Experience the best of St Lucia

St Lucia is a relaxed village on the Indian Ocean coast of KwaZulu-Natal, at the mouth of the Lake St Lucia estuary, the largest estuarine system in Africa. It is the gateway to iSimangaliso Wetland Park, a World Heritage site of lakes, wetlands, forest and dunes that runs for about 220 kilometres up the coast.

Hippos and crocodiles live in the estuary, and hippos sometimes wander through the village streets at night. Boat trips go out among them, and the park's drives lead to Cape Vidal, a beach with reefs for snorkelling, and the long dune forests. Humpback whales pass offshore between about June and November, and leatherback and loggerhead turtles come ashore to nest on the northern beaches in summer. Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, with rhinos, lies inland to the west.

Seafood is the local table, with prawns, grilled line fish and calamari, alongside braais, South African barbecues, and Zulu dishes of maize porridge and stews. The climate is subtropical, humid in summer and mild and dry in winter.