8-12th August 2013

The Hermanus Kalfiefees, Afrikaans for calf festival, is the perfect prelude to the Two Oceans Hermanus whale festival. The Kalfiefees refers to the whale calves that are born along the Hermanus coastline at this time of year. This year the Hermanus Kalfiefees will be taking place from Wednesday the 8th of August, through to Sunday the 12th. This long weekend falls over Women’s day which is on the 9th August.

The Kalfie Festival has a very strong focus on theatre and drama, with many of the performers who headline at the annual Klein Karoo Kunstefees (KKNK), a popular annual South African arts festival held in the Karoo, also perform. The annual line up will usually include a Woman’s Day celebration, dramatic and comic theatre, entertainment for the little ones, as well as a book show, great food and music.
It is a mostly Afrikaans festival – with a wide variety of excellent theatre productions, musicians and traditions.

The Kalfie festival includes the communities from Hermanus’ outlying areas, like Hawston and Onrus  which adds to this festival being traditionally South African, for those who are looking to immerse themselves in the culture of the country and the region.

The Hermanus Kalfie Festival is not (yet) as famous as the Whale Festival held at the end of September; if you like a good festival but want to avoid the massive crowds which the Whale Festival draws, then this may well prove the best option for you – both do however offer great whale watching in one of the best whale watching regions in the world, wonderful scenery, good food and a lot of fun.

Aside from the festivals, the southern right whales visit the Hermanus coastline from June to December annually. On a whole the beautiful town is great place to visit – a seaside destination with lots of activities, good restaurants, curious souvenir stores, impressive art galleries and more.