Knysna

Visit the Knysna Forests, explore the Knysna Lagoon, and enjoy the various other nature reserves that SANParks manages together as the Garden Route National Park. 

We love eating. And we love eating out in Knysna. And these are some of our favourite restaurants:

• 34 South at the Knysna Waterfront: Knysna oysters, seafood, sushi, pizza, bakery. Also sells wines and unusual gifts. Open for breakfast, lunch & supper. www.34south.biz
• Drydock Food Co.: Lunch or dinner on the harbour's edge at the Knysna Waterfront. Seafood, salads, sushi, fusion cuisine, sinful desserts. Live blues music on selected afternoons. www.drydock.co.za
• Café Mario: One of Knysna's most famous Italian restaurants. Tell Genaro we recommended it! (Waterfront) www.knysnawaterfront.com
• O'Pescador: Authentic LM-style Portuguese cuisine. Open for lunch and supper. (Waterfront) www.knysnawaterfront.com
• Tapas & Oysters: vibey waterfront bar and restaurant with kids play area in Thesen Harbour Town. Live music on selected nights. Open from midday(ish) till late. www.tapasknysna.co.za
• Sirocco: Sushi, pizzas, and oysters on the Lagoon edge in Thesen Harbour Town www.sirocco.co.za
• The Project Bar & Lounge (upstairs from Sirocco): sophisticated cocktails lounge and events venue with seeping views of the Knysna Lagoon: www.theprojectbar.co.za
• Urge Urban Café at Avo Pomme Creative Hub (Woodmill Lane shopping centre); coffee, cake, food, pressed juice, and kombucha - with regular art exhibitions and occasional presentations. Don't miss 'the universe’s smallest art gallery.' www.avopomme.com
• East Head Café (Knysna Heads): is this the best views from any restaurant on the Garden Route? Excellent seafoods and salads, and awesome desserts. www.eastheadcafe.co.za
• Riverdeck Restaurant and Farm Stall (at Goukamma, on the road to Buffalo Bay): traditional Afrikaans fare - braais, baboeties, kuierkos. Also offers  canoeing and other water activities. www.riverdeckrestaurant.co.za
• Totties Farm Kitchen, Rheenendal (on the 7-Passes road, close to the Goudveld Forests); restaurant and country store. Open Wednesday to Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and for buffet lunches on Sundays. www.tottiesfarmkitchen.co.za

Lagoon boat cruises

Departing from the Featherbed Ferry Terminal at Cruise Cafe on Remembrance Drive: 

• John Benn: Knysna's original wooden restaurant cruiser www.knysnafeatherbed.com/john-benn
• Paddle Cruiser: lunch-time and dinner cruises on South Africa's only working paddle boat www.knysnafeatherbed.com/paddle-cruiser 
• Three Legs Rivercat Experiences: 75-minute cruises on the Knysna Lagoon www.knysnafeatherbed.com/threelegs-rivercat

Featherbed Nature Reserve Eco-tours of the Western Head

• These four-hour excursions include a boat ride, a land-train journey to the top of the headland, a guided 2.2 km walk, buffet lunch (on selected tours) and return boat trip. Departures: Featherbed Ferry Terminal at Cruise Cafe on Remembrance Drive www.knysnafeatherbed.com
  

\Whale and dolphin watching

• Ocean Odyssey: boat-based whale-watching and dolphin-watching tours through The Heads from Thesen Harbour Town; also stand-up paddle board (SUP) hire.  www.oceanodyssey.co.za

Yacht trips through The Heads

• Springtide Sailing Charters: 90 minute to four-and-a-half-hour sailing charters on the 52' luxury yacht Outeniqua. From the Knysna Waterfront www.springtide.co.za
• Heads Explorer: 90 minute to two-and-a-half-hour sailing charters on the Lagoon and through The Heads. From the Featherbed Ferry Terminal at Cruise Cafe on Remembrance Drive www.knysnafeatherbed.com/heads-explorer

Knysna Forest walks & hiking tours

• Tony Cook Adventures: Tony also offers canoeing, guided trail running tours, cycling toursm kiting & surfing trips, etc. www.knysnaforesttours.co.za
• Knysna Hike & Bike: walking and mountain bike tours (beach, forest, fynbos, Plett Winelands) www.knysnahikeandbike.co.za

Knysna has always drawn the dreamers and the thinkers, the artists and the writers. But that's hardly surprising. Have you SEEN how beautiful it is?

• Knysna Fine Art – one of South Africa’s (ahem) finest commercial galleries. Specialises in contemporary South African art, handles works by the South African masters, and exhibits a number of internationally recognised fine artists. Situated in Thesen House, corner Long and Union Streets, and open to visitors - buyers and art lovers alike.www.finearts.co.za
• Peggy’s African Art & Tours - artist Peggy Dlephu is an accredited tour guide who offers original art for sale, art workshops, art classes for kids, and art & craft tours. She “loves sharing the vibrancy of the townships, local artistic talent and numerous other unique experiences in and around Knysna.” www.peggysart.co.za
• iAfrica Gallery - this online gallery specialises in contemporary art from Southern Africa. Curator Sandy Bekker lives and works in Knysna, and is available for local consultations. www.iafricagallery.com 
• Local museums – Visit www.knysnamuseums.co.za for information about the maritime and local history collections at the Knysna Municipality's Knysna Museum (on the corner of Queen Street and Main, just down the road from Hotel Claude), and about many of the other museums in the area – like the Motorcycle Room, the National Sea Rescue Institute’s Alex Blaikie Museum, the Ian Fleming Photographic Museum,  and the Garden Route National Park’s Forest Legends Museum.