Jeffreys Bay

Understand

The Jeffreys Bay region is renowned for its gorgeous beaches, never ending summers, plentiful shells and is best known as “the Surf Mecca of the World”. The beautiful beaches are safe for bathing and provide endless excitement for water sports. 2 km south of JBay is Marina Martinique, a development on 5 km of man-made saltwater canals. 2½ km north, is the beautiful valley of Kabeljousriver with its waterfall. These are good places to stay if you like a bit more peace and quiet than accommodation in town can offer. Aston Bay borders on Marina Martinique and if you cross the causeway over the lagoon of the Seekoi River, you come to Paradise Beach. Paradise Beach is relatively undeveloped with 6 km of unspoiled beach all the way to the Kromm River which separates it from St Francis. It is not recommended to swim across the river. Ocean temperatures are around 23°C in summer.

Tourist office 1 Jeffreys Bay Tourism, Da Gama Street (Shell Museum Complex), ☏ +27 42 293-2923, [email protected].

Getting there

By car Follow the N2 West from Port Elizabeth (75 km) or the N2 East from Garden Route and use the turn off to Jeffreys Bay. Jeffreys Bay is 876 km from Durban and 356 km from East London.

By bus The BazBus stops on its way from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth in J-Bay and there are a number of intercity bus companies stopping in Humansdorp (drop-off for St Francis) and Jeffreys Bay. Minibus taxis depart from the corner of Goedehoop and St Francis Street going to and from Port Elizabeth. one hour. R50. Eldo Coaches have buses from Jeffreys Bay going to Cape Town and East London. The fare from Jeffreys Bay to Cape Town is R360, and the fare from Jeffreys Bay to East London is R310.

By shuttle St Francis Bay Airport Shuttle services, toll-free: +0861 EZSHUTTLE (397488853), +0861 397 488, [email protected]. This cab service travels between Port Elizabeth airport, Jeffreys and St Francis Bay and transport tourists in and around the various towns and establishments. J-Bay Cabs, ☏ +27 83 611-1003. Offers shuttle service between Port Elizabeth, Jeffreys Bay and St Francis Bay, registered and fully insured, Available 24/7.

By plane The nearest airport is the Port Elizabeth International Airport, which is approximately 75 km away. Despite its name it only has domestic services, but you can fly in from other world cities with a change of planes in Johannesburg or Cape Town. The latter is approximately 650 km away and you can travel that trip overland if you have time and want to see more of southernmost Africa. For general aviation, there is a good gravel airstrip - 1300 m for small planes in Paradise Beach.

Getting around

You can easily walk around in town. Most places you want to be are centered around Da Gama Road, the main beach and Supertubes. Car rental, taxi, and bike rental are also available.

Fat Bike Beach Rides (All Africa Adventures), Kabeljouws Road (Kabeljouws Lagoon at ablutions), ☏ +27 83 661-5393, [email protected]. As the name says, rides in the beach with Fat Bikes with special balloon tires making riding on the beach fun. R250. (updated Jun 2022) JBay Cabs (Metered Taxi Cab), 18 Da Gama Road (in main road town centre), ☏ +27 0836111003, [email protected]. (updated Jun 2022)

See

1 Jeffreys Bay Surf Museum, 24 Da Gama Rd (inside the QuicksilverShop), ☏ +27 84 240-1741. The history of surfing in Jeffreys Bay is displayed by way of newspaper clippings, articles, old magazines, ancient surfboards and lots of other interesting objects. 2 Jeffreys Bay Shell Museum, Da Gama Street, ☏ +27 42 293-1945, [email protected]. M-Sa 9AM-4PM, Su 9AM-1PM. J-Bay is well known for the huge quantity and the quality of shells that can be found on the beaches. A good book to use as a guide is The Sea Shells of Jeffreys Bay by Douw and Elise Steyn (ISBN 0620240083, Eldolise Publishers, [email protected]). There is an annual Shell Festival in September and a lovely Shell Museum on the corner of Drommedaris and Da Gama Roads. 3 Aston Bay (between Jeffreys Bay and Paradise Beach). This area offers long stretches of untouched sandy beaches surrounded by protected nature reserves. Sightings of small buck, tortoises, a large variety of birds, rabbits and mongoose are part of every day life in this nature conservancy and the creatures are much loved by local home-dwellers. 4 Paradise Beach. A wide and uncrowded beach, good for windsurfers and kite boarders with a nice breeze most of the year. 5 Noorsekloof Nature Reserve (in the north of Jeffreys Bay). A small conservation site, more like a park. It's made up of valley bushveld and home to over 50 bird species. (updated Mar 2019)

Do

The best beaches for sunbathing and swimming are Dolphin Beach (the main beach) and Kabeljous-on-Sea. The best surfing location is the 1 Super Tubes. Other spots include the Boneyards, Kitchen Windows, Magna Tubes, Point and Albatross. The area offers kite surfing on the Seekoei and Kabeljouws rivers, regular kite flying, canoeing, sea kayaking, scuba diving, and some great angling from the rocks or out at sea. Game drives, mountain and quad biking and are but some of the other options to consider.

Wacky Waterpark, Dolphin Drive, Marina Martinique, ☏ +27 83 661 5393, [email protected]. Suitable for all ages with floating obstacles and slides. (updated Jun 2022)

Surfing Be a spectator at the annual Billabong Pro surfing competition, watch surfers at Supertubes all year round or hit the waves yourself. With numerous surf schools, surf shops and surfboard manufacturers based in the town, there is no excuse not to learn.

2 Jeffreys Bay Surf School, 30 Diaz Road, ☏ +27 42 293-4214, +27 82 324-7284, [email protected]. Wetsuit and board is supplied. Around R300 for first lesson. 3 Ubuntu Surf Co., 8 Cherry Street, ☏ +27 42 296-0376. Offers excellent surf lessons with the Andrew Moon & Wavecrest Surf Academy. Guided surf tours are available for the JBay & St Francis area, plus longer trips going as far as Cape Town and the Garden Route. from R200.

Fishing A number of companies offer deep sea fishing charters. Most of the boats operate from nearby St Francis.

Golf 4 Jeffreys Bay Golf Club, Disa Ave, ☏ +27 42 293-2532, [email protected]. 9-hole (18-tee) golf course.

Horse, hiking & mountain biking trails There are a few small nature reserves in the area, such as the Kabeljous Nature Reserve, which is a walk-about reserve with a safe beach for swimming and excellent fishing spots, as well as bird watching. The reserve includes a 4-km hiking trail and its own flock of pink flamingoes (when in season). Nature lovers can also enjoy the Noorse

Buy

Most shops and businesses are along the main road (Da Gama Street) or concentrated around the small main town area.

1 Fountains Mall. 9AM-6PM. The Fountains Mall outside of J-Bay had lots of the major shops, e.g., Game, Clicks, Mr Price, Woolworths. (updated Mar 2019)

Supermarkets 2 Spar, 4 Mimosa Street. (updated Sep 2015) 3 Pick N Pay, S