CAPE TOWN
Cape Town (Western Cape, South Africa)
Affectionately named the Mother City, Cape Town is situated in the Western Cape province of South Africa and is recipient of hundreds of travel awards; spectacularly beautiful, culturally diverse, endlessly exciting - resplendent, irresistible Cape Town is the jewel of Africa.
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Cape Town is the oldest city in South Africa and has a cultural heritage spanning more than 300 years. It also has the top five national attractions in South Africa that should appear on every visitor’s itinerary. Between Cape Dutch homesteads, traditional dancers with painted faces performing in the streets, the smell of spicy Malay cooking and the taste of a well-made wine, this city will fill your senses.
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This is truly an amazing city to visit with a national park in its limits and boasting three world heritage sites: Table Mountain National Park, Kirstenbosch and the famous Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned.
It is a culturally diverse and dynamic metropolis set among beautiful beaches and winelands with a backdrop of the iconic Table Mountain.
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It is a large and sophisticated city by any standards with hotels which number among the best in the world. The city’s architecture traces the influence of Dutch and English occupations, alongside settlers from France, Germany and the East. Cape Town is also home to the South African Parliament and a host of outstanding museums, the SA National Gallery and the SA Library.
While it has been named one of the top five Blue Skies Cities in the world, Cape Town also has weather! Visiting different suburbs on different sides of the mountain can show you four seasons in one day.
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The city shares with Cairo the title of most-visited African destination; the Soccer World Cup boosted this status to such an extent that British Airways put on an extra daily flight to the city from London.
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The Port of Cape Town is ideally situated at the crossroads of some of the world’s most important trade routes, making the transport, maritime and logistics sectors very important. The port plays a major role in exporting the province’s fruit, wine and other agricultural products to international markets.
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Don’t miss a visit up Table Mountain; the V&A Waterfront, a unique shopping and holiday experience on a scenic working harbor; Robben Island, the former home of Nelson Mandela; the Cape Wine Routes, where some of the world’s best wines are produced and Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, internationally acclaimed as one of the great botanical gardens of the world.
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An ideal place to start savouring the beauty is at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. The breathtaking backdrop of the mountain, ever-changing as the play of light and cloud reveals different textures, can be enjoyed from many of the 40 restaurants and taverns, while one sips a glass of Cape wine or Waterfront-brewed beer.
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Boat and helicopter trips that start here offer a unique but essential perspective of the mountain chain. Boat trips take in the Atlantic suburbs and the range which steps back from Table Mountain called the Twelve Apostles. Boat trips are also offered from Hout Bay, Simon's Town and Gordon's Bay.
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In the middle of Table Bay, Robben Island is a reminder of a period in history that South Africa has left behind. Ferries now ply the route to the Island each day – a trip which for many is a pilgrimage. For another perspective, take the cable car to the top of Table Mountain. Opened in 1929 and completely upgraded in 1998, the trip to the 3000 foot summit takes five minutes. Here, locals with a picnic and a bottle of wine, watch the sun set over the Atlantic as the city lights start twinkling below. In the distance lie False Bay, Hout Bay and the mountains stretching to Cape Point. On a hot day, dassies or rock rabbits sun themselves on the boulders all around. The creatures are, in spite of their size, the closest living relative to the elephant!
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A drive around the peninsula takes in a world of superlatives derived from differing micro climates as one passes from one side of the multi-faceted mountain chain to another. Sunlight – filtered by mountain ranges or clouds, or reflected by a sea which varies from an azure blue to a stormy grey – gives Cape Town its unique quality of light; rich in colour and contrast. Because of this, the city is an international centre for fashion photography and television commercials, and the Cape Town Film Office facilitates more filming than any other city in the world.
Leaving the city, one drives around the back of Table Mountain. Kirstenbosch – home to the National Botanical Gardens – nestles at the foot of Table Mountain at the southern face. It is a treasure trove of indigenous flora, and a popular destination for family outings.
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One travels down the False Bay coast, through the historic naval base at Simon’s Town, and returns along the Atlantic coast to Kommetjie. The favoured route is along the breathtaking Chapman’s Peak drive, but this is frequently closed due to rockfalls. The alternative route is over Ou Kaapse Weg (Old Cape Road) into the Tokai and Constantia valleys, home to the Cape’s first wine estates. Groot Constantia, Klein Constantia, Buitenverwachting and Steenberg are all worth a visit.
Then, driving over Constantia Nek one enters Hout Bay, a picturesque fishing village, and along to the Atlantic suburbs – and the world famous beaches at Camps Bay and Clifton.
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Where else in the world can you go swimming alongside penguins or dolphins? Penguin colonies are found near Simon’s Town and on Robben Island; while early morning swimmers at Camps Bay may be entertained by large schools of dolphins frolicking in the surf.
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It is at Cape Point that the warm Mozambique current of the Indian Ocean meets the cold Benguela current that sweeps up from the Antarctic into the Atlantic Ocean. While the Benguela causes desert conditions in the Namib, a thousand kilometres to the north, it nurtures Cape Town’s environmental diversity and provides an ocean teeming with pelagic fish feeding in plankton-rich waters.
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While walking through the city’s streets and meeting its people, you will fall in love with its natural beauty, creative freedom and incredible spirit. Cape Town is a city where the unexpected is always just around the corner and the beautiful province of the Western Cape lies ready to be explored across the city border
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“By any standard, the Cape Town region of South Africa is one of the most beautiful and compelling places to visit on the planet…