It’s a beautiful series of “villages” on the Eastern Cape coast of South Africa, starting with the Canals, the Village, Santarene and Port St Francis. It spends much of the year in serene peace and quiet – but the December holidays bring tens of thousands to its sunny shores.

Some say that nowhere in the whole of South Africa will you find a more pleasant sight than St Francis Bay. Leighton Hulett (of the Hulett Sugar family) started the town from a fishing camp of thatched rondavels, and friends who came to stay were so enchanted with the place that they asked to buy a piece of ground to build a place of their own.

The Canals and the Village feature mostly white, thatched homes, Santarene goes Mediterranean, with Spanish and Tuscan style homes. Port St Francis is the most recent property development and features marina flats and townhouses, as well as restaurants, shops and hotels nearby.

Now, one of the things St Francis is famous for is its surfing and Cape St Francis, a few kilometres away, seems to offer “rougher” rides and bigger waves. Then there’s the joy of Bruce’s Beauties . . .

Back in the 1960s, film maker Bruce Brown was searching the world for the perfect wave. He found it at St Francis, and named the waves “Bruce’s Beauties”.

It is said that Bruce Brown’s classic surf cult movie, The Endless Summer, launched many thousands of surfboards. The classic 1964 surf sensation opened up a whole new realm of surfing experience, and put surfing at St Francis on the map.

Situated midway between Port Elizabeth and Knysna, the picturesque holiday village of St Francis Bay lies nestled among green clad dunes that line the beautiful Bay of St Francis. Dolphins and whales play along the shoreline while the sounds of gulls echo lazily overhead.

The Kromme River, navigable for about 10 km, twists and winds its tranquil way down to a magnificent marina where the gracious white walled thatched homes are reflected in the quiet water of the canals.

With plenty of homes to rent within walking distance of the water, it’s a surfer’s paradise. Surf experts say it’s a hot, hollow wave that can be here today and gone tomorrow, requiring the right weather systems to pass through.

Bruce’s Beauties are listed as an A1, top class break - it cranks, it’s hollow, fast and - when big - pretty dangerous if you wipe in front of the rocks. While word of mouth sees surfers from everywhere rushing to Harbour Road for Bruce’s breaks, the area remains less crowded than Jeffrey’s Bay, a short drive from St Francis.

The world-famous Jeffrey’s Bay – just “J-Bay” to locals - offers surfing and beaches that excite travellers, surfers and groupies from around the globe. For those whose blood runs salty and who feel most at home on a board, Jeffrey’s is a “must-surf before you die” spot.

The Billabong Pro competition is held here in July every year, attracting both competitors and surf fanatics from as far afield as Australia and Hawaii. The world’s best surfers work their magic on the universally renowned waves during the R2.3 million (US $320 000) Billabong Pro, the fifth of 11 events on the 2008 ASP World Tour.

Supertubes, the venue for this year’s competition - the 24th edition of what has become Africa’s most prestigious and lucrative surfing tournament - is unanimously acknowledged as one of the planet’s top 10 high performance surf breaks.

If you’re in the Eastern Cape, stop by St Francis – and don’t forget to pop in at Cape St Francis, for the most exquisite sunsets on the beautiful, ragged rocks. At Christmastime, you’ll find thousands of people there - and are sure to bump into someone you know, regardless of where you come from! Head off to Cape St Francis in the evenings to see the sunset and the chokka boats light up the night out at sea.