Tankwa Karoo National Park, a place of solitude, beauty and remoteness. A destination for those seeking the brightest stars in Africa, a once in lifetime glimpse of a rare endemic bird, or perhaps nothing more than a silence that reaches deep into the soul. Surely a wonderful destination for those myriads of 4x4's parked outside Cape Town's shopping malls?

Situated on the southern boundary of the Northern Cape, between the Roggeveld Escarpment in the East, Cedarberge in the west, and Klein Roggeveldberge in the south. Only a 4 hour drive from Cape Town brings you to this truly spectacular 80 000ha National Park, which is still in development phase.

The dramatic and spectacular landscapes reconfirm the magnificence of creation, and it is here where human mind and nature combine to form the ultimate chain through which conservation will withstand the assaults from the outside world.

When visiting Tankwa a feeling of euphoria takes a hold of you, and the place starts growing within your mind, touching the finer snares of the human psychology.

The huge open spaces create a feeling of majesty, and the quiet atmosphere makes sure that rush-hour departs from your inner, within the blink of an eye.

Every visitor will leave Tankwa with fond memories and a rich wilderness experience, knowing that a part of their soul will stay behind, begging for more.

With rainfall isohyets of 30-400mm per year the western section can be described as a true desert park. Even so, after the occasional shower the park erupts into a dazzling display of flowering succulents.

Only two Southern African regions have been bestowed the honour of designation as Biodiversity Hotspots by Conservation International. The one is the Succulent Karoo in which the park is situated.

The Park protects one of the most starkly beautiful tracts of the Tanqua Karoo and is well worth visiting for several reasons, among them its koppie-studded, moon-like landscape, diversity of succulent plants, fine Karoo birding and, perhaps most notably for hardened birders, an above-average chance of finding the enigmatic Burchell's Courser.