Travel Articles

Top City Tourist Attractions

Staying in luxury accommodation in Cape Town’s centre is an ideal base for exploring all the nearby tourist attractions. The city centre itself is a hive of activity, where you can buy hand-crafted African curios from street vendors, designer handbags from international shops, and antique jewellery from trendy second-hand stores.

A trip to Green Market Square on a weekday morning while on a Cape Town holiday will allow you to experience the range of cultures that diverge in the city centre. This outdoor market is surrounded by Rastafarians playing slow drum beats on bongos, marimba bands playing traditional African songs and deli’s where you dine on the pavement.

On the other side of town, offering a more mainstream and conservative day out, is the V&A Waterfront, hosting a range of designer shops and waterside seafood restaurants. A tailor-made holiday in Cape Town will allow you to explore both aspects of the city, so you can make the most of your Cape Town holiday.

Looming above the city centre is Table Mountain, and a short trip by cable car will have you towering above the city in no time. Views from the top are spectacular, with the sea, the city and nearby forests making up the surrounding area. Be sure to look out for your Cape Town hotel from the top.

A Day in the Vineyards

Luxury accommodation in Cape Town is often located very near the city centre, allowing for easy access to the main tourist attractions. Even the wine route is only about an hour’s drive from the main Cape Town hotels, where you can taste the wine produced in the local vineyards as you take in the mountains, fields and rivers that surround you. Most of the vineyards have picnic spots, where you can enjoy a sunny afternoon outdoors as you feast on local food and your favourite bottle of the vineyard’s own wine.

Cape Malay Culture and Townships Tours

South Africa’s complex political history makes for different cultures congregating in different parts of the city. While the city centre sees a divergence of the local cultures, a trip to the more specific cultural epicentres is well worthwhile on a Cape Town holiday.

The Cape Malay community is vibrant, friendly and buzzing, and engaging in an activity such as a music tour will give you some insight into this dynamic community. For a bit of history on this cultural group, paying a visit to the old area of District Six, a suburb from which many Cape Malay residents were forcibly removed under the previous government, will shed some light into the lifestyles and heritage of these people. The choice is all yours on a tailor-made holiday in Cape Town.

An integral part of Cape Town’s history and culture are the townships that lie on the outskirts of the city. You could go on a township tour of the areas, or you could go for lunch at a local township restaurant. One of the most well-known township restaurants that is safe to visit, is Mzoli’s, a restaurant owned by a local in the township of Gugulethu, just outside Cape Town. A Sunday afternoon is the best time to go, when a local DJ gets people dancing at their tables on the pavement. The restaurant serves only local food, and your choice of meat is barbecued in the restaurant’s courtyard. A visit to this vibrant hangout will make for a different Sunday afternoon experience on a Cape Town holiday.

Beaches and Wildlife

A Cape Town holiday will ultimately always incorporate at least a few days spent basking in the sun on a beach, or taking a stroll through the forest. Just a short drive from the city centre, are the beautiful beaches of Clifton and Camps Bay. With rollerbladers skating down the promenade and a range of cocktail bars overlooking the beach, this is one of Cape Town’s trendiest areas. Many of Cape Town’s hotels are situated on the mountain slopes above the sea, where you can walk down to the beaches in just a few minutes.

On the other side of the city are the beaches of False Bay, where a colony of penguins await you at Boulders Beach, and the warm Indian Ocean water demands to be explored. Though less trendy, these beaches are extremely beautiful and less commercial.

Kistenbosch Botanical Gardens makes for quiet afternoon strolls along the foot of Table Mountain, and Cape Point Nature Reserve sees the point where the two oceans (Indian and Atlantic) meet. If you’re driving to Cape Point, you can expect a baboon or two to hop onto your car whenever you stop, so keep your windows closed to avoid your bag being nicked!

Rachel Hill is a Southern Africa Travel specialist, a company specialising in luxury, tailor-made Cape Town holidays, as well as holidays to other destinations in Southern Africa. Our experienced consultants will help you design your very own luxury holiday, and will be happy to provide you with a free quote.