Shelly Beach, South Africa

Shelly Beach is a coastal resort town on the South Coast of the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, located more or less halfway between Margate (8.5 km) and Port Shepstone (7.1 km).

Geography
Shelly Beach is situated between the Zotsha Creek to the north, the Mhlangeni River to the south and the R61 freeway to the west. Its neighbouring areas are Oslo Beach to the north and St Michael’s-on-Sea and Uvongo to the south.

Economic Development
The opening of Shelly Centre in 1985 placed Shelly Beach as a prime shopping destination on the KZN South Coast followed by the developments of 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 gateway to shopping in the Lower South Coast, host to the two largest malls in the region, namely Shelly Centre and Southcoast Mall.

Retail
The main retail thoroughfare in the town, Marine Drive, is the location of several local shops, car dealerships, restaurants, and shopping centres. Shopping centres in Shelly Centre include Shelly Centre, which is the largest shopping centre on the South Coast, Shelly Boulevard and Southcoast Mall, which is the second largest shopping centre on the South Coast. The latter is not located on Marine Drive, but on the border of Shelly Beach, next to the R61.

Beaches
Shelly Beach is host to two beaches along its coastline, namely Shelly Beach and Windsor on Sea 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.



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.

Private healthcare
Established on August 2010 as the Shelly Beach Day Hospital, the Shelly Beach Hospital is the sole hospital serving Shelly Beach. Owned by Shelly Health Consortium (Pty) Ltd, it is a private hospital operating 24-hour emergency services. The hospital is located on Izotsha Road, opposite Southcoast Mall.

Public healthcare
Shelly Beach Clinic is a government-funded municipal clinic operated by the Ugu District Municipality. For public hospitals, residents of Shelly Beach normally use the Port Shepstone Regional Hospital.

Roads
Shelly Beach straddles along the R620 (Marine Drive) connecting Port Shepstone to the north with Uvongo to the south. The town also lies just off the R61 highway (future N2 Wild Coast Toll Route) between Port Shepstone and Port Edward. Running north-west, Izotsha Road connects the town with Izotsha to the north-west and Gamalakhe to the west (via the P200).

Tolling
The R61, forming part of the South Coast Toll Route, involves the payment of toll at the toll booths of the Izotsha Ramp Toll Plaza, situated on the off and on-ramps of the Izotsha Road interchange (Exit 39). Traffic arriving from the south to turn off at exit 39 and traffic joining the R61 S from Izotsha Road must pass through the respective ramp plazas. The R620 to Margate and Port Shepstone serves as the untolled alternative route to the R61.