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The World’s 100 Best Hikes · 2026

The Best Hikes in Africa

5 of the 100 hikes in The World’s 100 Best Hikes 2026 are in Africa, in 3 countries. The highest placed is Robberg Peninsula in Plettenberg Bay, Garden Route, South Africa, at number 3 in the world. Tugela Falls in Drakensberg, South Africa (number 48) and Le Morne Brabant in Mauritius, Mauritius (number 62) follow.

Robberg Peninsula
N° 3 · Robberg Peninsula, Plettenberg Bay, Garden Route

Ladders and chains

Three of the African summits finish with metalwork or a scramble. The route to Tugela Falls in the Drakensberg climbs chain ladders up a cliff face onto the escarpment, then crosses a plateau to the top of the falls. Lion's Head in Cape Town takes about an hour up and ends with ladders and chains. On Le Morne Brabant in Mauritius an easy lower walk stops at a gate with warning signs, where hikers sign a logbook before a steep hands-on scramble to the summit cross.

The Robberg coast

Robberg Peninsula near Plettenberg Bay in South Africa is a coastal reserve with loops of about 2, 5.5 and 9 km. The long loop crosses sand dunes, a swimming beach and boulder scrambles, with seal colonies below the cliffs, and takes three to five hours with no shade or water on the way.

Piton des Neiges

The highest summit on Réunion is climbed from Le Bloc above Cilaos, with about 1,700 m of ascent. Hikers either do it as a round trip of 8 to 11 hours or sleep at the Caverne Dufour refuge and climb the rest by headlamp for sunrise above the clouds, when the summit is very cold and windy.

Hikes

90. Piton des Neiges 82. Lion's Head 62. Le Morne Brabant 48. Tugela Falls 3. Robberg Peninsula 3
90. Piton des Neiges 82. Lion's Head 62. Le Morne Brabant 48. Tugela Falls 3. Robberg Peninsula 3
  1. Robberg Peninsula N° 3 Robberg Peninsula Plettenberg Bay, Garden Route, South Africa Coast
  2. Tugela Falls N° 48 Tugela Falls Drakensberg, South Africa Waterfall
  3. Le Morne Brabant N° 62 Le Morne Brabant Mauritius, Mauritius Summit
  4. Lion's Head N° 82 Lion's Head Cape Town, South Africa Summit
  5. Piton des Neiges N° 90 Piton des Neiges Réunion, Réunion Volcano

Best by region

  1. The NordicsMúlagljúfurSouth Iceland, IcelandN° 1
  2. EuropeMúlagljúfurSouth Iceland, IcelandN° 1
  3. AsiaAdam's PeakCentral Highlands, Sri LankaN° 15
  4. The Middle EastMount SinaiSouth Sinai, EgyptN° 32
  5. North AmericaAngels LandingZion National Park, United StatesN° 7
  6. The CaribbeanBoiling LakeMorne Trois Pitons, Dominica, DominicaN° 64
  7. Latin AmericaLaguna de los TresEl Chaltén, Patagonia, ArgentinaN° 9
  8. AfricaRobberg PeninsulaPlettenberg Bay, Garden Route, South AfricaN° 3
  9. OceaniaGertrude SaddleFiordland National Park, New ZealandN° 23

Best by country

  1. United StatesAngels LandingZion National ParkN° 7
  2. NorwayTrolltungaHardangerN° 12
  3. CanadaPanorama RidgeGaribaldi Provincial ParkN° 8
  4. PortugalLevada Nova and Levada do MoinhoMadeiraN° 4
  5. New ZealandGertrude SaddleFiordland National ParkN° 23