Our Quick Guide to Cape Town and surrounds
Cape Town is a large, spread-out city, sprawling around mountains and along the coast. It is not a place that can be explored in one-day or even fully enjoyed in a week. It is a city, set amidst spectacular nature that can take weeks, months and years to explore and fully appreciate.
The most important advice I can give you, is that Cape Town is surrounded by the sea in almost all sides and this means that the weather can change several times every day. Sea breezes and wind can turn a hot morning into a chilly afternoon. One side of the mountain can experience rain while the other side is sunny and dry. Always dress in layers and take something warm along even if it is the perfect morning. And allow flexibility in your schedule. Experiences such as the cable way to the top of Table Mountain or the Robben Island ferry could be cancelled and postponed due to weather. Plan these for early in your trip, so that you can move these to other days if required.
If it is your first time to Cape Town, then we recommend the following:
1. City walking tours
Two half-day walking tours with us at LocalPlaces: Understanding Cape Town and Evolving Cape Town. Both cover the inner-city but the former includes the V&A Waterfront and the latter the Bo-Kaap. Together they provide your with a full overview of the remarkable Cape Town story.
Combine these in one full-day or spread them over two days as half-day explorations. These tours are absolutely essential to orientate you about Cape Town to make you make sense of its surprising, complex and perplexing history and vibrant contemporary culture.
2. City driving tour
If you don’t want to walk, then instead book the Gerald’s Finest Cape Town tour with us at LocalPlaces, driving around in the comfortable vehicle to some of the most prominent and best hidden gems of the city.
3. A trip to the top of Table Mountain
One of the most breathtaking views in the world is from the top of Table Mountain, especially at sunset. Book a ticket for the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway ahead of time.
4. Peninsula Tour
Spend an entire day exploring the Cape Peninsula. Perfect for a self-drive exploration but even better for a guided tour. We can book you with our prefect tour partners for a stellar experience covering everything from Hout Bay and Chapman’s Peak to Cape Point (Cape of Good Hope beach and lighthouse), penguins at Boulder’s Beach, Simonstown, Kalk Bay, Muizenberg and Constantia.
5. Winelands
You simply have to visit the splenderous wine farms of the Cape. There are some spectacular farms to explore right here in Cape Town, including Groot Constantia, Klein Constantia, Buitenverwachting, Steenberg, Beau Constantia, Eagle’s Nest, Constantia Glen and Constantia Uitsig.
If you have more time, explore the wine farms and estates of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. Recommended places include Tokara, Thelema, Boschendal, La Motte, Haute Cabriere, Babylonstoren, Vergenoegd Low, Muratie, Vergelegen and Hidden Valley.
6. A stroll through the most scenic garden
Spend at least half-a-day walking through the spectacular Kirstenbosh Botanical Garden, set against the slopes behind Table Mountain
Once you have done these six, be in touch with us and let’s plan a whole gamut of behind-the-scenes activities and explorations that will make you fall in love with Cape Town. Whether it is public art, art galleries, history museums, journeys in nature of food experiences you are after, we can make you fall in love with Cape Town.
Contact Gerald on WhatsApp +27 82 894 5216 or email gerald@localplaces.co.za to start a conversation on planning your Cape Town experience.
Our recommendations:
These are Gerald’s personal recommendations of places to go, it is a work in progress. Expect constant updates.
Exquisite restaurants
Journey Urchin (Hyatt Regency Hotel Cape Town)
La Calombe (Constantia)
Salsify (Roundhouse, Camps Bay)
Fyn (City)
Pot Luck Club (Woodstock)
Traditional South African and Pan-African food
Seven Colours Eatery (Battery Park, Waterfront) – South African Xhosa inspired
Addis in Cape (City) – Ethiopian
Faeeza’s Kitchen & Tea Garden (Bo-Kaap) – Cape Malay
Eastern Food Bazaar (Asian-inspired South African cuisine)
High-end restaurants with a relaxed ambiance
Sea Breeze Fish & Shell (City)
Ongetem (Long Kloof, Gardens)
Harbour House (Kalk Bay)
Zest (Sea Point)
Gigi Rooftop (Gorgeous George Hotel, City)
Kloof Street House (Gardens)
Mantra (Camps Bay)
Fantastic cuisine in casual settings
Couzins (City)
Live Bait (Kalk Bay)
Hussar Grill (Camps Bay)
Beira Mar (Kalk Bay)
Great coffee shops, breakfast, brunch & lunch spots
Four & Twenty (Chelsea Village, Wynberg)
Paulines Gardens (Long Kloof, Gardens)
Ginja Restaurant (Victoria & Alfred Hotel, Waterfront)
Strangers (Green Point)
Egg Head (Gardens)
The Electric (District Six)
Casual bars/eateries to hang out
The Yard (Gardens)
Mixa’s (Gardens) (my favourite is the lamb and avo burger)
The Pizza Shed in Bree Street (City)
High-end/cocktail bars
Art of Duplicity (District Six)
Gigi Rootop (Gorgeous George Hotel, City)
The Drinkery (Heritage Square)
Athletic & Social Club (City)
Great rooftop bars/restaurants
Raddison Red Hotel, Waterfront (Waterfront)
Sun Square Hotel Foreshore (City)
Mountain Club at Cloud 9 Boutique Hotel (Gardens)
Gigi Rooftop (Gorgeous George Hotel, City)
High-end places to stay
Dorp Hotel (Bo-Kaap)
Cellars Hohenort (Constantia)
Great affordable places to stay
Curiocity Africa Green Point (Green Point)
Curiocity Africa Kloof Street (Gardens)
Art Galleries & Museums
Zeits Mocaa – Museum of Contemporary African Art (Waterfront)
Desmond & Leah Tutu Foundation – exhibition of the Tutu’s life work (District Six)
District Six Museum – the story of the Apartheid destruction of this neighbourhood (District Six)
Iziko South African National Gallery (Gardens)
Iziko Slave Lodge (City)
Camissa Museum at the Cape Castle (City)
Most astonishing places to visit in Cape Town and surrounds
Table Mountain Aerial Cable Way
Chapman’s Peak Drive
Groot Constantia Wine Farm
Cape Point / Cape of Good Hope
Boulders Beach (penguins)
Kalk Bay village and harbour
Zeitz Moccaa
Battery Park and Canals, V&A Waterfront
Vergenoedg Low Wine Estate
Boschendal Wine Estate
Clifton 4th Beach
Boschendal
Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden
Getting around
Getting around in Cape Town is not the simplest or easiest thing as the city still suffers from apartheid spatial planning and insufficient/ineffective public transport.
If you do not have a car, you can get around with Uber, MyCiti Bus and the CitySightseeing Red Buses. In the case I recommend that you stay in the City Bowl, with the Waterfront, Gardens (around Kloof Street) and Green Point my recommended areas.
If you do have a car, then you may want to stay further out along the Atlantic Seaboard (Bantry Bay, Clifton of Camps Bay) where the sunset sea views are glorious.
Be in touch with LocalPlaces and let us help you:
– choose where to stay based on your interests and transport requirements
– choose which tours to do
– choose what other activities and places to include in your itinerary.
Contact Gerald on WhatsApp +27 82 894 5216 or email gerald@localplaces.co.za