Long live the Hibiscus Coast

The KZN South Coast is a national treasure. It's still the place to go if you want a classic seaside holiday complete with warm waves, cold beer, soft serve and good vibes. Here's your guide.

- EVAN NAUDE

It's February on the KZN South Coast and I'm here to see what the area between Port Shepstone and Port Edward has to offer. There's very little traffic and few people on the beach - I find parking without any trouble. I'm grateful it's the quiet season, but it's clear that this stretch of coastline buzzes during the holidays. Most of the beaches have seafront restaurants; apartment blocks jostle for views; there are ice-cream shops, tidal pools, promenades, curio stalls and pedal boats for hire. As you go further south, however, it becomes greener and wilder at places like Trafalgar and Southbroom.

It's a bit more than an hour's drive from Durban to Port Shepstone along the N2, then it's 45 km to Port Edward along the R61, where KZN ends at the mouth of the Mtamvuna River. On the other side is Pondoland in the Eastern Cape. As I drive south I'm reminded of the Garden Route - coastal forests, gorges, pine plantations - but the sugar cane, wild banana trees and palms are unmistakeably KZN.

The Khoisan lived in the area for generations, followed by the ancestors of the Zulu people. The first Europeans arrived by ship in the late 1400s but no permanent settlements were established until much later. (The earliest record of a Portuguese shipwreck on the South African coast is the São João, which ran aground at Port Edward in 1552.) More and more settlers arrived in the area over the centuries. Port Shepstone was established in 1867 after marble was discovered around here. By 1898, a harbour had been built. New industries in the 1880s attracted Norwegian, British and German settlers. The Norwegians, in particular, had a big impact on the region's development - that's why you'll see names like Oslo Beach and King Haakon Road.