Free State

Bloemfontein and the City of Roses

Bloemfontein, fondly nicknamed the City of Roses, is a city of surprising culture and genuine warmth. As the judicial capital of South Africa, it carries a quiet sense of purpose, anchored by handsome sandstone buildings, excellent museums and a café culture that punches well above its size. The Naval Hill Planetarium, the National Museum and the beautiful Franklin Game Reserve within the city limits mean you could spend days exploring without venturing far from the centre.

Ancient Stories Written in Stone

The sandstone Maluti Mountains in the eastern highlands hold one of southern Africa's finest collections of San rock art, with thousands of paintings sheltered under ancient overhangs at sites like the Clarens district and Qwa Qwa. These images, created over millennia by the San people, are vivid and deeply moving, offering a window into a cosmology and a way of life that shaped this landscape long before anyone else arrived. The village of Clarens itself is a jewel, ringed by rust and ochre cliffs and home to artists, adventurers and excellent restaurants.

Landscapes for the Adventurous

Beyond the flatlands, the Golden Gate Highlands National Park delivers spectacular scenery with sculpted sandstone formations, Bearded Vulture nesting sites and excellent hiking trails across rolling highland terrain. The Sterkfontein Dam Nature Reserve near Harrismith offers watersports and birdwatching alongside one of the largest earthen dams in the southern hemisphere. Whether you come for the stargazing on a farm, the cherry blossoms in Ficksburg or the searing pace of a Cheetah Kingdom encounter, Free State delivers on every front.