Travelling in Western Cape
Big Game Fishing Tours
With the meeting of the cold south to north Benguela current, with the warm Agulhas current from the east, Cape Town arguably offers the best deep sea angling in southern Africa.
With most of the world's oceans fished out or polluted, the fishing nations of the world are increasingly looking to South Africa as one of the last frontiers. Cape Town is especially renowned for trophy-size tuna, swordfish, carp, yellowfish, skipjack, yellowtail, yellowfin and longfin tuna (albacore).
Where the Big 'Uns Hang Out
Catch your piece of the action from Strandfontein to Saldahna Bay (along the West Coast), or try the Saldahna Bay to Table Bay and Cape Point stretch. There is also the slightly warmer water of False Bay from Cape Point to Cape Hangklip.
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Cape Town, the Gateway of the Western Cape
From world famous Table Mountain, Kirstenbosch Gardens, Robben Island, the cradle of our new democracy, Cape Point and the bustling V&A Waterfront there are many places to visit.
The Karoo in stark contast lets you into the secrets of the Cango Caves, shows off the ostriches, spectacular passes such as the Swartberg and Outeniqua pass leading down to the unparalleled beauty of the famous Garden Route.
At the coast you'll find boat and land based Whale watching a rare experience. The rugged West Coast and majestic Cederberg is another page in the kaleidoscope of natural wonders, crowned by the ever present Floral Kingdom of the Cape.
All year round you'll find holiday experiences, diversity and challenges for all family members.
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Garden Route
The Garden Route is an area of unparalleled natural beauty.
Stretching from the Slang River near Heidelberg eastwards to the Tsitsikamma Forest and Storms River, this area is renowned for its diversity of fauna and flora.
Ranging from fynbos and proteas to tropical forests, golden beaches, lagoons and rivers. These give way to towering clifftops and scenic mountain passes. Accommodation choice is plentiful: of out-of-the-way cottages, B&B's and 5* hotels and all provide easy access to explore the area.
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Hermanus
Hermanus - the world's best land based whale watching spot, forms the centre of the Whale Route.
This lovely, rapidly growing town is surrounded by nature reserves. Fernkloof Nature Reserve protects coastal and fynbos and a small patch of evergreen forest and there is no other place on earth where so many different species can be seen growing in such close proximity.
The Cliff Path Nature Area attracts thousands of whale-watchers each year for the best shore-based whale-watching experience anywhere on the globe.
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Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden has been voted one of the top seven botanical gardens in the world and one of the top ten most desirable tourist destinations in South Africa.
This garden is renowned for the beauty and diverstiy of the South African flora it displays and for the magnificence of its setting against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain.
This is a garden where mainly plants indigenous to South Africa are grown. Those which are not indigenous are plants introduced to the garden many, many years ago. The estate covers 528 hectares and supports diverse fynbos flora and natural forest. The cultivated 36-hectare garden displays collections of South African plants, particularly those from the winter rainfall region of the country.
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More Exciting Info about the Western Cape
The Western Cape is so different ot the rest of South Africa.
It's kind of tacked on the bottom of Africa - the full stop of the exclamation mark that is this amazing continent. Without a doubt, though, the Western Cape is South Africa's most visited province, and it's hardly surprising. With the lovely city of Cape Town and the unbelievably beautiful Garden Route, there is so much to see. Even the relatively Spartan West Coast has its own charm, as does the dry and relatively monochromatic, but dramatic, Karoo. The Cape Floral Region, which is world heritage site, extends into the Baviaanskloof Protected Area in the Eastern Cape, but otherwise is confined to the Western Cape.
The botanically important areas include the ruggedly scenic Cederberg Wildnerness Area, the Groot Winterberg Wilderness Area, the lovely Overberg and the Swartberg, near Oudtshoorn. It's a paradise of beautiful beaches, fabulous flowers and forests, and magnificent mountain scenery. It is not the best province in South Africa for game viewing, but there are a few good reserves and some lovely lodges. While detractors complain that the Western Cape isn't 'real Africa', it does have some fascinating cultural attractions. Wonderful rock art sites, lovely old buildings, many museums and monuments and some reall unusual cultural tours make the Western Cape a great destination for anyone wanting to do a bit of thinking while on holiday. Fabulous food - particularly Cape Malay cuisine - wonderful wine farms, more golf courses than necessary, and veritable smorgasbord of adventure activities mean you'll never get bored and you'll never go hungry.
"Copyright: TDS - Leisure Pages".
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Robben Island
Visit the island where Nelson Mandela (Madiba) was imprisoned for 27 years for his beliefs.
Robben Island is known the world over as a place of banishment exile, isolation and imprisonment. For nearly 400 years, colonial and apartheid rulers banished those they regarded as political troublemakers, social outcasts and the unwanted of society to this 575-hectare rocky outcrop in Table Bay.
The Island's unwilling inhabitants included; slaves; political and religious leaders who opposed Dutch colonialism in East Asia; troublesome local Khoikhoi and African leaders who resisted British expansion in South Africa; Leprosy sufferers and other sick and the mentally disturbed; French Vichy prisoners of war; and most recently, political opponents of the apartheid regime in South African and Namibia.
Robben Island's Most Famous Prisoner
During the apartheid years Robben Island became internationally known for its institutional brutality. Some freedom fighters spent more than a quarter of a century in prison for their beliefs. Yet people such as Nelson Mandela emerged to lead South Africa to democracy, with a message of tolerance, reconciliation and hope.
Those imprisoned on the Island succeeded in turning a prison "hell-hole" into a symbol of freedom and personal liberation.
The Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island
The Robben Island visitor experience begins at the Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island, at the Clock Tower Precinct inside Cape Town's V&A Waterfront.
The Gateway is the "mainland front door" to Robben Island, symbolising the importance of the island in South Africa's young democracy. The Gateway houses a 150-seater auditorium, boardrooms and a Robben Island Museum shop, among other facilities. Digital, interactive exhibition spaces on all three floors of the Gateway building provides the visitor with a historical context of Robben Island's Maximum Security Prison, as well as reflecting the broader span of the island's history.
Robben Island receives upwards of three hundred thousand visitors each year, with the highest percentage being South Africans. More than 95% of the visitors described their visit to Robben Island as a positive uplifting, eye-opening experience.
Robben Island Contact Information:
Tel: 021 413 4200, email: info@robben-island.org.za
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Table Mountain & Cable Car
Table Mountain Aerial Cableway started operating on the 4th October 1929.
The Cableway has become as much of a landmark in Cape Town as Table Mountain itself, and has carried almost 15 million passengers to the top. Some of its better-known visitors include Oprah Winfrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Margaret Thatcher and Jackie Chan, to name just a few.
Work on a complete upgrade began in January 1997, and the new Cableway was officially opened on the 4th October 1997 - the anniversary of the original launch almost 70 years previously.
Table Mountain provides a magnificent backdrop to Cape Town, and is famous for the tablecloth of clouds that pours down its slopes when the south-easter blows. This is a mountain of many moods and offers walkers and hikers a range of routes at various hiking levels. If you want the view without the effort, catch the state-of-the-art revolving cable car to the top, and have lunch or dinner in the table-top restaurant.
Rotating Cable Car
Unlike their predecessors, the new cable cars (or Rotairs), transport you to the top in under 10 minutes. Each car has a carrying capacity of 65 people and a revolving floor giving a 360-degree view of the city and mountain as you glide to the top. The cars also offer excellent aerodynamics in high wind enabling a more reliable service.
On the top of Table Mountain, designated walkways lead you all over the tabletop to experience extraordinary views past Robben Island, to the very edge of the world as it curves into the Atlantic Ocean. Then look south along the rocky mountain ridges leading to Cape Point. The curio shop allows you to take home momentos bearing the insignia of Table Mountain - South Africa's premier tourist attraction. Visitors can also enjoy a hot or cold buffet meal in the self-service restaurant.
Biodiverstiy Hot Spot
Table Mountain is a biodiversity hot spot with many endemic species. Some of the most conspicuous fynbos plant species on the mountain are proteas, including South Africa's national emblem the King Protea.
One unusual animal you can expect to encounter on the mountain is the Dassie or Rock Hyrax. About 50cm in length, it resembles a guinea pig, but is actually the closest living relative to the elephant!! The Table Mountain dassies are very sociable and have lost their natural fear of humans, but don't touch or feed them as they bite.
Contact Details of Table Mountain Aerial Cableway
Tel: 021 424 0015
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Table Mountain National Park
Take a hike, a ride, a walk, a stroll. Fly your kite, catch a wave, dive, snooze or picnic.
If you are a nature addict and need a fix then the stunning sunsets, exquisite flora and fauna, vast white beaches and waves crashing endlessly against sheer cliffs, should satisfy your cravings.
All these elements combine to form the essence of Table Mountain National Park (TMNP). Established in 1998, TMNP stars in the City of Cape Town and extends along the Table Mountain chain from Signal Hill in the north, to Cape Point in the south. The park incorporates 24,000 hectares and an additional 1,000 square kilometres of marine and coastal reserve.
Part of the Cape Floristic Region World Heritage site, TMNP is the heart of the unique Fynbos plant kingdom - the only plant kingdom on earth contained in one country. It is also the smallest yet richest kingdom in the world, with an area smaller than the City of London boasting no less than 2,285 plant species, many of which are endemic to the park. Because TMN is a park within a city, the conservation land is fragmented by urban development and private land. Few people realise that it is in fact one single Park, offering a diversity of attractions.
Within the SANParks stable, the TMNP is unique in that it is largely an open access park, offering locals and visitors free entry at the majority of its access points. In certain sections of the park, entrance fees are charged, which get channelled straight back into conservation initiatives and environmental education.
TMNP Head Office Contact Information:
Tel: 021 701 8692, email: tablemountain@sanparks.org
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The Cape of Good Hope
With Cape Point at its tip, this is perhaps the most popular section of Table Mountain National Park, and is one of the top tourist destinations in South Africa.
Visitors can see a variey of wildlife such as antelopes like bontebok eland and red hartebeest, cheeky chacma baboons, an array of reptiles and a great selection of birds - it literally teems with life.
This area of Cape Town's South Peninsula, is also steeped in history, for it is here that the great Portuguese voyagers Bartholomew Dias and Vasco da Gama historically rounded the Cape in the 16th century, and opened up sea trade routes between east and west.
Shipwrecks
The coastline is littered with the wrecks of ships that fell prey to the violent storms and deceiving reefs that have earned this passage the accolade, "Cape of Storms". The original Cape Point Lighthouse still stands and visitors can take the funicular up the hill to see for themselves, the treacherous conditons that caused it to be erected in the first place. While at Cape Point, dine at the Two Oceans Restaurant, which boasts spectacular sea views. If you prefer a picnic, head down to Buffels Bay - but you may have company, so look out for baboons. Be sure to visit the Buffelsfontein Visitor Centere for coffee and a snack, while looking at the exhibits showing all the plans and animals of each season.
Boulders Penguin Colony
Visit the famous Boulders Beach colony of African Penguins. This is a truly special experience, with the option of a guided tour. After you have fallen in love with the penguins, swim in the comparatively warm sheltered coves, ideal for children. But don't touch or feed the penguins - they can give a nasty bite.
Boulders Visitor Centre, tel: 021 786 2392.
Signal Hill, Lions Head and Devils Peak
These three peaks flank Table Mountain and together hold Cape Town in a rocky embrace. Signal Hill is home to the noonday gun, which marks midday in Cape Town with a bang. A drive to the top of Signal Hill offers uninterrupted views of Table Bay and endless Atlantic Ocean. Lions Head peak has become something of a pilgrimage for Capetonions, who make the rocky climb to witness the full moon rising. Devils Peak protrudes from the flat line of Table Mountain and has challenging slopes.
Picnic Sites
Silvermine picnic and braai sites and wheel chair-friendly boardwalk (half an hour south of the city), overlook a picturesque reservoir in which you can take a refreshing swim. Half way back to the city is the popular jogging and picnic area in Newlands Forest, while on the Atlantic coastline is the beachside Oudekraal braai an picnic site.
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Where the World meets at the Water's Edge
The Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (V&A) is the most visited tourist destination in the Southern Hemisphere, with some 22 million visits each year.
Situated in the heart of Cape Town's working harbour against the dramatic backdrop of Table Mountain, the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is widely acknowledged as Cape Town's premier shopping and tourst destination and a well known entertainment hotspot. Here, an innovative fusion of history and modern convenience has resulted a multi-purpose, dockside environment unlike any other in the world.
Shopping
With over 400 stores, the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront provides the opportunity for serious shopping, with an incredibly diverse scope and something for everyone. Its spectacular blend of Victorian architecture, maritime tradition, and African culture ensures a shopping environment that is lively and cosmopolitan, with a distinctive African twist.
The stylish Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre forms the bulk of the retail space a the Waterfront and boasts over 240 unique retail outlets that offer a vibrant mix of luxury items, designer brands, and craft emporia. For those looking for a more traditional selection of art, antiques and jewellery, the Alfred Mall, situated within the historic Pierhead, offers a selection of stores for the discerning shopper.
Historic Clock Tower Precinct
Across the Pierhead's swing bridge, you can find the latest addition to the Waterfront's retail offering - The Clock Tower Centre. This brings South African crafts, arts, designs and foods together under one roof, as well as the Waterfront Information Centre. There are also several sites of historical interest here, including the Clock Tower built in 1882 and the old Chavonnes Battery - the fascinating ruins of the Dutch East India Company military installation dating back to 1724. There are also spectacular views of Table Mountain and the working harbour, and there are usually a few enormous Cape fur seals lolling around in the water or on a platform where they sunbathe. Old rubs shoulders with new in the Clock Tower Precinct with the Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island, from where the high speed catamaran departs regularly throughout the day.
African Arts & Crafts
The Waterfront also takes local crafts seriously and has two craft markets that provide the curious shopper with a traditional view of South African products. The Red Shed Craft Workshop, adjoining the Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre, is filled with an eclectic mix of handmade merchandise and art while providing an opportunity to see crafters at work. Adjacent to the Two Oceans Aquarium, The Waterfront Craft Market is one of the largest and most vibrant indoor craft markets in Cape Town, open seven days a week. It represents the Waterfront's culture of entrepreneurship and small business development and features a diverse assortment of innovative designs and traditinal handcrafts, antiquities and holistic lifestyle accessories.
Restaurants
When it comes to restaurants, one would be hard-pressed to find such a wide selection in one venue, anywhere in South Africa. Some 68 restaurants, taverns and eateries are complimented by seven of Cape Town's finest hotels, each with its own unique style. From ice-creams and take-aways, to elegant dining in five star restaurants and a vast range of international cuisine, the Waterfront has something for every taste.
Entertainment
Thre is no need to for visitors to the V&A Waterfront to search for entertainment - it surrounds you as soon as you enter the Waterfront complex. From street buskers demonstrating the art of mime, or musicians performing anything from Southern Jazz to traditional South African folk songs, entertainment keeps the Waterfront alive.
On weekends and during holidays, the Waterfront also has an extensive programme of events and activities to capture the imagination of visitors of all ages. The Waterfront's year-round calendar is packed full of exciting and fun-filled happenings like the international yacht races - the BT Global Challenge and the Volvo Ocean Race - which attract sailing enthusiasts from around the world. Other annual events include the V&A Waterfront Wine Festival, the Spring Flower Festival, Winter Food Fair, Dragon Boat Racing and the country's largest Jazzathon.
Waterfront Hotels
Whether you are simply looking for a place to sleep or wanting to indulge in 5 star luxury, you'll find it all at the V&A Waterfront. Bustling or tranquil, modern or classic, budget or luxurious - staying at one of the eight accommodation facilities will put a world of opportunities right on your doorstep.
Marine Life
Being built around a working harbour, the fishing industry and the ocean still takes centre stage, providing visitors with the chance to see the catch of the day being off-loaded, while seals dolphins and seabirds add to the unique maritime experience. The world-class Two Oceans Aquarium reveals many more marine creatures, including seven sharks that cruise around their enormous circular aquarium.
One of the beast ways to enjoy the spectacular scenery in and around Cape Town's Table Bay is to take any one of the many boat or helicopter trips that depart from the Waterfront daily.
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Click on the regional link below to get great advice on more Top South African Travel Destinations.
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