Few places in South Africa have as much diversity to offer the tourist as the Great Karoo: a treasure trove of ancient Gondwanaland fossils & Bushman rock art a sun-scorched landscape of wild eroded mountains and vast arid plains the most botanically diverse semi-desert in the world with extraordinary fauna & flora a fascinating history with 5 cultures the architectural Gem of the Karoo: Graaff-Reinet a night-sky so dark that the Milky Way seems like a city of stars. This, according to tour operators Andrew and David McNaughton, is why interest in the Great Karoo has mushroomed and makes possible their dream of sustainable tourism with the emphasis on mutual respect between cultures and the creation of a better natural environment through an awareness of the past.