Where to stay and what to do in Cape Town?
Cape Town is one of those city where you will want to come back to after your first visit so don’t worry if you don’t get to all the things I’m going to write about. I’m quite sure we will see you again.
Plan your trip to South Africa
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Read more on Cape Town:
- The beautiful Constantia Wine Farms you need to visit
- Cape Town Adventure & Sunset Guide
Best places to stay in Cape Town
Cape Town has a wide variety of accommodation on offer. It varies from great backpackers like Never@home in Greenpoint to the most luxurious hotel at the moment which is The Silo Hotel in the newly developed Silo Precinct. Perhaps you rather stay in nice boutique hotel or in a homely guesthouse, Cape Town has it all.
Cape Town is also the biggest airbnb destination in Africa so you might want to check out some awesome airbnbs too. Our favorite areas to stay in Cape Town would definitely be either close by the sea in Seapoint or Camps Bay OR in the City Centre where all the action is happening.
Where to eat in Cape Town
Cape Town is a culinary capital for Southern Africa. The amount of amazing restaurants is quite unbelievable. I always have a list at hand of all the new places I need to try. You can obviously just go to the V&A Waterfront where you will find about 40+ restaurants that offer all kinds of cuisine but I would highly recommend to not be ‘stuck’ there and be a little bit more adventurous.
The Greenpoint Main Road strip has Big Route Italian Restaurant, El Burro for Mexican and recently opened a Jason Bakery oh and don’t forget to visit Giovanni’s which is like an institution in Cape Town.
On Seapoint Main Road you will find great local restaurants like La Bruixa and La Boheme for great Mediterranean dishes. In Regent Road, a bit further down, 3 Wise Monkeys for a poke bowls. Across the road you will find the Mojo Market, open from 10am – 10pm with many different outlets varying from German Sausage to South African Braaivleis, oysters and ice cream. The Mojo Market is a really nice place to go when the weather is not the best. Great vibe, often live music and just easy going.
Another nice area for small local restaurants is the top of Bree Street with Culture Club Cheese, Bacon on Bree, Mother’s Ruin gin Bar and Crust Café (Dec 2017). Restaurants close down and open up every week and it is hard to give an updated list that is 100% correct.
Actually the entire street is quite amazing. Bree Street is also a fantastic place to go to on First Thursday of the month when all art galleries are open till about 9pm and a street party with DJ is happening in front of La Parada near Short Market Street. It is really one of the nicest evenings to experience the city so don’t skip it.
At the moment (Dec 2017) gin is HOT in Cape Town. There a quite a few places offering amazing Gin cocktails. Let us know if you can find the Secret Gin bar?
What are the best activities to do in and around Cape Town
Besides the obvious ones like taking the cable car up Table Mountain and the boat to Robben Island, we suggest you walk up Lion’s Head. Enjoy beautiful views all around and get a feeling for the friendly hiking community up the mountain. You can even book a hike with a yoga teacher and have a yoga class on top of the mountain. The Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens host a series of concerts each Summer on Sunday evenings and it is one of the best ways to end of the weekend. Check the line-up and book your tickets, pack a picnic basket, bottle of bubbly, hop in an Uber and enjoy one of the most spectacular concert venues in the world. It will take your breath away!
Tuning the Vine happens on Wednesday night a couple of times per year. It is an inner city wine route where about 20 wineries showcase their wines and you just walk from one restaurant to the other to taste all the incredible South African wines. The focus area for this event is also around Bree and Loop Street.
Watching the sunset from Signal Hill is great. You can either book a ticket on the Citysightseeing Tour bus or you can drive up by yourself (Uber will take you there too). Take a bottle of wine, picnic basket and enjoy. You will have stunning views of Robben Island, Table Mountain and of course the Atlantic Ocean.
Cape Town with little ones
Cape Town is a fantastic place to bring your kids. There are a lots of activities for children and it doesn’t need to cost you an arm and a leg. For the very small ones there’s the Seapoint Promenade with many play parks to explore. The one next to the lighthouse is the biggest one and offers the most variety. As parents you will have a sea view and can hop across the road for a nice coffee at Café Neo or lovely delicacies at Newport Deli. Win-win for all! The public toilets are cleaned regularly. The Blue Train park next to it charges a small entrance fee and is also a great way to entertain the kids for a bit. To the other end of the promenade you can have a delicious ice cream or healthy juice at the Seapoint Pavilion. If your children love to swim, we can’t recommend the public Seapoint Pool enough. It must be one of the most beautifully located public pools in the world and it has 4 different pools so enough fun for the entire family.
