Top Things to do in Cape Town South Africa

Since Table Mountain was nominated as one of the seven new Wonders in the World, there is even more reason for you to visit this magnificent city.

Cape Town remains my favorite city in South Africa. As the oldest city in South Africa, to me it is also the most beautiful and my family and I visit here at least once a year. The city has such diverse cultures with a fascinating history. There is always something to do and to experience in Cape Town. It boasts many tourist attractions and is also a child friendly city.

Here is my own personal top

list of why you should include Cape Town in your list of travels whenever traveling to South Africa.

Table Mountain

Of course Table Mountain should be on any list of favorites. Table Mountain, a national museum, is a beautiful sight and is Cape Town's pride. This majestic mountain can be reached by cable car and is visited by thousands of tourists each year. The views from the top are spectacular when skies are clear. You can expect to see as far as Table Bay, False Bay, Hout Bay and Kommetjie. This mountain, which resembles a table top, can be viewed from almost everywhere in Cape Town.

The beaches

Watch a beautiful sunset.

Cape Town has beautiful beaches. I would recommend Bantry Bay's beach known as Saunder's Rocks since it has wonderful tidal pools for safe swimming ideal for children. Another magnificent beach is Llandudno beach. As Cape Town can be windy at times, this beach is mostly protected from Cape Town's winds. You would really love swimming or sun bathing on Cape Town's beaches with the presence of Table Mountain in the far distance. We also love Bloubergstrand (translated "blue mountain beach") because you can take endless walks along the beach with Table Mountain in the background.

Gordon's Bay

False Bay is a scenic paradise.

Gordon's Bay is a charming coastal village, located at the foot of the Hottentots Holland Mountains and the False Bay Coast. It has a breath taking mountain pass of about 20 km with spectacular views of the ocean while driving to other coastal villages in the area such as Rooi Els, Pringle Bay, Betty's Bay (also read my post stop at Stoney Point and see the Penguins!) and Kleinmond. It is situated about 40 kilometres from Cape Town and about 30 minutes from Cape Town's International Airport. We just love to stop and eat Fish and Chips at Ooskus (translated "East Coast") in Gordon's Bay.

The Two Oceans Aquarium

Children love this Aquarium which opened its doors to the public in 1995. It is located in the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, and offers its visitors the incredible opportunity to explore living sea animals in what basically is an underwater nature reserve. Visitors can expect to see more than 3,000 living sea animals, including sharks, fishes, turtles, and penguins. Set aside enough time to truly explore what this Aquarium has to offer.

Vergelegen Wine Estate

Vergelegen Wine Estate is a must see if you visit Cape Town.

All tourists visiting Cape Town should also visit Vergelegen wine Estate (meaning situated far away) in Somerset West, a picturesque suburb of Cape Town. It has a wine tasting centre and offers cellar tours but also boasts the Vergelegen Restaurant, the Rose Terrace Bistro and the lovely Camphor Forest Picnic. This is a great outing for the whole family and children. The estate has stunning gardens, handcrafted wines and offers superb cuisine.

There are also numerous other wine tasting estates on route to Stellenbosch but we keep on going back to Vergelegen.  See also my post on Vergelegen Wine Estate.

Robben Island

A visit to Cape Town is incomplete without visiting Robben Island, where the prison is where Mr Nelson Mandela spent his years in captivity. A tour to this island is a must if you would like to experience some  South African political history. I wrote about what to experience on the island here.

The prison at Robben Island.

Of course there are so many other beautiful places to explore in Cape Town, but these remain my favourites. 

Where to stay in Cape Town

I would not recommend staying in a hotel in Cape Town. It has very nice and affordable self catering apartments, houses and cottages available.

We always use this booking site when we make our accommodation booking for Cape Town. Choose the Western Cape option when doing a map search.  We also use Travelground.com, one of South Africa's top ecommerce websites.

How to travel to Cape Town

Cape Town can be reached by means of a two hour connecting flight from Johannesburg International Airport (Oliver Tambo airport) or from Lanseria Airport (limited airlines). Numerous daily domestic flights on different domestic airlines are available from Oliver Tambo. You can choose among Flymango, Kulula,  British Airlines and South African Airways. Prices differ among these airlines, so compare prices first before making a booking.

Related posts:

Lanseria Airport

My favourite things to do in Mossel Bay