Visiting Cape Town

Cape Town has got to be one of the most impressive places to visit on the the planet. I highly recommend it.

This site should give you some tips about getting the most out of your time here, as well as listing a number of really cool places to visit.

We hope you have a fantastic time in Cape Town - the Cape of Good Hope - The Mother City!

Cheers
Jono & Char

All Photos are Copyright © Jono Woodhouse.
For permission for use and/or higher resolution photos please contact me
at jono_capetown (at - that's the at sign) capesoft dot (e.g. replace with a .) com

Cape Town - Things to do

Cape Town - Places and Things to Do:

Classics (Highly Recommended):

• Beaches
  
• Cape Point
• Helicopter Rides
• Hiking in the Mountains
  
• Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
• Mountain Biking
  
• Robben Island
• Shark Diving - if that tickles your fancy.
• Scenic Drives
  
• Table Mountain via Cable Car
  
• Wine Route

Restaurants:
There are really plenty of these including:

• The Cellars
• Brass Bell
• Groot Constantia
• etc...

Shopping/Malls:

• V&A Waterfront
• Canal Walk

Further away:

• Garden Route (about 500km away - takes about a day to get there, but well worth it if you have the time)
• Hermanus Area. About 150km away. I recommend driving via Betty's Bay to Hermanus - as it's a nicer route.
  

I'll be expanding this list and including photos if I get a chance, and will also include information, such as:
How to get there (maps and GPS co-ordinates)
Best Times
Parking
Cost

Beaches

Cape Town has some of the best beaches in the world! In fact, the Cape Peninsular has tons of beaches all the way around it - too many to list here, but here are a few worth mentioning:

Llandudno Panaramic





I've listed some of them below, but there are many more.

• Clifton Beach - Popular suntanning beach. Clifton is actually a number of connecting beaches (for example Clifton 1st beach, is next to Clifton 2nd etc.).
  South-Easter Tip: This is one of the few beaches that is almost always sheltered when the South-Easter is blowing.
  Parking can be a mission though. Lovely white beaches - but very cold atlantic water.
  
• Llandudno Beach - My favorite beach. Good for sun-tanning and surfing (SE Wind) (can be a very heavy break though).
• Noordhoek Beach - impressively long beach - you can walk for hours... Not as popular as Llandudno or Clifton. Sometimes has a good surfing wave (SE wind)
  
• Long Beach (The other end of Noordhoek beach) - One of the few surf spots to give a good wave when the SW wind is blowing.
  
• Blouberg Beach (BigBay).
  
• Cape Point Beaches.
  
• Boulders Beach - You have to pay to get in, but there are often loads of penguins to be seen here. Great for kids too. Some people snorkle around here too.
  
• SeaForth - great beach for kids/families. A little warmer than the Atlantic side.
• Fishhoek & Clovelly - can be very windy at times, but the water is generally a little warmer.

Remember the Atlantic coast (west coast of Cape Peninsular) has colder water - but often the beaches are more impressive. In fact even the water on the east coast of the peninsular is not always that warm. Most surfer will surf all year round in full wetsuits. But when the sun is shinning, and the sand feels warm - it's hard to find something that beats the beach.

The beaches become more popular when the weather is warmer. Summer holidays beach traffic jams is not uncommon.

Don't forget your sun-tan lotion!!
(Your mother would be proud of me)

Safety Warning!!
The sea needs respecting. Whether you are swimming, surfing or diving. Do as the locals do. For example only swim where other people are swimming etc.

Llandudno Beach















Llandudno (in winter)

Scenic Drives

Hout Bay above Chapmans Peak






My wife and I really enjoy the scenic drives around the Cape Peninsular, so here's a list of some good trips:

• Cape Town to Hout Bay along the coast road, via Sea Point, Clifton, Camps Bay. 25km (30 mins) - Beautiful coastlines most of the way.
  
• Hout Bay to Noordhoek over Chapmans Peak Drive (Toll road, not always open though). If you approach from the Hout Bay side (before sun-down) you can ask for a free day pass - which allows you in, as long as you turn around just before the top. Great place for picnics and sunsets.
• Red Hill - I like this one.
• Boyse Drive - a more scenic way of driving from Muizenberg to Kalk Bay.
  
• Cape Point - Lots of good driving down here.
• Franshoek Pass (a little further out from Cape Town) - but a great pass. So is the old Hugenot road (i.e. Drive over the pass instead of taking the tunnel).

Misty Camps Bay Coast Road

Cape Town Climate

The weather in Cape Town is top notch. Particularly if you are visiting from the UK, Germany or Holland :)

Cape Town has the bulk of it's rain in winter (June to August) and these are also the cooler months. Although even it winter the rain doesn't often stick around longer than 3 days.

Snow
What's that?
Cape Town doesn't get snow. At most we get a few days of frost a year (early morning). Table Mountain (1086m) gets snow about once ever ten years, and the Hottentot Holland mountains get snow most (but not all) years. These mountains are about 1 hour away from Cape Town.

My guide to temperatus follows...

Winter day-time temperatures
Average: In the lower 20's C (70's F)
Typical Low: 15C (60F)
Typical High: 28C (82 F)
Think of the weather in the UK in Summer - just slightly shorter days. It gets dark in winter around 6pm.

Summer day-time temperatures
Average: In the upper 20's C (80's F)
Typical Low: 20C (68F)
Typical High: 33C (91 F)
Sun goes down around 8pm in summer.

Winds:
North-West typically brings the rain. More prevelant in wetter winter months, but we get rain in summer too.
South-East - this is out good weather wind (except when it's a Black South-Easter when it does bring rain). This wind can be very strong, and often picks up in the early afternoon and blows viciously until the late evening. More common from December to February. (See the beach tips for which beaches to visit when this wind is blowing).

My favorite weather websites:

• weather.iafrica.com (5-day forecast)
  
• www.weathersa.co.za (defaults to a 2-day forecast, but if you register (free) you'll get a 7-day forecast)
• www.myweather.org.za (current weather info at various stations around the peninsula)
• capetownweather.blogspot.com (plenty weather info here as well as cape town webcams).
  

In summary:

• I recon Februrary and March are probably the best times to visit. However if you are hear for 10 or more days you'll probably get good weather in that period of time just about the whole year round.
  

The V&A Waterfront

The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront is a must see if you like shops, restuarants or harbours. It's a super place to visit no matter what the weather. Sun or rain this place is cool and there's a nice vibe there.














There's tons of activities:
Aquarium
Helicopter Rides
Harbour Tours
Robben Island Tours
Jazz Cafes
Cinema
Plus all the shops and food joints.

Most shops are open til 9pm at night, and a few stay open til later e.g. Exclusive Books. The restuarants stay open til late'ish too.

Not all the shops and restuarants are in the main V&A mall, so make sure you wander around or ask at Info.















How to get there:

• Your best option is by car.
  
• I think there's still a regular (every 20 or 30 min) bus to and from Seapoint and Adderly Street in Cape Town Central - but you'll want to check this for yourself.
• Directions - Any decent Cape Town map will have the waterfront on it. It's on the north side of Cape Town - where the harbour is, near Green Point. Google Maps
  

Parking:

• There's loads of parking. Outdoors parking is free, plus there's lots of undercover parking now - I think the first 2 hours are free. Outdoor parking can be a hassel to find if it's a very busy day, but keep hunting and you will find some.
  

Further Information:

• Google
• V&A Waterfront
  
• Tel: +27 21 408 7600