Travel Guide: Beaufort West

I am trying something new for the blog.   
I usually write a few posts about each town we visit.   
I am going to try to bring the information together in a Travel Guide for each town we visit.   
These guides are not complete guides to the towns 
because we cannot visit every site or stay/eat at every guesthouse/restaurant.  
 These are only guides to help you plan your own trip.


TRAVEL GUIDE: BEAUFORT WEST



How to get there and getting around

Beaufort West is easy to find.  The town’s main street (Donkin Street) is the N1 National Road between Johannesburg and Cape Town.  The easiest way to get there is by driving but there are also busses that travel through the town.

To explore the town we drove to the main road, parked and then walked to most of the sights. 

Places to stay

Beaufort West has a lot of places to stay.  Most of them are in the main road.  We decided on the Die Herehuis guesthouse in a quieter street since we were staying for two nights. (The main road can be very noisy with lost of trucks driving through town) 
The room was a nice size with a small kitchen area and DSTV.  We also had a small stoep with a place to braai.  The price was good and included a breakfast.  Read more about Herehuis here of visit their website.

Places to eat

The owner of the guesthouse recommended some restaurants in town but in the end we decided to visit an old favourite, the Red Canyon Spur.

After the day trip on our second day we bought a tasty pizza at a pizza shop and ate is in our room. Unfortunately I cannot remember the name of the shop

Things to do and Places to see


Beaufort West Museum
The museum consists of three buildings:  The old Town Hall, The Old Mission Church and Old Mission Church Parsonage.  We visited on a Saturday and only a small part of the museum was open.  We enjoyed the interesting exhibit about Dr Chris Barnard who did the first heart transplant. 

    Beaufort West Walk
    The information center has a pamphlet with a self guided walking tour to 20 buildings in town.  It is a easy walk without hills and include all the main sights.  It is a good way to see the town and we enjoyed it.

Dutch Reformed Church
The corner stone for the church was laid in 1826 and it was completed in 1830.


Christ Church and School Chapel
Both the Angican Christ Church and School Chapel was designed by
Sophy Gray in 1854 and 1849.

War memorial
A beautiful memorial to the for the men who died in the World War I and II.

Block House
The restored blockhouse was built during the Anglo-Boer War in 1901.  It guards the railway bridge on the road south.  If you drive further up the hill there is a beautiful view of the town.

 Karoo National Park
Another must for your trip is a visit to the Karoo National Park for scenic drives, game watching, the fossil route, hikes and more.

Day trips

There are many options for day trips from Beaufort West. We drove to the
North Cape to visit Victoria West, Loxton and Carnavon.  Here are some places
that are close enough for a day trip:

Karoo National Park (12 Km)
Prince Albert (131 Km)
Victoria West (136 Km)
Murraysburg (157 Km)
Merweville (159 Km)

Posts about Beaufort West 

Die Herehuis
Beaufort West Museum
Beaufort West Walk
Stone Churches
Dutch Reformed Church
War Memorial & Bird Street
Block House


Websites & Other information


Location: Beaufort West, South Africa

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