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Africa : Southern Africa : South Africa : Northern Cape : Green Kalahari : Upington

Upington

Upington is the biggest city in South Africa's Northern Cape Province and a good starting point to the famous Augrabies Falls. The town is situated on the banks of the Orange River.

Get in

By plane

Upington Airport [1] is situated near the city and offers flights to some major towns in South Africa.

By car

Take the N7 from Cape Town and join the N14 at Springbok to go to Upington. When coming from the Eastern Cape, take the N10 starting near Port Elizabeth. Travellers from the East of South Africa can go via the N14 from Johannesburg and the Gauteng province. When coming from Bloemfontein or Kimberley use the N12 and N1 westwards, until it crosses the N10.

Drivers from Namibia can follow a highway starting near the Fish River Canyon Park.

By train

There are no longer any scheduled passenger trains to or from Upington. Until recently there was a regular overnight train from Windhoek and Keetmanshoop in Namibia to Upington (operated by TransNamib, the national railway company of Namibia), but this service has been cancelled.

The train station is at the end of Morant Street, north of the cemetery.

Get around

As with most of South Africa it is best get about by hired car.

See

The city itself is not very spectacular, but a typical medium sized country town.

  • Camel and Rider statue, Schreuder Street, in front of the police station. A statue in recognition of the way law enforcement in this vast dry area was done in the past; by camel mounted police. 
  • Donkey statue, Schreuder Street. Donkeys were often employed to pump water in this dry place. Donkeys were so important in this area that they were awarded a statue in recognition for all the work they did. Even today you will see many people still using donkey carts as their primary transportation. 
  • Kalahari Orange Museum, ☎ +27 (0)54 332-6064. Open 9AM to 12:30PM and 2PM to 5PM, Monday to Friday. 9AM to 12PM on Saturdays. Information and exhibitions detailing the history of the area. 
  • Date palm avenue -- At the entrance to Die Eiland has more than 200 palm trees lining it's 1km length
  • The Hortentia Windmill
  • Dutch reformed church
  • Grave of Scotty Smith

Do

  • Oranje River Wine Cellars Co-Operation, ☎ +27 (0)54 337-8800(marketing@owk.co.za), [2]. The biggest cooperative in South Africa and the second biggest in the world. Wine tasting can be arranged for you, however most of the grapes are not used for wine production, but exported to Europe to be used as grapes and raisens 
  • Spitskop nature reserve, (J13km north of the town on the R360), ☎ +27 (0)54 332-1336. Around 40km of drivable gravel roads, 3 hiking trails a telescope on a hill for distant game viewing. Many mammals, no carnivores. 
  • Hunting
  • Kalahari kuierfees
  • Upington Directory, 81 Wildebeest, [3]. Find any Business in Upington 

Buy

It offers a number of shopping malls and stores.

Eat

  • Arabesque Coffee Shop, ☎ +27(0)54 331-3412(johanstrauss@mweb.co.za, fax: +27(0)54 331-3412). Come and enjoy a cup of coffee. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Please book for groups. 

Drink

  • Sakkie se Arkie. The name literally translates to Sakkie's little ark (as in Noahs' Ark). A floating bar on the Orange River. 

Sleep

  • La Bohème, ☎ +27 (0)54 338-0660(laboheme@mweb.co.za), [4]. A five star guesthouse a few minutes outside town. It is a good place to relax and let yourself get treated.From R500 per night..  

Get out

This page was last edited at 10:58, on 17 March 2009 by Pieter van Wyk. Based on work by Babbelas, Tobia, Nick Roux, Paul Kilfoil, David, Felix Gottwald, Colin Jensen, Tom Holland and Evan Prodromou, Wikitravel user(s) WindHorse and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel.