Festivals in South Africa

Prickly Pear Festival – Uitenhage, Eastern Cape ( In Febuary)

It is held in late February or early March every at Cuyler Hofstede farm museum near Uitenhage. It’s a day of traditional food.

Lambert’s Bay Crayfish Festival, Lambert’s Bay – Cape West Coast. (2nd week in March)

You can feast on fresh crayfish and get festive at rock concerts by some of South Africa’s favourite musicians. There’s also bungee jumping, aerial displays, a half-marathon, beer tents and more.

Oppikoppi Easter Festival – Northam, North West Province. (just north of the Pilanesburg) Traditional blues and folk. Usually a crown of 1500. (not to be confused with the Oppikoppi event in August)

Tonteledoos Peach Festival –  Village of Tonteledoos, 20km N.W of Dullstroom, Mpumalanga. Usually in late March or early April.

Sasol Scifest – Grahamstown, Eastern Cape. Last Week of March.

Philippolis Witblits Festival – Philippolis, Free State. S.West of Bloemfontein. (In April)
This festival gets its name from the potent alcoholic spirit that is well loved in this area, known as “Witblits”. Real local hospitality, authentic Afrikaner volkspele (folk games)

Tulbagh’s Dutch Festival, Western Cape. The town is transformed into a festive carnival of street stalls and big brass bands. Predictably, being in the wineland region, food and drink are the main activities.

Splashy Fen Music Festival – Underberg, Drakensberg, KwaZulu Natal. +/- 5th to 9th April  Mainstream and alternative rock and pop. The longest-running and most renowned annual music festival, Splashy Fen has evolved into the ultimate outdoor experience for music and nature lovers alike.

Prince Albert Food and Wine Festival / Olive Festival, Western Cape. (2nd Week in May)

Fantastic music, food, wine and home grown festivities.

Bien Donné, the picturesque Boland farm between Paarl and Franschhoek, provides the perfect backdrop for a family day out in the country.

Robertson Wacky Wine Weekend – Robertson, Western Cape. (First week in June)
Participating wineries throughout the region will be showcasing their best produce and hosting a variety of activities including cheese and olive tasting;

The Goatshed, Fairview Wine and Cheese Estate, Paarl. Western Cape.  First week in June.
Enjoy smoked salmon, fillet carpaccio, pan-fried salmon, graved lax and fillet steak paired with a range of superb Fairview wines such as Chardonnay, Viognier, Merlot and Carignan.

Knysna Oyster Festival – Knysna, Garden Route.  Last week in 30th June.
In addition to oyster braais, oyster tasting, oyster-eating competitions and other molluscular activities

Franschhoek Bastille Festival, Western Cape. (16th July + -)
The country’s finest award-winning chefs and winemakers are setting up stalls in the town centre, offering delicious fare from oysters, local and imported cheeses to charcuterie, hand-made chocolates and salmon trout from the valley, complemented by Franschhoek’s fine wines.

Calitzdorp Port Festival, Calitzdorp, Cape West Coast. Last week in July. Includes annual “boules championships�?

Grahamstown National Arts Festival – Grahamstown – 29th June, to 8th July + –

Ellisras Bushveld Festival – Ellisras, Limpopo. 1st / 2nd week in July.
Cattle shows, a game auction, horse jumping, dog shows, agricultural activities, a three-day battle for the best 4×4 competition, a game farms expo, hunting opportunities, bird- and tree-identification competitions, boerewors and other traditional foods, a beer tent and huge camp fires.

Gariep Kunstefees – Kimberley, Free State. (30 August to 2 September  + -)

Afrikaanse Cultural festival.
Stellenbosch Wine Festival, Western Cape – 3/4 &   5th August + -.

Paul Roos Gymnasium, Stellenbosch
Over 400 wines from some 90 of South Africa’s foremost wine cellars will be available for tasting, along with a comprehensive program of festivities, including winemakers tackling each other in cook-offs, historic tours, kiddies entertainment area, tutored wine-tastings, food, crafts and a Brandy Emporium. Entrance fee which includes a tasting glass. Bookings can also be made at Computicket.

Hantam Vleisfees – Calvinia, Northern Cape. Last week in August.
Calvinia is sheep country, and this festival celebrates meat. There’s meat braaied, stewed, curried, in pita, on sosaties, in potjies – you can even pick up a done-to-perfection sheep’s head for a mere R30. First held in 1989, the three-day Hantam Vleisfees has a music concert, street party, vintage car rally and, a highlight for many, the Miss Vleisfees competition – a glittering affair with dinner and dancing.

Aardklop Cultural Festival – Potchefstroom, North West Province. (Last week in September)

Hermanus Whale Festival, Western Cape. Last Week in September.
To mark the migration of the Southern right whales to Walker Bay at Hermanus.

Johannesburg Good Food & Wine Show – Johannesburg – 7/8/9 & 10th September.
Gallagher Estate, 19 Richards Drive, Midrand, Gauteng
Discover sensational kitchen accessories, never-before-seen gadgets and taste food from around the world. Explore over 200 exhibits from award-winning wines, foreign beers and South African spirits to delicious delicacies, fresh produce and mouth-watering masterpieces. Learn new tricks when you watch your favourite celebrity chef cook up a storm in the Chefs in Action Theatre. Wine tasting, gourmet braaing or Champagne and oysters, savour your favourite taste sensation while discovering a host of new and exciting ones.

South African National Gold Panning Championships, Pilgrim’s Rest, Mpumalanga.
3rd Week in September.
Contestants will be vying for gold nuggets as they pay tribute to our gold rush ancestors of old.
Woodstock Festival – Hartbeeshoek, North West Province. Near Hartbeespoo.

Afrikaanse Music Festival – Vredendal, Cape West Coast during the( Last week in October.)

Awesome Africa Music Festival – Durban. 1st Week in October
It has three stages of non-stop music, with over 200 artists from more than 20 countries. The focus is on collaboration with musicians from Africa and beyond.

Cherry Festival – Ficksburg, Northern Free State (In November)
This week- long festival offers wall-to- wall fun including cherry tasting and beauty pageants. The Cherry Festival is the oldest crop festival in South Africa and has been held annually during the third week in November.