Route 62: The Quiet Alternative to the Garden Route
There are two roads from Cape Town to the Eastern Cape. Almost everyone takes the coastal one. The other runs inland through mountain passes and farming towns, and for long stretches you will have it to yourself.
The Short Answer
Drive Route 62 if you want mountains, small towns, wine and space. It covers roughly the same ground as the Garden Route, inland rather than along the coast, on far quieter roads and through country that is far less developed.
Drive the Garden Route if you want the sea. Beaches, forest, whales and a coastline you cannot get inland. The two are not really competing, and the best answer for most people with ten days or more is to drive one out and the other back.
The Same Journey, Two Different Trips
| Route 62 | Garden Route | |
|---|---|---|
| The road | Inland, mountain passes and dry valleys | The N2, along the coast |
| Length | Around 850 km end to end | Around 230 km of core route |
| The landscape | Vineyards, Karoo scrub, rock and sky | Forest, lagoons, beaches |
| Traffic | Genuinely quiet for long stretches | Busy, particularly in December |
| Where you stop | Farming towns and guest farms | Resort towns and coastal hotels |
| Best months | March to May, September to November | Most of the year, peak in summer |
The 850 km figure is the full run to Gqeberha, and it includes what is billed as the world’s longest wine route. You do not have to drive all of it. Most people use Route 62 as the inland leg between Cape Town and the Klein Karoo, then cut south to join the coast.
What Is Actually Out There
The Cederberg
North of Cape Town rather than on the R62 proper, and worth the detour. Rugged sandstone mountains, San rock art, swimming holes, and the only place in the world rooibos grows wild. It is a walking and stargazing landscape, not a driving one, so give it two nights rather than passing through.
The Klein Karoo
The heart of the route. Ladismith, Calitzdorp, Van Wyksdorp and Oudtshoorn, strung between the Swartberg and the Langeberg. Small farming towns, port wine, ostrich country, and a quality of silence that people travel a long way for. The Swartberg Pass and the Tradouw Pass are both here, and both are among the finest mountain roads in the country.
The West Coast
A separate trip rather than part of this one, but it belongs in the same conversation. Windswept, thinly populated, and transformed in August and September when the wildflowers come out across the West Coast National Park. Go then or do not go at all.
The Catch
Worth saying plainly, because most write-ups of Route 62 leave it out.
- It is dry. If you are picturing green, you are picturing the Garden Route. This is scrub, rock and enormous sky, and some people find it bleak rather than beautiful.
- There is no sea. Obvious, but it catches people out who assumed the two routes were interchangeable.
- The distances are longer. Towns are further apart, fuel stops are further apart, and you will drive more to see less on any given day.
- Summer is hot. The Karoo in January is punishing. Shoulder seasons are not a preference here, they are the point.
- Some of the best passes are gravel. The Swartberg Pass is unsurfaced. Check what your hire agreement says about gravel roads before you commit, because many exclude them.
One Out, One Back
If you have ten days or more, this is the version we would book. Drive inland on the R62 through the Klein Karoo, cross to the coast at Oudtshoorn or Swellendam, then return along the N2 through Knysna and Plettenberg Bay. You get mountains and sea, you never repeat a road, and the contrast between the two halves is the whole point of the trip.
Our Garden Route itinerary covers the coastal leg day by day, with drive times and month by month guidance, and our guide to where to stay on the Garden Route compares Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.
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Common Questions
Is Route 62 better than the Garden Route?
Different rather than better. Route 62 is quieter, less developed and more dramatic to drive. The Garden Route has the coastline, the forest and the better hotels. If you only have three or four days and you have never been, take the coast.
How long does Route 62 take?
The full 850 km to Gqeberha is a week if you want to enjoy it. Cape Town to Oudtshoorn, which is the stretch most people actually drive, works comfortably in three or four days with two or three overnight stops.
Do you need a 4×4?
Not for the R62 itself, which is tarred. You will want ground clearance and the right hire agreement if you plan to take the gravel passes, and the Swartberg Pass in particular. Check the small print rather than assuming.
When should you go?
March to May or September to November. Spring adds the West Coast wildflowers if you are heading north as well. Avoid midsummer inland unless you like real heat.
One date worth knowing
A total solar eclipse crosses the Eastern Cape on 28 November 2026. Lodges inside the path of totality have been reporting unusually strong advance bookings for months. If you are planning a Cape self drive for late 2026, either build the trip around it or book well clear of it, but do not arrive that week by accident.
Distances and route detail checked August 2026. Road conditions, particularly on the gravel passes, change with the weather.
