Phalaborwa Information, Accommodation, Restaurants, Business Directory and Properties for Sale

According to geologists, about 2000 years ago a spectacular volcanic eruption took place in the Phalaborwa area. As a direct result a gigantic volcanic pipe was formed.

This volcanic pipe is richly loaded with minerals and metals such as copper, mica, gold, iron, vermiculite, phosphate and zirconium.

Hundreds of years ago Sotho tribes first settled in the area bounded by the Olifants and Letaba rivers. They soon realized they were settling into an unfavorable area and relocated back to this fertile bushveld valley.

They named the area Phalaborwa and settled here. Evidence of mining in clay smelting ovens of iron and copper abound in the area.

The name Phalaborwa means "better than the South". Our town was crowned as the Cleanest Town in South Africa for 2005.

Phalaborwa was known as the true Gateway to the world famous Kruger National Park, but is already starting to be called the Gateway to Mozambique due to the linking highway between South Africa and Mozambique that is scheduled to open in December 2005.

Phalaborwa is also affectionately known as the "Town of Two Summers". It experiences mild winters. Summer days, which can get very hot, are made bearable by modern aids such as air-conditioners, fans and swimming pools.

Visitors can do all their shopping right here, as the town is neatly laid out with shopping malls and banking facilities, and all the major chain stores are represented.

Phalaborwa offers a vast and varied range of accommodation, and a vast range of opportunities to view wildlife up close and personal.

Safaris, walking trials, river safaris down the Olifants river, all of these experiences are structured to offer you, the visitor, a unique holiday experience.