South Africa in July

South Africa in July

Whales begin to migrate along the coast of South Africa in July

Johannesburg and the highveld is cool and sunny by day, very cold at night and dry.

Cape Town and the Western Cape is warm by day, cool at night and receives regular rainfall.

The Kruger Park and surrounds is hot by day, cool at night and dry.

• July is an ideal time for beach holidays on the Indian Ocean coastline of KwaZulu-Natal, which tends to be temperate to hot over the nominal winter months, and very dry. Conditions on the coast of the Eastern and Western Cape are less predictable.

• Game viewing in the Kruger Park and other reserves tends to be good in the dry season, as animals congregate close to perennial water sources and the undergrowth clears to improve visibility.

• July usually heralds the start of unrivaled whale-watching season in Hermanus and the Western Cape.

• Accommodation in tourist areas picks up over this period because it coincides with the long mid-year holiday break for South African schools.

• Hikers should be alert to the substantial risk of snow in the Ukhahlamba-Drakensberg over June/July. The 11-day National Arts Festival, the premier event of its type in South Africa, is held in Grahamstown over early July.