. You pay to enter the flower garden at the entrance of the Clanwilliam Dam, on the road out of town past the garden. They won't charge you if the weather isn't great and the flowers aren't at their best—that's small-town hospitality for you. There is a simple coffee shop in the garden. Expect opening times to vary for no particular reason.