Best Getaways 
Aliwal Shoal Sands
Aliwal Shoal Sands is an ideal destination for a self-catering beach holiday. Wake up with the sun, sip on some coffee, and feel the sand between your toes. Eat your breakfast while you watch for dolphins in the waves. Take an afternoon stroll along the quiet beach. Enjoy a glass of wine and relax on a blanket in the cool sand while the sun is setting. Braai some meat in the evening as you listen to the sound of the beating waves on the shore. Aliwal Shoal Sands is situated on the quiet beach of Clansthal, nestled in between the south coast towns of Scottburgh and Umkomaas. Aliwal Shoal Sands directly overlooks the Aliwal Shoal dive site, rated as 1 of the top 10 dive sites worldwide. Additionally, the Green Point surf spot is only 500 m away from the back door.
Area Info
The Aliwal Shoal is a rocky reef which is the remains of an ancient sand dune approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Aliwal Shoal gives divers the unique opportunity to experience wreck, reef and seasonal shark diving at the same site. The reef is inhabited by many kinds of hard and soft corals and a variety of tropical and subtropical fish species as well as turtles, dolphins, eels and large predators. Aliwal Shoal is known especially for its abundance of grey nurse sharks (known locally as ragged tooth sharks or "raggies"), which congregate there to mate between July and November.
