Shelly Beach is a coastal resort town on the

South Coast South Coast is a name often given to coastal areas to the south of a geographical region or major metropolitan area. Geographical Australia *South Coast (New South Wales), the coast of New South Wales, Australia, south of Sydney * South Coast (Q ...

of the

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, located more or less halfway between

Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and Westbrook, Kent, ...

(8.5 km) and Port Shepstone (7.1 km).

Geography

Part of the greater

area, Shelly Beach including its

Central Business District A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

(CBD) lies on a narrow coastal plain towards the coastline whilst further inland the town's altitude rises over a hilly terrain overlooking the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

. The CBD itself is typical of small towns as most of the businesses in the district are stringed along the main road, 'Marine Drive'. Shelly Beach is bordered by two rivers, the Mhlanga River in the south and the Zotsha River in the north as well as the

R61 R61 may refer to: * R61 (South Africa) The R61 is a long provincial route in South Africa that connects Beaufort West with Port Shepstone via Graaff-Reinet, Komani (previously Queenstown), Mthatha and Port Edward. The R61 is co-signed with the ...

/ N2 highway in the west with bordering communities including St Michael's-on-sea and

Uvongo Uvongo is a seaside resort in the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast at the mouth of the Vungu River in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Uvongo is the largest upmarket residential area on the lower South Coast. The Vungu River has a waterfall that flows into ...

to the south and Port Shepstone to the north.

Economy

Economic Development

The opening of Shelly Centre in 1985 placed Shelly Beach as a prime shopping destination on the

KZN South Coast KwaZulu-Natal South Coast (better known as the KZN South Coast or just the South Coast) is a region on the southern coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It stretches from Scottburgh in the north to Port Edward in the south and Harding in the w ...

followed by the recent developments of South Africa's electricity utility, ESKOM's regional offices, Southcoast Mall in 2005, Shelly Beach Business Park in 2007, the Shelly Beach Day Hospital (now a 24-hour hospital) in August 2010 and the reopening of McDonald's in Shelly Beach in 2021 since the 1990s. Today Shelly Beach has become the "shopping gateway" to the South Coast (with the two largest malls in the region- Shelly Centre and Southcoast Mall)

Retail

Shelly Beach is the largest retail node on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast with a large concentration of shopping centres, motor delearships and other retail facilities. The most notable and largest shopping centres in Shelly Beach are Southcoast Mall and Shelly Centre, the second largest shopping centre south of Durban (after The Galleria Mall in

Amanzimtoti Amanzimtoti is a coastal town just south of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The town is well known for its warm climate and numerous beaches, and is a popular tourist destination, particularly with surfers. The annual sardine run attracts ...

). *

Southcoast Mall Southcoast Mall is a shopping centre located in Shelly Beach on the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is the second largest shopping centre on the South Coast after Shelly Centre and mainly serves the Lower South Coast region. ...

lies towards the western outskirts of Shelly Beach, on the corner of the R61 and Izotsha Road. * Shelly Centre lies on the main road, Marine Drive in the CBD. Another shopping centre in Shelly Beach is Shelly Boulevard on the corner between East Street and Marine Drive and adjacent Shelly Centre.

Tourism

Beaches

There also two beaches within Shelly Beach, Windsor on Sea Beach and Shelly Beach. The name "Shelly Beach" refers to the many shells on the beaches in which there are. Here, the finest miniature pink lady shells can be found among many other varieties.

Hotels

Snorkelling & diving

Shelly Beach boasts numerous popular diving and snorkelling sites, where the most spectacular varieties of tropical fish, sharks, corals as well as mystical underwater caves can be discovered. These popular sites include Potato Reef, The Caves, Deep Salmon, Arena Reef, Bo Boyi Reef, and Adda Reef.

Infrastructure

Healthcare

Shelly Beach has only one hospital, Shelly Beach Hospital which is a private hospital owned by a consortium, Shelly Health Consortium (Pty) Ltd. Shelly Beach also has one public clinic located north of the CBD whilst the nearest public hospital is located in Port Shepstone.

Roads

Shelly Beach has access to one highway, the R61/N2. The

/ N2 (South Coast Toll Road) runs past Shelly Beach bordering the town to the west and links it to Port Shepstone and

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

in the north-east and Port Edward in the south-west. Access to Shelly Beach from the R61/N2 can be obtained through the Izotsha Road interchange (Exit 39) where the two Izotsha Ramp Toll Plazas are found. The R620 (Marine Drive) runs along the coast as the main artery of Shelly Beach. The regional route links the town to Port Shepstone in the north-east and

and

Southbroom Southbroom is a coastal village in Ugu District Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It is located 143 km south-west of Durban, and 213 km south of Pietermaritzburg. The village was officially founded in 1933, an ...

in the south-west. The R620 can also be used as an alternative route to Durban and

Kokstad Kokstad is a town in the Harry Gwala District Municipality of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Kokstad is named after the Griqua chief Adam Kok III who settled here in 1863. Kokstad is the capital town of the East Griqualand region, as i ...

(via

R102 The R.102 (originally referred to as Project H) was a British airship planned in 1930 but never built. The development of R.102 resulted from the Imperial Airship Scheme, when it became apparent that the R100 and R101 airships then being buil ...

in Port Shepstone) for motorists avoiding the Oribi Toll Plaza in Port Shepstone. Izotsha Road which starts at the intersection with the R620, just north of the CBD links Shelly Beach to the R61, Izotsha and Paddock in the north-west. Izotsha Road can also be used as an alternative route to Kokstad via the N2 in Paddock.

References

{{Ugu District Municipality Populated places in the Ray Nkonyeni Local Municipality Populated coastal places in South Africa