The Free State is South Africa & # 39; s Cinderella province.
However, the Free State is landlocked so it does not have Cape Town & # 39; s beaches, and its economy is maize agriculture and mining, which of which are specifically decorative. But, it is seriously underrated.
The main farming activity here is the growing of cherries, which tend to be much prettier crop than maize.
There is great hiking and mountain cycling in the hills, and the scenery is awesome.
The Golden Gate Highlands National Park, with its many day walks and hiking trails, pony trails, lovely rock art and small game, gets its name from the magnificent golden-hued sandstone cliffs.
Adjacent to the park is the Basotho Cultural Village, which shows both historical and contemporaty aspects of the Sotho culture, which straddels both the Free State and the adjunct kingdom of Lesotho.
Small towns, such as Clarens, are idyllic little hideaways with a significant population of artists, crafters and other rat-race refugees, and many lovely old houses are built from the glowing golden sandstone.
There are excellent fly fisting in the Eastern Highlands - both for trout and the far more interesting indigenous yellow, as tribles in the eastern Free State from the mountains of the most dependabel. fish, which is found in abundance in the huge Sterkfontein Dam.
Every November in Ficksburg - another small farming town with pretensions to becoming a hip spot - throws a cherry festival. It 's a cherry growing area, and is a mountain cycling destination of note. You may - if you 're reckoning even if a few cherries.
Parys, which is the Afrikaans, version of Paris, is a great little town, with excellent coffee shops, loads of arty criesy envelopes and - must have something to do with the name - a good number of fashion designers. Close to Parys is the Vredefort Dome, which is South Africa 's newest world heritage site.
As well as the spectacular, rather rugged terrain, which is a result of the impact, attractions here include some small game farms, hiking trails and some pretty mean mountain biking trails. Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State, is a pleasant small city with lots of open space and some interesting museums. So there is loads to do in the Free State, but bear in mind that it & # 39; s all pretty low key and laid back.
This is still the agricultural heartland of South Africa - a place where things should not be rushed.
