General Information about Cape Town

The Mother City and her people are complex and lively. A great deal of what they have done and will do is ruled by the city's location on the edge of the continent and her exposure to the forces of nature.

Getting to know Cape Town's history and culture is a varied, multi-sensory experience - occasionally tragic, sometimes laughable, but never dull and boring.

Finding your way around the Cape Peninsula is easy; just make sure you know where Table Mountain is. Standing 1,086m at its highest point, this rock solid beacon is visible from most parts of the peninsula. If you can't see the mountain, there's a problem - either it's cloudy or you're in Johannesburg.

Running along the Cape's western coastline is the Atlantic Seaboard comprising Sea Point, Clifton, Camps Bay and Hout Bay and further up the West Coast you'll find Table View, Blaauwberg (or Blouberg) and kite surfers.

Even further up the coast, you'll discover Langebaan, Saldanha, the picturesque Paternoster and the unspoiled 16 mile beach of Yzerfontein. Continue on this route and eventually you'll arrive at the legendary Elands Bay with the best left break in the country (or so its army of devoted surfers claim), and some of the best crayfish anywhere.

East of Table Mountain is the Southern Peninsula. The further south you go, the closer to Cape Point you'll get (Cape Point being the south westernmost point in the country) passing the Cape's leafy southern suburbs and the cheeky jackass (African) penguins at Boulders Beach on your way.

The route will take you past Muizenberg, Kalk Bay, Fish Hoek and Simon's Town (also written as Simonstown). Feel free to cool off in the sea as it is warmer here than on the Atlantic seaboard side.

Also east of the mountain, and inland, is the Cape Flats, a flat (it is aptly named) sandy plain of sprawling suburbs and townships. This includes Langa, one of the oldest townships in South Africa and Khayelitsha, with more than a million residents, one of the largest. Township tours are available as an excellent way to sample life on the Flats.

Head north out of Cape Town and you'll soon find yourself surrounded by vineyards in the Cape's famed winelands. Pick any well marked route (there are three main routes: Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franschhoek), select a designated driver and get tasting and buying. Of course accommodation in Cape Town is aplenty so you could always book a night at a wine farm, guest house or hotel and wake up among the vines.

Enquire now |  Add to my enquiry