• Within South Africa, the Golden Mile in Durban was revealed as the best place to run and cycle, whilst Camp’s Bay Beach, Cape Town was rated as the best place to swim.
• Globally, the United States ranked as the best country for running, swimming and cycling respectively.

A new study by SportsShoes.com has revealed that the Golden Mile in Durban is the best place to run and cycle in South Africa.

Whether you’re scouting out the best outdoor exercise spots near you or you are keen to get out in the great outdoors on holiday, SportsShoes.com has revealed the best locations in South Africa and globally to head into the wilderness and allow stunning natural scenery to elevate your workouts.

The study analysed Tripadvisor reviews for over 760 cycle routes, running paths and popular swimming locations across different countries to find out which attractions have left visitors so content they took to Tripadvisor to leave glowing reviews. The results were then ranked in order to name the best places to run, swim and cycle in each country, and which countries take the crown for each activity.

The Best Places to Run in South Africa

1. Golden Mile, Durban
2. Durban Botanic Gardens, Durban
3. Pretoria National Botanical Garden, Pretoria
4. Johannesburg Botanical Garden, Johannesburg
5. Hermanus Cliff Path, Hermanus

Whether you prefer an urban jog or rural long-distance route, South Africa boasts ample spaces to satisfy every type of runner. With an 8km route on offer, the Golden Mile along Durban’s waterfront promenade takes the top spot as South Africa’s best destination for a run, offering runners open views over the Indian Ocean, as well as an uninterrupted route from North Pier to Blue Lagoon Park, with many options to extend the route and take runs to the next level.

Durban Botanic Gardens take the second spot in the rankings. A must-visit spot for tourists and locals alike, this iconic location is a firm favourite providing a relatively short route of 1.8km with 53m elevation gain. Based in the city centre of Durban, it’s Africa’s oldest surviving botanical gardens and its beautiful rare plants and serene surroundings are just some of the things that make this an essential running route.

Rounding off the top three is Pretoria National Botanical Garden. Pretoria’s Botanical Garden plays host to one of the city’s Parkruns, a free 5km route that attracts runners of all abilities and help to make the Botanical Gardens a popular spot for running.

A full breakdown of all the best places to run, swim and cycle, as well as the best countries for each can be found at: https://www.sportsshoes.com/running-hub/motivation/best-places-run-swim-cycle/

Methodology:
SportsShoes analysed Tripadvisor data from countries around the world. Using the ‘Things to Do’ section of the Tripadvisor website, the attractions in each location that had the highest number of mentions of ‘run/running’, ‘swim/swimming’ and ‘cycle/cycling/bike’ (English language) in their reviews were ranked as being the best spot or each activity in that country.

The number of mentions were then totalled to provide a country-level ranking for each activity.

Results where the terms were used negatively or for another context (“this area was run-down”), or if the location was not an area of beauty (i.e., a swimming pool) were omitted from the final results.

Translations were also used for global destinations where possible.

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