Cape Town is impressive. It’s not because it has a historic center full of monuments, but because of the natural environment in which it is nestled.
Cape Town, the reason why it is so special
Lashed by the icy waves of the Atlantic Ocean, escorted at all times by the omnipresent Table Mountain, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, and crowned by the sleeping lion formed by the peaks of Lion’s Head and Signal Hill, this is how powerfully Cape Town emerges before your eyes when you gaze upon it from the air.
What captures you most about Cape Town is that impressive topography, a close cousin of Rio de Janeiro, that fascinating set of rock balconies overlooking the sea where sharks swim and Robben Island floats, the unique South African Alcatraz where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years.
A natural setting that hosts a hive of modern buildings with a clear European aftertaste, around which the suburbs are scattered, piled up and still fenced in as a reminder of a not-so-distant apartheid, here called townships, where the other reality of Cape Town, the most numerous reality, barely survives.
Indeed, the Mother City, as Cape Town is known in Africa, fully represents the reality of Africa’s southernmost country where duality rules, where two extremes are always flirting. From the insecurity of these favelas, which again remind one of that Brazilian cousin and which led it to appear on the list of the most dangerous cities in the world, to the opulent calm of the wealthier coastal neighborhoods where perfection strolls among surfboards and trendy restaurants.
If you want to surf, you have Cape Town beaches like the panoramic sandy shores of Clifton and Camps Bay waiting for you with open arms. The same goes if you’re looking for hiking or stronger thrills like paragliding. Yes, there is much to do in Cape Town, a city that makes the most of its natural attractions.
Natural attractions that multiply as soon as you move away from the city. From the Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden, to the essential Cape Peninsula where everything from penguins to ostriches awaits you, along with sea lions and whales that call at the historic Cape of Good Hope.
But it’s better if I break down everything there is to see in Cape Town so you can organize your visit if you are thinking of traveling to South Africa.
Cape Town what to see to make the most of it
Table Mountain, the guardian of Cape Town
Table Mountain is that giant you see from any point in Cape Town. No matter where you turn, your gaze will end up meeting this curious plateau-like mountain that watches over the metropolis at all hours and is considered one of the seven natural wonders of the world along with the Amazon, Iguazu Falls, or Halong Bay.
Table Mountain is the icon of Cape Town, it even gives its name to the Table Mountain National Park. Visiting South Africa and not ascending to its summit in the cableway with its rotating base would be unforgivable. Mind you, watch out as your conquest of the summit will always depend on the weather; there is an insistent blanket of clouds that likes to wrap around the mountain, making the ascent pointless, and gusts of wind that insist on further eroding the geography, frequently causing the cableway to close.
Once all impediments are overcome, impressive 360-degree views of Cape Town await you at the top. There are several trails to walk, sometimes too close to the abyss, which you can explore at your own pace or with one of the free guided walks that depart from next to the restaurant.
Later I will tell you in an article all the practical information you need to know to visit Table Mountain, but I can tell you now that you can do it on your own or with a private tour that also includes a tour of Cape Town where you will be accompanied by a guide who speaks Spanish.
Bo-Kaap, explosion of color in Cape Town
The most colorful neighborhood in Cape Town is, without a doubt, Bo-Kaap, located on a slope of Signal Hill. Here houses painted in red, green, blue, and many other shades stand stoically in a row before the lenses of tourists who have turned this setting into the most Instagrammable in the city.
But be aware that Bo-Kaap is much more than the pretty and photogenic darling of the city. This neighborhood has an interesting history behind it. Many of the slaves brought from Asia by the Dutch settlers ended up living here. Although it is popularly known as the Malay Quarter, the truth is that descendants of slaves brought from India, Sri Lanka, or Indonesia also settled in its steep alleys.
An important Muslim community resides in Bo-Kaap, so it’s no surprise if you come across a mosque during your visit. The most prominent of all is Auwal Masjid, the oldest mosque in all of South Africa, which was built in the 18th century at 39 Dorp Street.
Victoria & Alfred Waterfront and its thousand options
Welcome to the most touristy and also safest area of Cape Town. In Victoria & Alfred Waterfront leisure is presented in all its variants: restaurants, shopping centers, markets, art galleries… Here you can choose between going shopping, setting sail on one of the different boat excursions, seeing sharks at Two Oceans Aquarium, eating at one of the many restaurants of all kinds, visiting one of its museums like the striking Zeitz MOCAA African contemporary art museum, watching performances, playing in the park with the children and even flying in a helicopter to see Cape Town from a bird’s-eye view.
The Cape Town docks become the perfect commercial and recreational area to spend anywhere from a couple of hours to the whole day if necessary. So that you don’t get disappointed, you should know that as of November 2022, the giant Ferris wheel you see in many photos is no longer there. Of course, don’t forget to take the typical photo with Table Mountain framed in the background, which is located here.
I recommend that before going you take a look at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront map to organize your day a bit and know where to park. I visited twice during my stay in Cape Town, and the first time I found it hard to figure out where to enter, as the network of docks and walkways is massive.
Robben Island, Nelson Mandela’s prison
This was one of the things to do in Cape Town that I didn’t get to do and would have loved to. From one of the docks at Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, the ferry departs for Robben Island. On this island is the prison where Nelson Mandela spent 18 years of the 27 he was incarcerated after being convicted for fighting against apartheid.
You have several options for visiting the island and seeing the cell of the man who was South Africa’s first black president and a Nobel Peace Prize winner. For 600 rands, about €34, you can do it on your own by booking one of the four daily tours (9:00, 11:00, 13:00, and 15:00) offered on the official Robben Island website in advance. Expect them to last about three and a half hours and remember they depend on sea conditions.
Another more convenient option, for a little more, is to book the Robben Island tour which includes hotel pickup, so you won’t have to worry about how to get to the pier.
And finally, if you have little time to see the city, a good idea is to opt for this complete guided excursion to Robben Island which also includes a visit to Table Mountain and a tour of Cape Town visiting its main points of interest.
Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden
Set aside some time because here comes one of the places to see in Cape Town that you cannot miss: the Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden. If this botanical garden is special, besides the beautiful landscape surrounding it with Table Mountain as a backdrop, it’s for being part of the Cape Floral Region, a protected area declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, as it is one of the areas with the greatest floral richness in the world.
Spend at least a couple of hours walking through this beautiful place full of trees, flowers, plants and don’t forget to cross the Tree Canopy Walk, a steel and wooden bridge that rises 12 meters above the ground to allow you to walk among the treetops.
Built to celebrate the botanical garden’s centenary, it is popularly known as Boomslang, the name of a South African tree snake, as the shape of this walkway emulates a snake.
Although there is a tea house, a cafeteria and the Moyo African restaurant, I recommend bringing things for a picnic and sitting in one of its meadows to eat with enviable views. If you go with children, next to Moyo there is a small wooden park.
- Opening Hours: Open every day from 8:00 to 19:00 (from April to August it closes at 18:00)
- Price: Adults 210 rands, children from 6 to 17 years 30 rands, children under 6 free. It is not included in the Wild Card.
Long Street and Greenmarket Square
Long Street is one of the main arteries of Cape Town, where there is always activity and which at night brings out its heavy artillery if you’re looking for a night out. If you have time, be sure to take a walk to remember the city’s colonial past by contemplating some of the Victorian facades that line this street.
A good place to buy a souvenir of your trip through South Africa is Greenmarket Square, a historic square behind Long Street where a market with craft stalls and souvenirs is set up daily from 9:00 to 18:00.
Walking along Government Avenue
Few people visit this monumental pedestrian avenue in Cape Town which is very close to the previous point; however, I found it interesting. This pedestrian street begins behind St. George’s Cathedral and hides the oldest garden in the country, Company’s Garden, which in the 17th century began to be used as a vegetable garden by Dutch settlers.
Today it is a most pleasant corner to walk and rest in the heart of Cape Town among roses and sculptures. In addition, on Government Avenue, around the garden, there is also the Parliament, the National Library, several buildings of the Iziko museum such as the South African National Gallery or the planetarium, the Jewish museum and other points of interest.
Lion’s Head and Signal Hill
They say that the best views of Table Mountain are from the summit of Lion’s Head and the best sunset in Cape Town is from the top of Signal Hill. There you have two strong reasons to climb this mountain and this hill which are also part of the character of this interesting metropolis.
You have to climb the first one on foot no matter what, either by the easiest path or by the option for adventurers who prefer to ascend the final section among chains and rocks. Estimate an hour and a half walk to reach the top and enjoy what they say are breathtaking views.
If reaching the top of Lion’s Head seems a bit much, it’s much easier to climb onto the feline’s tail, as Signal Hill is also known. This is because both resemble a lying lion, or at least that’s what the Dutch settlers who named them saw. To watch the sunset from Signal Hill, you can go by car.
- If you are an adrenaline junkie, you will like to know that from both Lion’s Head and Signal Hill you can paraglide over Cape Town.
Cape Town Map
What to see in the surroundings of Cape Town
Be careful, the best of this city is outside of it. Here is a list of the best places to see near Cape Town. Later, I will write a detailed article with excursions to do from Cape Town, but at least I want you to know about their existence:
- Be amazed by Camps Bay beach with the Twelve Apostles in the background.
- Go down to the Cape of Good Hope.
- Greet the penguins at Boulders Beach.
- See sea lions in Hout Bay
- Drive along the scenic Chapmans Peak Drive
- Do all of the above on this Cape Peninsula tour
- Photograph the colorful huts at Muizenberg beach
- Toast with wine in the Stellenbosch vineyards or in those of Franschhoek
- Ride a historic tram through the Franschhoek vineyards
How to get around Cape Town
In my case, during my stay in Cape Town I moved around with a rental car because the trip was a road trip, in two stages, from Johannesburg. To park in the center you have to pay or put the car in a parking lot.
If you travel without a car, another option for getting around Cape Town is to take the MyCiti public buses, although I didn’t use them and don’t know if they work well or poorly. To get on you first have to buy a card next to the stops and top it up with money. The good thing is that it works like a debit card and then you can use it to pay in shops without commission.
With these buses you can reach many tourist spots in the city such as Table Mountain, Bo-Kaap or V&A Waterfront, and even as far as Camps Bay beach. On this map you can see the map with the MyCiti lines.
Another way to get around Cape Town is with the scenic tourist bus which allows you to get on and off as many times as you want. The good thing about this option is that it takes you to all the points of interest such as Table Mountain, Bo-Kaap, the botanical garden and even does a route through the Cape Peninsula reaching Cape Point.
If you don’t have a car, booking the tourist bus ticket is a very good option because you don’t have to worry about figuring out how to get to each place and you can also get the tourist bus ticket combined with the Table Mountain cableway.
For specific journeys you should also know that UBER works in Cape Town, although I don’t know if well or poorly because I didn’t have to use it.
Where to sleep in Cape Town
In my case, the five nights I spent in Cape Town were in an exchange home through the HomeExchange platform near Table Mountain, in a quiet and very safe residential neighborhood. Thanks to this, I spent nothing on accommodation during those nights.
Anyway, if you are not up for swapping your home and prefer to stay in a hotel or apartment, here are a couple of options with good reviews, well located, and with great value for money:
- Cape Heritage Hotel: Right in the center of Cape Town, you have luxury rooms starting from €140 per night.
- 91 Loop Boutique Hostel: If you are looking for something more affordable, but with the same central location, this modern hostel offers double rooms with a bathroom starting from €40.
Where to eat in Cape Town
If you are looking to taste traditional South African dishes, no easy task in a country where international influences have taken deep root, in Cape Town you will be lucky because you will find restaurants.
My recommendation without a doubt is Seven Colours Eatery a simple place, but one that exudes character and above all flavor, inside the V&A Food Market gastronomic market, at Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. For very little money, you can try various typical recipes prepared by chef Nolu Dube-Cele. However, go early because they cook few dishes and they run out quickly.
Without leaving the harbor, but moving to pier 5, you have another recommended restaurant: Mozambik where the cuisine of its neighbor Mozambique fuses with our neighbor Portugal. If you’ve already had enough of the omnipresent barbecue meat, order prawns or fish as both are delicious, but watch out as the spiciness here is the order of the day.
Burger lovers will be happy at the original and edgy The Dog’s Bollocks at YARD at 6, Roodehek Street. Upon arrival, you write your name with chalk on a blackboard and while waiting for your food, have fun reading the curious messages in the place.
Sigue leyendo sobre Sudáfrica: Viajar a Sudáfrica:guía práctica Hoteles en Sudáfrica Qué ver en Ciudad del Cabo Guía para visitar Table Mountain Las mejores excursiones desde Ciudad del Cabo Visitar el Cabo de Buena Esperanza Qué ver en la Ruta Panorama Wild Card ¿merece la pena? Sudáfrica con niños 10 restaurantes en Sudáfrica para ir con niños Guía para viajar a Esuatini Hlane National Park Hermanus, el paraíso de las ballenas
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