FREE STATE

The Free State is a rural province, situated on a large plateau on the High Veld. The western part of the province is sparsely vegetated and flat, where you can see for miles, while in the eastern part of the Free State, the Drakensberg mountain range proudly stands to say that there is more to this province than just flat grasslands. Other parts of the Free State consists of rolling plains.

GEOGRAPHICS

Most rainfall comes down during the warmer months, from October to April, and the Eastern part of the province receives a lot more rain than the Western part.

Average temperatures ranges from 16° C to 31°C in the summer and from 1°C to 18°C in the winter. It can be quite nippy in the winter, especially when the minimum temperatures sometimes go to below 0°C. Being on the High Veld, this is one of the colder provinces of South Africa.

LAYOUT

There is one capital city, namely Bloemfontein. The city mostly has Afrikaans speaking people living in it, although there are some rural areas where one will find squatter camps and lots of farms. Most of the province outside of Bloemfontein is made up out of black South Africans.

SURROUNDINGS

Surrounding areas to Bloemfontein are Virginia, Jagersfontein, Odendaalsrus, Welkom, Kroonstad, Harrismith and Bethlehem. Phuthaditjhaba and Sasolburg also form an important part of the Free State surroundings. Other areas around this province includes Xhariep Region, Motheo Region, Lejweleputswa Region, Thabo Mofutsanyana Region and the Northern Freestate.

TRAVEL INFORMATION.

When visiting in the winter months, it is a very good idea to have warm clothes, and especially warm blankets to wear. It can get quite nippy, especially when the wind is blowing, and one does not want to catch cold while there. During the summer, one has to make sure that one packs light clothes, because it gets very hot.

AIRPORTS

Bloemfontein has one national airport where flights land. It is slightly more expensive to fly to Bloemfontein than any other airport in South Africa due to the fact that Bloemfontein is out of the planned flight routes.

ATTRACTIONS

While in this province, some must see attractions includes the Basotho Cultural Village, where you can see the custome and traditions of these amazing Basotho people.

The Golden Gate Highlands Nature Reserve is a grassland area, covering about 12000 hectares of grass, with sandstone cliffs that truly tell a story! This amazing backdrop of the park was created by rain throughout all the years gone by, creating sand sculptures in the sandstone cliffs and is a must see! The some buck species roam free here.

The Vredefort Dome is the oldest and largest meteorite impact site in the world. It is said that a giant meteorite larger than Table Mountain crashed into the earth and opened up a crator, which is a must see!

Gariep Dam is a vast area filled with water, creating a tranquil setting for a traveller to rest. There are boating and other watersports and two nature reserves in the surrounding areas of the dam. It is also the perfect stop over for a day when driving down to the coast or up to Gauteng from the coast.

Sterkfontein Dam Nature Reserve presents steep, rugged krantzes, deep vegetation and a crystal clear lake. Several buck species roam free here.