Waterkloof, Springfontein, Jagersfontein, Fauresmith, Koffiefontein, Gariep, Vanderkloof, Norvalspont and Jacobsdal offer historical sites and other attractions.

•  Waterkloof is an almost deserted village some 6 km south of Philippolis on the R717. A church converted into a school building is still in good condition.

•  Springfontein was one of the largest concentration camps of the Anglo-Boer War.

•  The Big Hole at the (now closed) Jagersfontein diamond mine in the world’s largest hand-dug excavation (larger than the better-known Kimberley Big Hole).

•  Fauresmith is remarkable for having a steam locomotive preserved in the centre of its main street.

•  Koffiefontein, where another diamond mine was closed early in 2006, was a prisoner-of-war and internment camp during the second world war.

•  Gariep and Vanderkloof, two of the country’s largest storage and irrigation dams, are both holiday resorts.

Orange River, 30 km from Philippolis

•  Norvalspont is the site of a historical crossing of the Orange (Gariep) River. The river is now crossed here by a lattice-steel single-carriageway road bridge and a parallel rail bridge.

•  Jacobsdal is known for its agricultural school and the only wine estate in the Free State. Its award-winning Landzicht and Confluence wines are sold from the estate.

•  Olives have recently been planted on  a farm on the R717 to Colesberg.

•  Gariep bridge. From the road bridge midway on the R717 between Philippolis in the Free State and Colesberg in the Eastern Cape, paths go down to picnic spots on banks of the river.