The large 'friendly city' of Port Elizabeth is situated on South Africa's south-eastern coastline, overlooking Algoa Bay, and, together with Despatch and Uitenhage, forms part of Nelson Mandela Bay.

The city of Port Elizabeth was officially founded in 1820 when the British settlers landed in the bay. The acting governor of the Cape at the time, Sir Rufane Donkin ordered that a village and port be developed there and he named the new establishment after his wife Elizabeth who had died in India. The city rapidly developed into a manufacturing and industrial centre.

Nelson Mandela Bay is renowned for its brilliant year-round weather, many hours of sunshine and beautiful beaches. It is the gateway to more than a million hectares of malaria-free Eastern Cape game reserves. Many tourist routes emanate from here including the Sunshine Coast, Frontier Country, the Kouga-Tsitsikamma-Garden Route as well as the Karoo Heartland Route.

It is an excellent value-for-money family holiday centre and the relaxed atmosphere and clean, safe beaches make it an ideal getaway. The many unspoilt golden beaches along this 40km stretch of coastline include King's, Hobie, Pollock, Brighton, Blue Water Bay, St George's Strand, Wells Estate, Maitlands, Beachview and Van Stadens.