What to do in Capetown?

[FiveHoursSleep]

We are off to Namibia for 2.5 weeks in August, and have 4 nights ( 3 whole days) in an apartment in Capetown at the end of our trip.
What should we go and see? Does anyone know what the driving is like, should we hire a car or arrange a driver instead?
We have 4 kids - eldest is 10, youngest is 4- so will need a vehicle that can carry 6 plus the driver.

Driving - you will definitely need a car, driving is pretty similar to the UK you just need to be a little more aware of other drivers. I would hire a car, we always do, even 69 year old DFIL had no trouble driving in CT.

August is the end of winter so Cape Town can be a bit windy and/or wet The aquarium at the V&A waterfront is always a good visit for the whole family and the Waterfront in itself is quite a good day out.

Table Mountain is a must but is weather dependant - you can findout online on a daily basis whether the cable car is running. IF not the view from Signal hill next to Table Mountain is the next best thing.

A visit to the Penguins at Boulders Beach is another great thing to do (it can be part of a trip to Cape Point and to Hout Bay via the stunning Chapmans Peak Drive) Boulders has the National Parks tourist centre with walkways and penguin viewing points or slightly further along the road is Boulders Beach where you can go on the beach with the penguins. (there is a small conservation group fee to pay and numbers on the beach are limited)

If you fancy trying the wine region there are some lovely family friendly wine farms in Stellenbosch (about 40mins from CT centre) Spier has all sorts going on and a great restaurant called Moyo for sit in dinners or their deli does take out picnics or sit down lunches.

There could also be a chance for some whale spotting in Hermanus

Driviing should be fine - The roads are pretty good and well marked. The only priviso is not to assume that all follow road rules and not take chances!

There is also Kirstenbosch gardens and boat trips from Hout Bay.

I'd say you'd be fine driving in/around Cape Town, and we had an MPV last time we were there (me, DP, DD (1 at the time), my DPs) and it was quite comfortable. There's certain parts I wouldn't go at night, and we took the advice of our relatives there on that.

Definitely worth a visit to Cape Point - it's a beautiful drive down, see the Cape Flats, etc., and quite spectacular at the point/lighthouse itself. It's also almost compulsory to have your photo taken at the Cape of Good Hope sign! :) Just watch out for the baboons everywhere - they will steal your picnic if you try to eat it outdoors! Plenty of people ignore the signs and find out the hard way.... :)

I'd also echo we were there in early August, and in 3 days in Cape Town itself, there was only one day that the 'Table Cloth' (mist/cloud) lifted off Table Mountain, so if you want to go up, take advantage of your first good day - you might not get the chance again!

Oh, and if you get really grim weather, we found the planetarium place was quite interesting and worth a couple of hours!

Agree with "blueberryboybait" that you will definitely need a car and should do Cape Point and Boulders Beach on the same day. 2 great things to see.

Table Mountain in the cable car is a must and you can also did a bit of hiking up there too which is great.

We did Groot Constantia which is a historic wine estate (and I think the oldest) very near to Cape Town. This was quite interesting as there are historic buildings to explore.

Stellenbosch is also lovely and different to GC. Lovely to have lunch in the grounds and drink the wine made.

We also went to Bloubergstrand which is a beach a few miles outside of Cape Town where you get fantastic views across Table Bay to Table Mountain.

However I think the must do trip is over to Robben Island and the museum. You can book your tickets online.

Do try to go up Table Mountain as it is spectacular. If the weather is good I would go to Cape Point and do the walk / hike from the lighthouse, and also the penguins at Simons Town. Please go to the District 6 museum - its a real eye opener even if you think (like I did) that I knew a lot about the history of SA. Wine tasting in Stellenbosch is great fun but the town itself a little odd IMO - its like the last 20 years never happened! If it rains would recommend the Aquarium. Robben Island is a must.

Loads of great restaurants on the Waterfront but for a really great, cheap breakfast and some local flavour go to Lola's on long street - French Toast is something else and Eggs Lola is the only veggie brekkie my OH would willingly order. For a bit of touristy fun but a great family experience book a meal at the Africa Cafe - you don't get to choose what you eat but the food and service are fab. Very - I love Cape Town!

If you didn't have DC's in tow I would recommend a long, boozy day on the waterfront!

Robben Island - can be combined with time at the V & A Waterfront.

We were there in July/August, and there was only one day that the cable car was open after we arrived, before it closed for annual maintenance, so those dates would be worth checking. Fortunately it was a glorious day!

I'm very jealous!

Another jealous one here. I have always found the Rough Guide books very useful.

Even more jealous of your trip to Namibia.

More jealousy here!

The above are all v good options. You probably wouldn't see whales in Hermanus in August, though.

If you want to do wine estates, go to Fairview in Paarl. They have goats (and a wine range called Goats Do Roam) and a pretty fish pond. You can also do cheese tasting so a bit more interesting for kids.

I am biased, since my in laws live in Paarl, but I think the surrounding areas are beautiful. You can go to the Taal Monument (a monument to the Afrikaans language) which is on top of a big hill/ mountain (Paarl Mountain) but it's only a 10 minute drive up a nice road. There's a cafe and craft shop plus you can walk around if the weather is not too bad and the views across Paarl valley are incredible.

I grew up in Cape Town. The mountain is definitely worth seeing. If you decide to hike up the mountain and go back down by the cable car, please check in advance that the cable car is running on that particular day. There are also very lovely walks once you get to the top of the mountain is you prefer something less strenuous and still want the views. Lions Head is a fantastic hike/walk (should take 2 hours to get to the top) but may be a little too challenging in places for the little ones. I recently visited Cape Point which was very spectacular with lots of wonderful views. Catch beautiful sunsets at Camps Bay beachfront and sip cocktails. Beautiful wine farms in both Constantia and Stellenbosch. Franschhoek is also wonderful for food and wine. Lots of the wine farms have ready made picnic options where you can buy a basket of lovely food and then can also buy some of the wine. For Constantia wine farms I recommend Uitsig for cheap wine tasting and Buitenverwachting for picnics on the lawn. You will need a car but if you wanted to go and have wine at wine farms, you could also get in with a tour. Give way to taxis who frequently do not follow the rules of the road and will stop at odd places in the roads to pick up passengers. To navigate, the mountain is a great guide. There are 2 main directions for the roadsigns in Cape Town - towards Cape Town (the mountain), or towards Muizenberg (away from Mountain). Find info on things to do at www.tourismcapetown.co.za. There is also a lovely aquarium at the V&A Waterfront which would be good for the kids, as mentioned above. The Penguins at Boulders Beach viewing spot does have a walkway which is good for pushchairs - took my one year old there in March. Most of all, prepare to fall in love. We had 33 international travellers for our wedding in Constantia and they all loved it!

Forgot to mention that in South Africa, Woolworths is the supermarket that's nice for grabbing ready made salads or for getting nice things for lunch or lovely fresh fruit (reminds me a bit of M&S)

Jealousy in shed loads here.

Blueberryboybait has got it spot on.

I know not everyone would agree with me but I would give Robben Island a miss in favour of something else, especially as your kids are youngish. Its a little too much of a 'herded' visit for my liking.

If the weather isn't great on the coast it may well be ok in Stellenbosch etc and despite the fact it feels old fashioned there are some fantastic relaxed restaurants and the whole area just has a lovely atmosphere.
We had a family holiday to Namibia and loved every second. Especially the sand dunes, the coast and Etosha. Its an absolutely fantastic place.

There is a show on tv at the moment called Charly's Bakery. You can google charley's bakery SA. My kids would have just loved to visit it and sample their wares.
I hope you have a great holiday

Not wanting to scare you... when you're driving around please lock your car doors, and only have your windows down an inch, no more. I used to live there, our friends were held up at gun point (machine gun). Please be more aware than you are in this country. Other than that, enjoy it, Cape Town is the most beautiful city in the world

TodaysAGoodDay I would always be careful of those things as we live in London and I've been held up at gunpoint here!

FWIW, none of my friends or family have been carjacked or held up at gunpoint in CT or surrounds. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but it's not that common. Main risk areas are quiet roads in the suburbs.

Just a quick update on this in case anyone else is interested.
Driving in Namibia and in Cape Town were both completely fine and hassle free. We had a fantastic time in both places.