Ponta d'Ouro is a town in the extreme south of Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

, lying on the Mozambique Channel

Mozambique Channel

The Mozambique Channel is a portion of the Indian Ocean located between the island nation of Madagascar and southeast Africa, primarily the country of Mozambique. It was a World War II clashpoint during the Battle of Madagascar...

 south of Maputo

Maputo

Maputo, also known as Lourenço Marques, is the capital and largest city of Mozambique. It is known as the City of Acacias in reference to acacia trees commonly found along its avenues and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. It was famous for the inscription "This is Portugal" on the walkway of its...

 and just north of the border with South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

. It is known for its beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

, for its dolphin

Dolphin

Dolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...

s and for its offshore diving

Underwater diving

Underwater diving is the practice of going underwater, either with breathing apparatus or by breath-holding .Recreational diving is a popular activity...

 and deep-sea fishing. From other points in Mozambique, Ponta d'Ouro can only be reached by a 4x4 vehicle as there are no tarred roads. The currency is the Metical, but the South African Rand

South African rand

The rand is the currency of South Africa. It takes its name from the Witwatersrand , the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built and where most of South Africa's gold deposits were found. The rand has the symbol "R" and is subdivided into 100 cents, symbol "c"...

 and the US Dollar

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

are also accepted. Shopping is very limited in Ponta. There are a petrol station, a bank, a pharmacy, a hardware store, bottle store and other small shops in town. Fresh bread can be purchased at the local market. Basic food items like vegetables, fruits can be purchased at this market. No luxurious items are available anywhere in Ponta d’Ouro. Holiday accommodation is readily available. There are 3 to 4 modern and comfortable resorts in Ponta on the beachfront and surrounding areas. Other resorts date from pre-war and although quite primitive with limited facilities are very popular with tourists due to reasonable pricing and excellent location on the beachfront.

It is commonly referred to as 'Ponta' by visiting South Africans.