Vaal River Area - A weekend getaway

South Africa is a country abundant with adventure & wildlife activities. No matter where you go, you will find an adventure activity to do! The country being small, in comparison to the country i come from; there are many places to head to, for a weekend stay.

Parys in Free State province by the River Vaal was our destination for the Christmas weekend. From my little experience in South Africa, i believe the most redundant activity one gets to do is enter a game or pay for some adrenalin pump. We knew what to expect and had planned for a relaxing weekend.

Parys is an ideal destination for unwinding! The Vredefort dome - the oldest and largest crater impact in the world is 5 km away from Parys. The UNESCO heritage site is closed at the moment for construction work. We managed to get in, thanks to the kind security guard!

Crater impact spots are interesting to read about but fail to impress anyone. It has a diameter of roughly 300 kms.[Pic of Crater impact]

Parys is a tiny little town, with country houses. It has a museum(didn't visit), Antique shops & art/craft items on sale.

Like any South African area, it is an home to plethora of Adventure activities! River rafting, Fly fishing, Quad-biking, Abseiling and Hot air ballooning(over the crater impact)!

We did river rafting - beautiful experience! I have done rafting earlier in India near Mysore. This was a totally different experience. Though the rapid levels were low, the number and the nature of the rapids set the adrenaline gushing. The rapids were of various kinds, each providing a new, surprising experience!

The Christmas season in South Africa is more of an off-season, so most of the activities were not available / fully booked! We wanted to do hot air ballooning but couldn't and we weren't interested in the rest.

Spent quality time at the Vaal river, and in our B&B River bush lodge. I would recommend staying there - it was neat & comfortable.

A nice relaxing break just an hour and half away from Jo'burg! Recommend it for a quick break, some rafting & relaxation.

Gaming is next on cards :-)