Focus on Uvongo, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa

Uvongo is a bustling holiday town that has much to offer the visitor. From St Michaels beach to Lucien Point you will find a hotel, modern flats and holiday homes that are occupied virtually all year round. The Uvongo beach is beautiful and the waterfall is a truly grand sight - with canoes on the lagoon and waves crashing into the tidal pool.

St Michaels beach is a surfers paradise and there is a charming 9-hole golf course, which winds its way through the neighbourhood and down to the river. There are Chinese, Italian and seafood restuarants, pizza take-aways, busy shops and supermarkets in Uvongo village, and in Manaba.

The Douglas Mitchell Sports Ground offers tennis, squash, cricket, rugby and model-car racing - with regular meetings held on the dirt track and the asphalt race circuits, as good as the best in South Africa - and is well-complimented by the Uvongo Bird Park next door.

Visitors can walk through the enchanting aviary to view the birds and other interesting animals. Take tea in the garden while the children enjoy themselves in the play-park. Just off the freeway turn-off in Uvongo.

Shelly Beach is the home of the ski boat, fishing and scuba diving fraternity. The Sonny Evans launching ramp is the gateway to Protea Banks - a magnificent submerged reef (about 7km off-shore) which is teeming with oceanic life, as well as gaining popularity as the world's number one shark viewing spot. Diving schools will give advice and training, and equipment could be hired.

The region's largest airconditioned shopping mall, the Shelly Centre, is located in Shelly Beach and has everything for the shopping-conscious visitor, with 76 shops under one roof.

The Shell Museum, with the biggest display of sea shells in South Africa, is just across the road from the Shelly Centre and in the near distance the Banana Express route runs across the Izotsha lagoon and close to Old Macdonald's Farm.

Old Macdonald's Family Farm is a great place for the family. Spend the day on the banks of the Izotsha River fishing, grilling on the braai, relaxing, while the kids enjoy pony rides, tractor rides and feeding the farm animals and birds. Open daily in season from 9:30 am to 4 pm. Out of season on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays and weekends.

Natal Parks Board operates the Skyline Nature Reserve in Uvongo. The Uvongo River Reserve starts at the tennis courts in Uvongo. Oribi Gorge is spectacular and is the region's most famous scenic drive. Vultures fly at the Umtumvuna River Gorge at Port Edward. The Vernon Crookes Game Reserve is inland from Scottburgh.