Cape Town Tourism And Travel Guide

Cape Town is a beautiful urban city in South Africa. Its exuberant people culture and delightful beaches are apt crowd pullers. The city still nurtures remnants of the colonial era, taking you back in time to its European touch. Renowned for its profound historical roots and grand architectural prowess, Cape Town is home to several structural masterpieces from the Victorian era. The city boasts of a perfect blend of tourism with sumptuous cuisines, vibrant cultures, and breathtaking vistas. With such enticing features alluring tourists to the Mother City, Cape Town has become a tourism hotspot. Let us read through this travel guide to understand why so many people visit this city on a holiday.

By Air:
Boarding a flight to Cape Town is the most convenient way to reach this alluring city. The Cape Town International Airport provides shuttles that keep toing and froing between Cape Town and international hubs such as Singapore, Doha, Dubai, Paris, and Amsterdam. Renowned air carriers such as Ethiopian Airlines, Emirates and Qatar Airways operate flights to Cape Town on a regular basis.

By Rail:
Cape Town Railway Station provides perfect connectivity to other major hubs of South Africa, such as Kimberley, Durban, Pretoria, and Bloemfontein. The metro railway line of Cape Town offers smooth connectivity to other smaller parts of the city. In addition to its main railway carriers, Cape Town also has the Blue Train that offers luxury travel for tourists who prefer a lavish outing.

By Road:
Forming the initiating convergence for about three national highways, Cape Town enjoys great road links to other parts of South Africa. Some of the significant providers of bus services include Translux, Intercape Mainliner, Greyhound, and SA Roadlink. Certain bus transport providers also ply their vehicles to the adjacent country of Namibia.

Cape Town experiences a welcoming and pleasing climate, with temperatures alternating between 10°C and 25°C on a constant basis. Tourists throng this beautiful city throughout the year owing to the alluring climate. However, the seasons of Spring, Autumn and Summer welcome visitors in larger numbers.

Spring (August to Mid-October):
The spring season of Cape Town witnesses a mild climate with temperatures usually ranging between 20°C and 30°C. The city has fragrant flowers blooming all over its expanse during this season. Tourist hotspots such as Namaqualand and Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens foster several exotic plant species, enticing tourists from all over the globe.

Summer (Mid-October to Mid-February):
Summer in Cape Town is a bit humid but still manages to maintain temperatures between 17°C and 30°C. This makes summer season the best time of the year to explore the pristine beaches of the city. Beaches like Clifton's 4th Beach and Camps Bay Beach witness a truckload of visitors during summer, all tanning under the glory of the sun.

Autumn (Mid-February to April):
Autumn offers visitors of Cape Town with low-budget stay and travel. With temperatures oscillating between 15°C and 25°C, the weather remains cool and comforting. The cool atmosphere sees a rise in wine tasting and hiking activities around scenic mountains.

Winter (May to September):
Cape Town's winters witness a combination of powerful winds and heavy precipitation. Temperatures drop lower than normal, mostly fluctuating between 10°C and 20°C. The benefits of visiting Cape Town during winter, however, is that spots such as Hermanus allow tourists to partake in whale watching.

South Africa's Adventure Capital:
Cape Town's marvellous mountainous terrain offers adventurous activities such as hiking and mountain biking. In addition, the sea waters that surround the city are brimming with great white sharks and mammoth whales. One such activity involves cage diving with the sharks, getting up close and personal with these fierce creatures. Tourists also indulge in whale watching while in Cape Town.

Rejuvenate amidst Radiant Flowers:
Home to the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens, Cape Town allows tourists to relax in the presence of innumerable aromatic flowers. Popular around the world, this botanical garden fosters approximately 7,000 plant species throughout its grasslands. Visitors and locals prefer picnicking at several picturesque spots of the garden, such as the Company's garden, several sculpture gardens, and scented gardens.

Land of Wildlife Safaris:
Cape Town hosts the five prime animals of South Africa: elephant, rhino, hippo, lion, and leopard within its vibrant set of wildlife reserves. Some of these exciting reserves include Aquila Private Game Reserve and Spa, Rondevlei Nature Reserve and Table Mountain National Park. The Boulders Beach that lies within the vicinity of Table Mountain National Park houses the world-famous African penguins. 

Sites reminiscent of South Africa's Independence:
South Africa had to overcome a lot of hardship through the times of Apartheid and colonialism. The District Six Museum in Cape Town displays artifacts that help tourists explore the local lifestyle that existed during those days. Within touching distance of Cape Town lies Robben Island, the place where South African freedom fighters and community exiles were labored involuntarily. A trip to such places helps tourists relive the adversities that prevailed back then.

Proximity to the ocean waters means that Cape Town is popular for its mouth-watering seafood. Not only the locals but the tourists also prefer feasting on oceanic delicacies such as baked kingklip, oysters, and prawns along with some chips. Certain local cuisines of Cape Town such as Malwa Pudding, Meltkert, and Bunny Chow have gained popularity around the globe too. The traditional South African Braai (barbeque) meat is a must-have while in Cape Town. Some other popular local dishes that tourists should get their hands on include Bobotie, Gatsby, and Biltong and droëwors.

Cape Town's tourists can indulge in a number of shopping prospects, including trips to the markets, lavish boutiques, and shopping centres. The Cape Point brand offers tourists items such as caps, mugs, key rings, teaspoons, t-shirts, and tops galore. Additionally, Mojo Market provides visitors with a host of retail items, such as accessories, handicraft, homeware, and eye-catching gifts to take back home. The Oranjezicht City Farm Market is famous among tourists for its organically produced fresh fruits and vegetables. Other than that, this market also boasts of a stellar cluster of consumable plants and seedlings and fragrant flowers.