Hermanus Attractions

The town takes its name from an itinerant Dutch teacher named Hermanus Pieters who, with his flock of sheep, encamped at a nearby spring in 1830. The original name of the place, Hermanuspietersfontein, was, fortunately, shortened when it gained the status of a town in 1904.

The beginnings of tourism in Hermanus date back to the 19th C: the town's first hotel was opened in 1891, and holiday homes began to be built round the harbor in the early years of the 20th C.

Hermanus consists of a seemingly endless succession of holiday and weekend houses. The heart of the town, however, round the harbor, is quite small. In this area there are a number of restored fishermen's houses, now occupied by restaurants, bars and shops.

A good general impression of Hermanus can be had from the 10km/6mi long Cliff Path which runs from the New Harbour to Grotto Beach. Between June and November there are good prospects of seeing whales close inshore.