Harold Porter National Botanical Gardens — Attraction in Overstrand Local Municipality

Took 2 UAE guests for a hike. We were hoping to do the short Leopards Gorge hike to the waterfall but the river was flowing strongly and it was unsafe to cross. We did the Fynbos hike and Disa falls. I find the lack of communication at the entry kiosk frustrating. There's no engagement, sharing of information or suggestions. A family of obvious tourists were enquiring about walks and it was drawing blood from a stone. The volunteers working at the bookshop were full of tips and enthusiasm. The gentleman asked if we had seen the geological timeline wall ,for example - which we missed! Its not on the map and there was no mention of it on entry. It was also interesting to see so many volunteers working in the garden. It seems that the place is kept alive by those that are interested in preserving the fauna & flora of the area, those with passion and dedication who give freely of their time and expertise. The restaurant is basically unoccupied. It may not be prime tourist season(August),but there are a lot of people that choose to visit SA in the cooler months. I think the highlight for our guests was the visit to the bookshop- because of helpful friendly interactions and interesting products. The hikes are always rewarding, great fynbos , we spotted a tiny Disa (Witch orchid)...

We came here to enjoy the garden and go for a hike on the Leopard's Kloof trail. When we came in, after we had payed for entrance, we were told there were no keys currently available and that we should just walk around and wait and check in every now and then. This is fine, I understand that they want limited access in order to conserve the area. We waited about 45 minutes and when we returned to inquire, there was a group returning with a key in front of us, and we thought we got lucky with the timing. But when we asked, we were told there were still a few people on the waiting list so they would get the key first. Only then were we asked if we wanted to add our names to the list, so we did. We waited a further hour and 15 mins and we hadn't moved on the list in that time, so we decided to leave as the weather had reached 31° by this point. The gardens were still lovely though and the views of the mountains are stunning, there is also a small shop and there may be an art exhibition when you go. There is safe parking at the gardens, however if it's a busy day you may have to park outside. The signage is good, you won't get lost going in or...

My partner and myself were minding our own business and not getting into the publics way, when taking pics of each other with a Cheap budget cannon with a kit lens when a staff member told us that we need to pay an " Extra fee" for so called " professional shoots".

When I questioned him about other people that has massive +300mm lenses with monopods and their camera set ups cost over R50k. He said those are fine they are not professional.

No where on the signage does it say "no professional shoots are allowed" . It however does encourages visitors to take pictures. So I wonder if this staff member is trying to make an extra bonus for the month.

Hes tone was belittling as if we stole something trying to use some type of scare tactic.

We drove 1.5 hours to enjoy this garden to have our day spoiled by rude staff.

The garden is beautiful, however be careful when taking so called "...