You've got three overseas destination saved...
across two Pinterest boards and a group chat. You've priced flights to Bali "just to see." Meanwhile, you've never actually watched the sun come up over Crystal Springs Mountain Lodge, or spent a night at Mabalingwe listening to the bush go quiet. September happens to be South African Tourism Month, and it's basically the country tapping you on the shoulder asking why.
SKIPPING YOUR OWN BACKYARD FOR SOMEONE ELSE'S?
Here's a warm, honest case for booking the local trip you keep putting off, and a few underrated spots to put on the shortlist.
It's Not "Settling." It's Actually Better Value
Local travel doesn't mean a smaller holiday, it means a smarter one. No long flights, no exchange rate math, no jet lag eating into day one. Just a drive, a booking, and more spending money left for the parts that actually matter, the activities, the meals, the memories. Add up what a week overseas costs once flights, visas, roaming, and "emergency" currency conversions are factored in, and a local trip starts looking like the smart choice, not the backup plan.
September Is the Sweet Spot, Not the Off-Season
South Africa doesn't really do "quiet season" so much as "same great weather, half the crowds" season. September sits right in spring shoulder season, mild days, blooming Namaqualand wildflowers, and rates that haven't caught up to December yet. Popular spots that get overrun over the festive season are still calm enough in September to actually enjoy properly, without queuing for the view or the parking spot. If you've been waiting for the "right time," this is it.
Every Booking Keeps More Than Your Own Trip Alive
Tourism Month exists because domestic travel genuinely holds the industry up, the guides, the small lodges, the towns built around visitors passing through. Local travellers make up a huge share of the country's tourism spend, and that spend goes straight into wages, small businesses, and conservation efforts that depend on visitor numbers to survive. Booking local isn't just convenient for you. It's the difference between a good season and a quiet one for someone else.
you've probably never actually been
Be honest: how many of the "iconic SA spots" have you actually seen with your own eyes, versus just reposted? Most South Africans have a longer overseas bucket list than a local one, more saved trips to places we'll visit "one day" than actual stamps from our own provinces. Tourism Month is the annual nudge to flip that around, one weekend at a time.
it doesn't have to be a big production
This isn't about planning a two-week cross-country expedition. A long weekend, one province, one activity you've always meant to try, that's genuinely enough to count. Local travel rewards small, low-effort trips just as much as big ones, which makes it a lot easier to actually follow through on.
YOUR BACKYARD, UNDERRATED
MyResorts Destinations to try out
- Crystal Springs Mountain Lodge — Waterfalls, indigenous forest, and mountain air so clean it resets you by the second morning. The kind of quiet most people only associate with overseas retreats. Explore Crystal Springs Mountain Lodge
- Mabalingwe Nature Reserve — Malaria-free Big 5 bushveld in the Waterberg, a few hours from Joburg, without the Kruger-season crowds or the visa admin of an African safari abroad. Explore Mabalingwe Nature Reserve
- Doornkop Fish & Wildlife Reserve — Big Free State skies, a dam worth casting a line into, and wildlife drives that feel like they belong on someone else's Pinterest board. Explore Doornkop Fish & Wildlife Reserve
- Little Eden — Small, green, and genuinely restful — the kind of low-key destination that never trends but always delivers. Explore Little Eden
- Uvongo River Resort — Where the Uvongo River meets the Indian Ocean on the KZN South Coast — river, beach, and warm water in one long weekend. Explore Uvongo River Resort
The Best Advice? Just Book the Local One
The overseas trip will still be there next year, still costing more, still requiring a passport renewal you haven't gotten around to. This September, pick a region you've genuinely never visited, book it, and let South Africa remind you why it didn't need the marketing budget of Bali to be worth the trip.
READY TO REDISCOVER YOUR OWN COUNTRY?
Explore properties across South Africa at www.myresorts.co.za
For more info, contact: 012 492 4809 or hello@myresorts.co.za