iSimangaliso indicates "miracle and wonder" in the Zulu language, and it's a proper name for this World Heritage Area, home to Africa's most extensive estuarine system. Formerly the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park, iSimangaliso lies on the northeastern coast of Kwazulu Natal and connects eight interwoven ecosystems, including coral reefs, croc-filled rivers, lakes, towering coastal dunes, swamplands, and savanna.

The area supports an incredible variety of wildlife. More than 500 species of birds inhabit the park, as well as leatherback and loggerhead turtles, leopards, rhinos, and Africa's highest collection of hippos and crocodiles.

The panoramic Drakensberg, meaning "Dragon Mountains," is one of the top places to visit in KwaZulu-Natal and a famous vacation destination for South Africans. It's also home to the country's highest peaks.

The area contains the World Heritage-listed uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, a region of jaw-dropping beauty, with ragged basalt buttresses and San rock art, and Royal Natal National Park, house to the awe-inspiring Amphitheatre, a magnificent cliff face, and source of South Africa's main rivers.

The Giant's Castle Game Reserve in the country protects large herds of eland. Solid forests flourish in the sheltered valleys, and the area is home to more than 800 different species of flowering plants and great diversity of wildlife.

A mosaic of farms, old oak trees, and white-washed Cape Dutch houses, it's one of the best-preserved towns from the Dutch East India Company era.

It's a university town with a lively feel and exotic scenery. Foodies will love it here. Stellenbosch is home to some of South Africa's best restaurants, as well as many sidewalk cafés.

Past buffs can take a walk back in time at The Stellenbosch Village Museum, a group of four repaired houses and gardens dating from 1709 to 1850. Rupert Museum displays fundamental works by South African artists, and roaming around the Botanic Garden at the University of Stellenbosch is another top thing to do here.

It is one of the largest wilderness areas in the world, established in 2000. Kalahari Park is Africa's first officially declared transfrontier park and one of the top places to visit in South Africa's Northern Cape. Gnarled camel thorn trees, red sands, golden grasslands, and deep blue skies present a bold backdrop for photographs and game viewing.

Among the vast diversity of wildlife, this enormous conservation area is home to the famous black-maned Kalahari lion; stately gemsbok, with their V-shaped horns; the sprawling nests of sociable weavers; meerkats; and many birds of prey.

Along the country's southeast coast, the Garden Route runs for about 200 kilometers through some of South Africa's most breathtaking coastal spectacle. The route extends along the Indian Ocean from Mossel Bay, in the Western Cape, to the Storms River, in the Eastern Cape.

This famous driving route passes through rolling green hills, attractive coastal towns, lagoons, lakes, and coastal cliffs. Highlights of the Garden Route include the charming town of Knysna, grasped between dense forests and a sparkling lagoon. The beautiful Garden Route National Park, with its gorges, tidal pools, and thick forests; Oudtshoorn's ostrich farms and Cango Caves; and the seal colony of the Robberg Nature Reserve in Plettenberg Bay.