Travel Tips Cape Town – Cape Town is probably one of my favorite cities in the world I’ve been several times, and plan to go again (in fact, watch this space as I plan this year’s trip). The Mother City, as the locals affectionately call it, is a thriving city with a fascinating history, many incredible attractions, stunning vistas (the sunset from Table Mountain is one of the best you’ll ever see) and lots and lots of things to do. do
One thing is for sure, as you plan your trip to South Africa and think about visiting Cape Town, you will be asking yourself a lot of questions. Don’t worry though, I’m here to give you all the answers! In this post I will tell you everything you need to know before traveling to Cape Town and share the best Cape Town travel tips.
Travel Tips Cape Town
Before you travel to Cape Town, you will come across posts that suggest that two days are enough to visit the city. I couldn’t agree more
Travel South Africa: How To Plan For Your Trip To Cape Town
The first time I visited Cape Town I planned to spend five days there I thought it would be too much time to explore the city and its surroundings, and worried that I might get really bored I couldn’t have been more wrong!
Five days is really the minimum time you should plan to spend in Cape Town and enjoy its main attractions such as Kirstenbosch Gardens and Grote Constantia; Robben Island; V&A Waterfront; Table Mountain and Lion’s Head; Signal Hill and Bow Cap Also don’t forget that Cape Town is the best starting point for exploring the Cape Town Peninsula
In general, any time is a good time to travel to Cape Town, but your experience will vary greatly depending on when you decide to go. I went once in June, when it was winter, and felt that most of the time it was cold and miserable with windy, rainy days and so much fog that going up Table Mountain was completely pointless.
Spring is definitely better! I visited in November, late spring, and had nice, warm and long days (although it was very cold and wet when I went to Boulder Beach) and was overall much more pleasant.
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To make the most of the city, it is best to visit Cape Town in the spring and summer months, when the weather is said to be better
Many people I know who have visited me a few times ask me: “Is Cape Town safe?” And I can never give them a simple answer
There is no denying that Cape Town has some security issues. You’ll feel a heavy vibe when you walk down Long Street, and while it might not be there during the day, it definitely is at night. These streets in Cape Town are often the scene of muggings, so it’s best that you never flash your belongings, never bring too much cash, never take out your phone, and in fact try to avoid it altogether at night if you can. And by the way, don’t walk with it if you’ve been drinking!
For the rest of the city, I’d always say to follow the advice of the locals: if they say it’s better to take an Uber at night or avoid certain areas, they definitely have a point. And their general advice is to never walk alone at night, and never flash your money, camera or phone in public.
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Additionally, always keep your car windows rolled up and your car doors closed when you’re in the car and especially if you’re stopped at a robot (that’s a traffic light in South Africa); Never leave valuables in the car and get extra insurance for breakdowns, broken glass windows and more.
Cape Town International Airport is very well connected to much of Africa and the world – if you’re coming from Europe, you’ll find flights operated by Air France, KLM, British Airways, Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa. .
Getting to Cape Town from the airport is pretty easy The MyCiTi shuttle goes directly from the airport to the city center, to the Civic Center bus station It leaves every 20 minutes and runs from 5:00 AM to 9:30 AM
You can also rely on taxis and Uber, and can be booked online (here) or directly at the airport.
Gay Cape Town
Once in the city, you can use public transport (MyCiti) or – depending on where you stay – walk to all the attractions, or use the hop-on hop-off bus.
There are several places around town where to get tickets for the hop-on hop-off bus and where the bus will stop. There are also different routes If you’re staying in the City Bowl, you can catch a bus from Long Street and hop on the blue line to Nelson Mount, Kirstenbosch Gardens, Constantia (where it connects to the Pink Line to explore the valley). As Mariner Wharf (Hout Bay) and V & Waterfront
When the sun goes down, you’ll be better off using Uber It’s much cheaper than taxis, it’s safe, the drivers are nice, friendly and always up for a chat, and it goes right to your door. It is also the best way to get to and from the airport
I always recommend getting a good insurance for all your travels, and you’ll definitely want one when visiting Cape Town. It’s really the kind of thing you hope you never use – but alas, a must
Essential Tips For A Road Trip To Cape Town
Be sure to read my post Why You Need Good Insurance You can find a good one here
This is an important thing to do as soon as you arrive in Cape Town Often a local SIM card will help you First of all, WiFi in South Africa is less than reliable, in some places it is completely non-existent and others require users to pay even for minimal usage.
The best and really cheap way around this is to get a local SIM card When you have no WiFi you will need to call it an Uber; To use Google Maps to get around town, whenever you’re driving a car that doesn’t have a GPS system.
Cape Town Airport has a Vodacom shop outside the arrivals hall and getting a SIM card with data is a 10-minute process. I used Vodacom on my trip to South Africa and the network always worked well
Cape Town Weekend Guide
Alternatively, you can opt for an MTN card, which is cheaper and works better than Vodacom. MTN also has some great offers – notably MTN-to-MTN minutes which mean it’s cheaper for you to call people on the same network. And you can get weekly rather than monthly data packages, which can be cheaper if you’re staying in the country for a short time
Load shedding refers to regular power cuts that occur around South Africa, including Cape Town. Each time this means no power for up to 2.5 hours, and sometimes multiple times a day This happens sometimes – I never noticed it during my visit to South Africa, but my friend Nelson, who lives in the Cape Town area, told me about it and it’s definitely something to be aware of.
My post Why Walking Alone Is a Bad Idea always attracts a lot of criticism, but I stand by my argument and actually have to say that walking alone is definitely something you should avoid in Cape Town, even if you’re used to it, and even if you think you have superpowers.
You just don’t want to be out on the trail alone, if the weather suddenly changes with fog or rain (and trust me, it can happen in the Cape Town area), or worse if you get attacked (and again, this is something that unfortunately occurs). |
Best Things To Do In Cape Town On Vacation
If you’re traveling solo but are still interested in hiking, you can join one of the many guided hikes to Table Mountain or Lion’s Head.
Be sure to read my posts on how to hike Lion’s Head and a guide to hiking Table Mountain.
There are many great places to stay in Cape Town If you are traveling alone, I recommend staying in a social hostel like Backpack Alternatively, you’ll find great hotels and Airbnbs around town
I’ve usually stayed in the CBD – which is downtown – during my travels I also stayed at Sea Point Other good areas of the city are De Waterkant and Green Point (best places to stay for tourists in safety and tourism), Gardens and Campus Bay.
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For more information on Cape Town neighborhoods and hotels, check out
