Visit Clarens During a South Africa Vacation

Street Cafe's, Art Galleries and Mountain Scenery in the Free State

Nov 11, 2009

Tourists enjoy live entertainment while sipping excellent coffee or tea, investigate the talent of local artists or drive to the majestic Golden Gate National Park.

Clarens is a small town in the valley of the Klein Caledon River in the foothills of the Rooiberge Mountains. Recently many artists made the Free State town their home, which lead to the bloom of the once nearly forgotten town. Today Clarens is a popular tourist destination in South Africa and is quite deserving of the name "jewel of the Free State".

Where Does the Name Clarens Originate

The name Clarens refers to the similarly named town in Switzerland, where former President Paul Kruger died in exile in 1904. President Kruger lead the Transvaal Commando in 1866 in the war against the Basoeto people and five of his men lost their lives at Noupoort just north of Clarens. Today a small monument in town commemorates President Kruger and the fallen troops. The town was proclaimed and named in 1912 to indirectly honor the former President according to BPJ Erasmus, Op Pad In Suid Africa, Jonathan Ball Publishers, 2004.

Street Cafe's and Art Galleries in Clarens

Over weekends, the streets of Clarens are a beehive of activity. Several restaurants and street cafe's cater for the regular influx of tourists from Gauteng and overseas. Most of the restaurants and pubs huddle around the town square and have large veranda's where tourists can relax and enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery around the town.

One of the most popular pubs and restaurants in Clarens must be the Street Cafe that regularly offer patrons live entertainment on the veranda. From the veranda the Rooiberge Mountains are clearly visible and tourists on vacation in South Africa can inspect the wide variety of motorcycles frequenting the town on their breakfast runs.

Clarens has more than 14 art galleries and this is a major tourist attraction for visitors to the Golden Gate area. Some of the galleries hosts popular South African artists and tourists may even at times view them while practicing their craft. The town sports several curio shops selling different forms of art.

Visit the Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Clarens is situated approximately 20 kilometers from the Golden Gate Highlands National Park. Here the sandstone cliffs and unique rock formations of the Maluti Mountains entertain visitors for hours on end. A vulture restaurant where rangers leave carrion in the veld and a man- made dam are only a few of the attractions the park offer.

A local legend is that the same year Clarens was established, the Titanic set sail. The Titanic sank and a resident of Clarens stared at the sandstone formations inside the Golden Gate National Park and remarked that a jutting formation resembles the Titanic. From that time onwards, the formation was known as the Titanic while other formations are called Gladstone's Nose and the Sentinel (Brandwag).

With the influx of tourists to Clarens, accommodation in and around Clarens is abundant and tourists have a choice of B&B accommodation, guest houses, hotels and camping.

The copyright of the article Visit Clarens During a South Africa Vacation in South Africa Travel is owned by Yolande Pienaar. Permission to republish Visit Clarens During a South Africa Vacation in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.