Namaqua National Park

Namaqua National Park protects more than 1,300 square kilometres of the Succulent Karoo, from the Skilpad hills near Kamieskroon west to about 50 km of Atlantic coast. For most of the year it is a hard, dry place of quartz and stone-like vygies. Then, if the winter rain has been kind, the flats turn orange with daisies for a few weeks in August and September and the whole of Namaqualand drives up to look. Around 4,000 plant species grow in the region, more than 1,000 of them found nowhere else.

Getting there

Skilpad, the main section, is about 490 km north of Cape Town, roughly six hours on the N7. Turn off at Kamieskroon, pass the hotel and follow a gravel road for about 21 km to the gate. It is fine for any car. The coastal section is a separate approach: leave the N7 either 24 km south of Garies or 37 km north of Bitterfontein, then drive about 60 km of good gravel to the Groenrivier gate. Beyond that gate you need a 4x4; the coastal tracks are deep sand in places.

When to go

The flowers peak from mid August to mid September, but it shifts with the rain, which falls mainly from May to August. The display is weather-dependent in another way too: the flowers only open on sunny days, and they face the sun, so drive with the sun behind you and do not bother before mid morning. Winter wind off the Atlantic is bitingly cold. Summers are hot and still windy.

What to do

At Skilpad there is a roughly 5 km circular flower drive on gravel suitable for all cars, and two 3 km walks: the Skilpad trail heading west from the office and the Korhaan trail heading east. Look for the speckled padloper, the smallest tortoise in the world, along with gemsbok, red hartebeest, springbok, klipspringer, bat-eared fox and meerkat.

The Caracal Eco Route is a 4x4 trail of around 180 to 200 km from Skilpad down the Soebatsfontein pass, across the Wildeperdehoek plains and on to the Groen River mouth. Allow six to eight hours, or better, camp on the way. The coast has bird hides at the Spoeg and Groen river estuaries (waders at Spoeg, pelicans and flamingos at Groen), caves at Spoegrivier with evidence of sheep herding 2,100 years ago, the wreck of the trawler Aristea from 1945, and dolphins and seals offshore. River crossings can be impassable from June to August.

Good to know

• There is no fuel, shop or restaurant in the park. Fill up and stock up in Garies, Kamieskroon or Bitterfontein, and bring your own water and firewood.
• Accommodation inside is four self-catering chalets at Skilpad and about ten beach campsites on the coast (Platduin, Kwass and Skuilsklip among them), plus the remote Luiperdskloof cottage. In flower season everything books out months ahead, so look at Kamieskroon, Soebatsfontein or Hondeklip Bay too.

Last updated 6 October 2026. Sources: Wikipedia, Wikivoyage, Ostrich Trails, South African Tourism, Getaway magazine.