History
Apart from offering the tourist an exciting holiday and lots of sunbathing, this bustling town is a breathing monument of history. Hidden away in Piesang Valley, stands a chapel built by a William Henry Newdigate. He was the son of an old and distinguished family.

After settling on his farm in 1847, he started building a school-cum-chapel for his family. His father then raised money for this building. But the money was not used for this purpose. The wood and labour all came from the farm.

In 1885, a Bishop Robert Gray, hired the building for ecclesiastical purposes. This little chapel is the oldest ecclesiastical building in the George district.

And now we move to the charming Formosa Cottage. This building was built by the 1885 mission schoolmaster, William Jones. He was in charge of the St. Peters Chapel . He built the building on church property.

In 1880 he opened The Van Plettenberg Arms. He gained a reputation for being a good host before the church stepped in and called a halt to the party five years later.

The church then agreed to sell the property to Jones, but as he built it on church property, it was not till 1912 that the transfer was passed. Unfortunately, this is private property now and no sightseers are allowed.

But the oldest of them all is the Old Timber Store which was built in 1787. And thanks to restoration it still stands today. The building almost fell apart in the 1950's, but through effort it stands strong.

The building has been in disuse since 1817. This was when a bustling timber trade started in Knysna. The building was restored to its current state in 1893.

Beacon Isle got its first navigational beacon in 1772. Today, a beacon of stone instead of wood stands in roughly the same spot and has the same markings on it.

Plettenberg Bay is the top destination for boat based whale and dolphin watching. Due to the large number of whale and dolphin species found in the bay (five whale and three dolphin species), the Center for Dolphin Studies is located in Plettenberg Bay. Three species of whale can be seen throughout the year.

Besides the normal leisure activities such as golf (we have two of the best courses on the Garden Route), tennis, and horse riding, there are also a host of other activities available. These include:

• Guided ferry trips up the Keurbooms River and view the spectacular forests from the comfort of the ferry
• This is a bird watchers paradise. More than 260 species have been sited in this area.
  
• Two and four hour walks on the 350 million year old Robberg Peninsula, which has recently been declared a national monument.
  
• Visit Monkey Land, a unique primate sanctuary.
  
• Mountain bike trails through the forests.
  
• Numerous walks in and around Plettenberg Bay.
  
• Bungy jump, the highest jump in the world!
  
• Abseil down the Kranshoek gorge.
  
• Stormsriver Adventures.
  
• Scuba diving and snorkeling.
  
• Scenic Flights over Plettenberg Bay and Knysna.
  
• Day excursions to Shamwari Game Reserve
  
• Go Gliding , and see the whales from the air, a world first for South Africa.