Beaufort West is about 470km from Cape Town on the N1 national road. It is one of the few towns that the N1 actually runs through, so it's not unusual to see huge trucks thundering down the main street. Beaufort West has an airport located about 10 km's out of town. The annual rainfall in Beaufort West is more than 150mm, which gives it the name of the "Oasis Town" of the Karoo. There is also an Oasis Hotel, situated on Main Street. Beaufort West is located on the banks of the intermittently flowing Gamka River and at the foot of the Nuweveld Mountains.

* Karoo National Park On the outskirts of Beaufort West lies the 75 000 ha Karoo National Park. Here two of South Africa’s most highly endangered species, the riverine rabbit and the black rhinoceros, have been successfully resettled. The quagga, which became extinct on August 12, 1883, when the last male of the species died in the Amsterdam Zoo, is again roaming free in the park. It was recreated from portions of its genetic code present in tissue samples taken from a mounted museum exhibit. The park is also home to a wide variety of indigenous buck, mountain zebra, wild ostrich, and five tortoise species, the most in any conservation area in the world. Birdlife is abundant. There are martial, booted and black eagles as well as the somewhat shy Cape Eagle owl.