Port Natal is a great natural harbour discovered by intrepid Portuguese navigators on Christmas Day 1497, but the original settlement (forerunner to today's city) was only built in 1824. The city is situated along the shores of the bay and the warm waters of the Indian Ocean. It is the largest harbour in Southern Africa and the busiest container port in Africa.

It is the true tourist Mecca for holiday makers with every conceivable entertainment available. There are cinemas, restaurants, clubs and discotheques, amusement parks and fun-fair rides, ice-skating and ten-pin bowling, to name but a few. Sports, too, are amply catered for, be they those that require a particular arena as in golf, cricket, tennis, bowls or sailing, or the less 'organised' ones such as swimming, surfing and angling.

For the fishing enthusiast there is plenty to do, but before you rush into things, click here , to read about the National Marine Regulations.