Cape Town - 9 nights - possible?

[wax lyrical]

Hi Guys, the wife & and I have never been to South Africa. Planning a 9 night trip in January, with the base in Cape Town and just doing day trips.

Would this be O.k.? Possible to see lots of interesting places from Cape Town itself without moving around?

All advice appreciated!

[Puggit]

What a waste.

Go east along the Garden route, as far as Plettenburg, for a few days.

[TurboTerrific9]

Cape Town is a wonderful City and with 9 nights you’ll have plenty to keep you occupied. Works really well for relatively short trips given you lose little to no time on flights.

[Imasurv]

Despite what a lot of people say, there is loads to do in and around Cape Town to keep you occupied. January is peak summer holiday season so will be busy!

You’ve got Boulders Beach and Cape Point, Table Mountain (cable car or guided hike if you’re active), Kirstenbosch botanical gardens, V&A waterfront, Robben Island (Nelson Mandela etc), Table View/Blouberstrand, Clifton beach/Camps Bay, winelands - Franschhoek is my favourite town in the Stellenbosch area, but the wineries near Constantia are nearer to Cape Town and are lovely, try Buitenverwachtung and pre order a picnic to have in the grounds. Day trip to Hermanus along the R44 (although it’s not whale season), drive Chapmans Peak Drive etc etc…! The food and wine is very good and excellent value!

[R33FAL]

Best city in the world... and one where the ever depreciating GBP is actually worth something!

[DB4DM]

How come only 9 nights? We've spent over 6 weeks in the Western Cape and still have lots to cover in another trip

You could add Hermanus, but if January the Southern Right whales will have gone, Cape Agulhas the southern point of the African continent for an "end of the world" feeling, and if you time your visit early in the morning you can have Cape of Good Hope to yourself (plus the ostriches and boks)

Ultimately, it much depends on your interests and budget - will you have a car?

[2 GKC]

TurboTerrific9 said:

Cape Town is a wonderful City and with 9 nights you’ll have plenty to keep you occupied. Works really well for relatively short trips given you lose little to no time on flights.

I think he’ll lose about 12 hours each way. That’s a fair run for 9 nights

Edited by 2 GKC on Saturday 7th October 19:44

[Audis5b9]

2 GKC said:

I think he’ll lose about 12 hours each way. That’s a fair run for 9 nights

Edited by 2 GKC on Saturday 7th October 19:44

Both flights are overnight (well they are with BA at least), so you don't waste daytime travelling..

[Audis5b9]

wax lyrical said:

Hi Guys, the wife & and I have never been to South Africa. Planning a 9 night trip in January, with the base in Cape Town and just doing day trips.

Would this be O.k.? Possible to see lots of interesting places from Cape Town itself without moving around?

All advice appreciated!

We're off to Cape Town in three weeks time and we're staying for 16 nights... Staying in Somerset West, Franschhoek and Cape Town. From my planning we will be kept busy just in this relatively small area.

[ATG]

Audis5b9 said:

2 GKC said:

I think he’ll lose about 12 hours each way. That’s a fair run for 9 nights

Edited by 2 GKC on Saturday 7th October 19:44

Both flights are overnight (well they are with BA at least), so you don't waste daytime travelling..

Exactly. And you're near was damn it on the same time zone so there's no jet lag. It's like teleporting. You go to the airport in a drizzly UK winter and wake up in an African summer.

[brickwall]

I used to commute weekly to Jo’burg. The flights to SA are great.
11-12 hours, overnight, and a 1hr time difference.
Have dinner before you board, get on the plane, sleep, wake up, get off, shower + breakfast, and in the office by 9am.

[Boxster5]

We’ve visited SA 3 times and are due there next February for our fourth visit.
We’ve always stayed for a spell in Cape Town on previous occasions but feel like we’ve seen what we want to see in that area.
Plenty to see in Cape Town as others have said but for Franschhoek yes you can do a day trip but much better to base yourselves there for a few nights preferably avoiding weekends as it gets busy with weekenders visiting from Cape Town & Joburg. There’s so much to see in that area alone & I think you would regret not staying longer.
On the subject of Cape Town, it’s worth doing the walking tour around Bo Kaap with its multi coloured houses (it’s included in the City Sightseeing Tour package which is well worth getting a 2 day ticket for as you can visit Groot Constantia wine estate on the bus plus visit Camps Bay, Clifton, Table Mountain cableway). Do not try to visit Bo Kaap without an experienced guide as it’s a bit edgy (much like most of the CBD). The Waterfront is nice but it’s not South Africa and restaurants are a bit crap (there are exceptions) based purely on location. The best bit is the view of Table Mountain which is stunning.
Our next visit we’re splitting it between Hermanus and Franschhoek and missing out Cape Town.
As an aside, we didn’t like Stellenbosch or Paarl so couldn’t recommend staying in those areas.
If you’ve never been to SA before be prepared to have your eyes opened between the haves and have nots (the townships are massive and definitely to be avoided as they are downright dangerous). You’ll also more than likely experience the joys of loadshedding.

Edited by Boxster5 on Sunday 8th October 18:02

[trackdemon]

More than enough in Cape Town to keep interest for a while. But seeing as you're there, rent a car and drive to Cape Point (watch out for the baboons though!) and the other way to Franschhoek and maybe a bit beyond as it's a lovely drive. There's a fantastic place in town for coffee and cars: https://www.crossley-webb.com/ Recommended. Last visit I stayed in Camps Bay, I'd heartily recommend staying there. Long street is fun.... but dodgy in the evening Everyone drink drives after dark so probably best to avoid driving Table Mountain at sunset has to be done, same for the V&A harbour. There's a ton of good places to eat & drink in CT, you won't get bored.....

[djc206]

Are 9 nights doable? Absolutely, I could happily live there because there’s so much to see and do. I would however probably spend a few nights in Franschhoek just to save getting up and back within the day although we have done that too.

We’ve been to Cape Town many times and love the place. If you need any restaurant recommendations let me know.

[djc206]

trackdemon said:

More than enough in Cape Town to keep interest for a while. But seeing as you're there, rent a car and drive to Cape Point (watch out for the baboons though!) and the other way to Franschhoek and maybe a bit beyond as it's a lovely drive. There's a fantastic place in town for coffee and cars: https://www.crossley-webb.com/ Recommended. Last visit I stayed in Camps Bay, I'd heartily recommend staying there. Long street is fun.... but dodgy in the evening Everyone drink drives after dark so probably best to avoid driving Table Mountain at sunset has to be done, same for the V&A harbour. There's a ton of good places to eat & drink in CT, you won't get bored.....

I love Camps Bay and have stayed there in the past, might be a bit much for 9 nights but I guess you can Uber everywhere for a couple of quid so it doesn’t matter too much. I’m quite fond of Sea Point. Mojo Market has some interesting food options and it’s very safe and walkable.

For sunset views over Bo kaap and Lions Head try 14 Stories rooftop bar. We went there for a couple of happy hours drinks, I think it worked out at two Manhattans for less than £3, ended up spending the evening there listening to the amazing live music.

[The G Kid]

Another vote for Camps Bay here. Spent 9 nights there in April, staying at the Bay Hotel. Plenty to do, although we had a few days by the pool to chill, and also a bit of surfing at Glen Beach. Will definitely head back at some point, as there are things we missed out on (like Llandudno and Robben Island). We were traveling with two teenagers, so itinerary had to fit them too! We enjoyed the Waterfront (great food at Willoughby) plus the penguin tour, Table Mountain and zip-lining. The eating out in Camps Bay was also a highlight. Brilliant restaurants, and very reasonable in GBP terms. The Codfather was probably the best, despite the name!

[wax lyrical]

Thanks All - I really appreciate all the feedback and advice.

My wife is frankly a bit scared of going to SA, so just wants to stay in Cape Town and not be too adventurous (apart from daytrips on guided tours). She's definitely not interested in hiring a car and driving around.

I'm keen to do cage-diving with Great Whites. Anyone done this? Any recommended tour companies?

[djc206]

wax lyrical said:

Thanks All - I really appreciate all the feedback and advice.

My wife is frankly a bit scared of going to SA, so just wants to stay in Cape Town and not be too adventurous (apart from daytrips on guided tours). She's definitely not interested in hiring a car and driving around.

I'm keen to do cage-diving with Great Whites. Anyone done this? Any recommended tour companies?

My wife was similar on our first visit. She’d scoff at the idea of not having a car now and outside the city will happily drive herself. But I understand her reticence for a first timer. The guided tours at least allow you to have a couple of glasses of wine with your lunch so not the end of the world.

I have done cage diving, we didn’t see any great whites though. I heard a rumour they’ve come back but I don’t know that for sure. I can’t remember who we used but then we didn’t see great whites so maybe you don’t want to use them anyway have a look at Gansbaai on the map and compare recent google reviews would be my advice.

Best thing I’ve ever done in Cape Town was the Huey helicopter tour. My wife bought it for me as a gift, going to be hard to top that. The guy who flies it is bloody mental and there’s no 500ft rule going on.

[WyrleyD]

The G Kid said:

Another vote for Camps Bay here. Spent 9 nights there in April, staying at the Bay Hotel. Plenty to do, although we had a few days by the pool to chill, and also a bit of surfing at Glen Beach. Will definitely head back at some point, as there are things we missed out on (like Llandudno and Robben Island). We were traveling with two teenagers, so itinerary had to fit them too! We enjoyed the Waterfront (great food at Willoughby) plus the penguin tour, Table Mountain and zip-lining. The eating out in Camps Bay was also a highlight. Brilliant restaurants, and very reasonable in GBP terms. The Codfather was probably the best, despite the name!

Been to Llandudno a few times now as we have friends who own two apartments there, it's a fair old steep hill down to the beach and the water is very, very cold there and most swimmers wear wet suits.

[Puggit]

Yep, did the great whites at Gaansbai. Wife threw up at the end as it was a bit choppy, got jokingly told that she could have done that ealier as the sharks love it

Was 20 years ago, so I can't feel I can recommend after that long!