The Garden Route National Park has largely recovered from severe storms and flooding that caused more than R50 million damage in May with almost all tourism facilities and experiences now back in operation.
SANParks Head of Communications and Spokesperson JP Louw told Travel News the severe storms and flooding caused significant damage across the Tsitsikamma, Wilderness and Knysna sections of the park. Damage included roads, drainage systems, hiking trails, access routes and other visitor infrastructure. Several areas required emergency repairs to restore safe access and operations.
He said recovery efforts have progressed well across all three sections of the park.
“Most tourism facilities and visitor services have been restored and the majority of affected areas are operational. Recovery work now focuses on completing permanent infrastructure repairs and strengthening resilience against future extreme weather events.”
One of the major facilities affected by the floods was Nature’s Valley Camp in the Tsitsikamma section, which was forced to close temporarily.
“The camp is now open and fully operational. All hiking and cycling trails were temporarily closed during the storm and are now all fully open,” Louw said.
The main remaining tourism-related closure is the Outeniqua Hiking Trail in the Knysna section where repair work is underway.
Visitor confidence has also recovered steadily since facilities reopened.
“Feedback from guests and tourism partners has been positive. Visitors appreciate the rapid restoration of services and the continued quality of the visitor experience throughout the park,” said Louw.
