View out of the Klipgat cave near De Kelders onto surf and mountains

Day trip · East

Gansbaai and De Kelders

From the cliffs of De Kelders you look down on the whales, and from the Klipgat cave below them people saw the same thing 70,000 years ago. Five minutes on, in Gansbaai, the shark boats are waiting.

De Kelders lies on the eastern shore of Walker Bay, forty minutes from Hermanus, a residential place on limestone cliffs higher than anything on the Hermanus side. In season the whales often sit directly below the rock here, and because the water is deep they come closer than they do elsewhere. At the end of the village the Walker Bay Nature Reserve begins, with the Klipgat cave: entry R60 to R65 (as of August 2026), a boardwalk, then the view out of the cave mouth onto surf and mountains. Finds from the cave go back 65,000 to 85,000 years.

east of Hermanus
37 km
Klipgat cave (as of August 2026)
R60 to R65
cage dive plus R150 levy (as of August 2026)
R3,655
HMS Birkenhead off Danger Point
1852

Gansbaai is the fishing harbour behind it, short on charm and long on address: the boats to the sharks off Dyer Island leave from Kleinbaai. Marine Dynamics charges R3,655 plus a R150 conservation levy for a cage dive (as of August 2026, confirm before booking), with marine biologists on board; great whites have become scarcer in recent years, while bronze whalers and copper sharks turn up more reliably. The same operator's Marine Big 5 trips cover whales, dolphins, seals, penguins and sharks in one outing. At Danger Point the lighthouse stands above the spot where HMS Birkenhead went down in 1852.

View out of the Klipgat cave near De Kelders onto surf and mountains
From inside the Klipgat cave: the same view as 70,000 years ago, only with a boardwalk.
Time needed
a full day with a boat trip
Cost
cave R60 to R65, boat trips extra (as of August 2026)
When
all year, whales June to November
From Hermanus
37 km, 40 minutes

Our tipBook the shark trip for early morning, when the sea is flatter, and you are back by midday. De Kelders afterwards: those cliffs are the best whale spot outside Hermanus.

Gansbaai and De Kelders: common questions

What does shark cage diving at Gansbaai cost?

With Marine Dynamics, R3,655 plus a R150 conservation levy (as of August 2026, confirm before booking), from Kleinbaai harbour with marine biologists on board. Great whites have become scarcer; bronze whalers and copper sharks turn up more reliably.

What is the Klipgat cave?

A cave in the Walker Bay Nature Reserve at the end of De Kelders, with finds going back 65,000 to 85,000 years. A boardwalk leads in, and from the cave mouth you look out onto surf and mountains. Entry R60 to R65 (as of August 2026).

Can you see whales at De Kelders?

Yes, and in season often directly below the cliffs, because the water there is deep. The cliffs are higher than in Hermanus, and on some days the animals lie closer here than anywhere in town.