South Coast (KwaZulu-Natal)

Amanzimtoti, located just south of Durban

The Upper South Coast better known as the Sapphire Coast stretches from Amanzimtoti to Clansthal near Umkomaas and has historically been a popular holiday destination. It is situated south of Durban with Amanzimtoti serving as its primary urban centre whilst Kingsburgh and Umkomaas serve as secondary urban centres.

Scottburgh, the administrative and largest town of the Umdoni Coast & Country

Umdoni Coast and Country better known as the Mid South Coast stretches from Scottburgh to Mtwalume. It is located south of the Greater Durban Metro. Its main town is Scottburgh.[5]

Margate, the holiday "capital" of the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast which is located in the Hibiscus Coast

The Lower South Coast, popularly known as the Hibiscus Coast, stretches along the southernmost coastline of KwaZulu-Natal from Hibberdene in the north to Port Edward in the south and Izingolweni in the west.

The Hibiscus Coast is the ultimate economy booster of the South Coast due its location and is host to the region’s economic capital, Port Shepstone. It is known as the 'beach holiday mecca' of KwaZulu-Natal[6] and is known for its 'unending' Hibiscus trees found along the coast.[7]

Harding is a small town located halfway between Port Shepstone and Kokstad in Griqualand East. It is famous for its sawmills in the Weza area and the Ingeli Forest.[8]

• Dunstan Farell Hospital, Hibberdene[9]
• G.J Crookes Hospital, Scottburgh[10]
• Murchsion District Hospital, Murchison, near Port Shepstone[11]
• Port Shepstone Regional Hospital, Port Shepstone [12]
• St Andrew's Provincial Hospital, Harding[13]

• Hibiscus Hospital Port Shepstone, Port Shepstone[14]
• Hibiscus Hospital Scottburgh, Scottburgh[15]
• Netcare Kingsway Hospital, Amanzimtoti[16]
• Netcare Margate Hospital, Margate[17]
• Shelly Beach Hospital, Shelly Beach[18][19]

Southbroom, Lower South Coast

• Boboyi
• Hibberdene
• Izingolweni
• Izotsha
• Margate
• Murchison
• Paddock
• Port Edward
• Port Shepstone
• Ramsgate
• Shelly Beach
• Southbroom
• St Faith's
• Uvongo

Pennington, Mid South Coast

• Amahlongwa
• Amandawe
• Bazley Beach
• Dududu
• Ifafa Beach
• KwaCele
• Mtwalume
• Park Rynie
• Pennington
• Scottburgh
• Sezela
• Umzinto

• Amanzimtoti (aManzimtoti)
• Clansthal
• Craigieburn
• Ilfracombe
• Kingsburgh
• Magabeni
• Umgababa
• Umkomaas (eMkhomazi)

• Harding
• Weza

N2 highway north of Port Shepstone with a board sign indicating the off-ramp to Port Shepstone North (Umtentweni) and St Faith's[22]

The South Coast is intersected by one national route, the N2 and five regional routes including the R61, R102, R603, R620 and R612.

• The N2 from Port Shepstone leads northwards as a freeway along the coast towards Durban, KwaDukuza and Empangeni and westwards into the interior towards Kokstad and Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. Other than Durban, the N2 also provides a connection to other South African coastal cities such as East London, Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) and Cape Town.
• The R61 leads southwards from Port Shepstone to Southbroom as a freeway and continues to Port Edward crossing into the Eastern Cape towards Mthatha and ending in Beaufort West in the Western Cape province.
• The R102 leads northwards along the coast from Port Shepstone towards Hibberdene, Pennington, Park Rynie, Scottburgh, Umkomaas, Umgababa, Kingsburgh and Amanzimtoti. From Amanzimtoti, the R102 continues northwards towards Durban.
• The R603 leads north-westwards into the interior from Kingsburgh to Umbumbulu and Umlaas Road, near Camperdown between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.
• The R612 The R612 leads westwards into the interior from Park Rynie to Umzinto, Ixopo, Donnybrook and Bulwer.
• The R620 runs along the coastline between Port Shepstone and Southbroom and connects the coastal areas of Oslo Beach, Shelly Beach, St Michael’s-on-Sea, Uvongo, Manaba Beach, Margate and Ramsgate.

The largest traffic volumes pass along the N2 from Durban towards Port Shepstone, and further towards Kokstad, as well as the R61 from Port Shepstone towards Port Edward. Large volumes of traffic also pass along the R612 from Park Rynie to Ixopo, and St Faith’s Road from Umtentweni (north of Port Shepstone) to St Faith’s.

The South Coast Toll Road which comprises the N2 freeway between Hibberdene and Port Shepstone and the R61 freeway between Port Shepstone and Southbroom includes three toll plazas including Izotsha Ramp Plaza (Shelly Beach), Oribi Toll Plaza (Port Shepstone) and the Umtentweni Ramp Plaza (Port Shepstone).[23]

R102 serves as an alternative route between Durban and Port Shepstone and is commonly used by motorists wishing to avoid tolling at the Umtentweni and Oribi toll plazas in Port Shepstone whilst the R620 serves as an alternative route between Southbroom and Port Shepstone and is commonly used by motorists wishing to avoid tolling in Shelly Beach (Izotsha Ramp Toll Plaza).

Margate Airport is the main airport of the KZN South Coast

King Shaka International Airport is the nearest international airport

The South Coast is served by Margate Airport which currently has scheduled weekly flights to Johannesburg operated by CemAir though many tourists also arrive from the King Shaka International Airport, north of Durban which has a wider variety of scheduled flights to other domestic destinations in South Africa as well as international destinations such as Doha, Dubai, Istanbul, Lusaka, Manzini and Harare.

Newspapers published on the South Coast include the South Coast Herald, South Coast Fever,[24] South Coast Sun,[25] Southlands Sun [26] and Mid South Coast Rising Sun.[27]

In terms of radio, East Coast Radio and Ukhozi FM are the main radio stations mainly serving the whole province of KwaZulu-Natal.