Cape Town Travel Forum

Hello, we are a spanish couple travelling to CT the last week of August ( 8 days ) and we need a bit of help.
Our main reason is to see the white sharks, we want to spend 3 days diving and see them breaching, any recomended companies?
We are going to stay at the Townhouse Hotel, somebody has been there? is OK?
Other things we would like to see are:
- Table Mountain ( is necesary to book with a company or easy to do it by ourselves?
- Cape Peninsula ( tour )
- Going to Hermanus to see the whales ( here again, is it posible to do it by ourselves or is better to book a tour? ).
- Visit a Game Reserve, is it worth it or is just for tourists?
Anything we should'n miss?
Also, do you have any recomendations for restaurants.
Thank you very much in advance.

Table Mountain was free when I climbed it in 2002 and 2003 and very close to town ($5 cab ride). You definitely don't need a tour guide, but you do need to plan for a fairly substantial hike. Half a day is probably an appropriate amount of time to allocate to the whole experience.
There are two trails the gentle longer trail.. i think about 6 miles and the VERY steep advanced trail that requires a steep climbing that would never be allowed in the us. I really enjoyed the steep trail but its definitely not for the elderly or children. I also recommend nearby lion's head for a sunset hike.

Cape Peninsula is far enough away that you need to arrange transit and might consider a tour or renting a car. Be careful with a car because while the city center is safe car jackings do happen a lot. You can also rent a cell phone from the airport for $1 per day and get free incoming calls.

I've done the game reserve thing and It was fun the first day but it got rather repetitive on the second day of riding around in a jeep all day. We flew up to a place north of Jo-burg and I don't know that it was worth the effort. Cape Town is by by far a nicer city and I think there are some smaller game reserves near by that would be worth a 1 day trip.

as for the hotel I haven't stayed at the Townhouse Hotel but I definitely like the area near the water front. If you want a comparison here is a map of all the hotels in the good part of the city and their prices.
http://www.HotelMapSearch.com/?llz=-33.90910,18.42257,15&m=h

Hello
I was on Hermanus to see whales on December and i havn't problems to find a booat of course you must have a car to drive there.On CT i stay on Hout Bay on Marlin loadge a good breakfast lots of fruits .
Nice trip
Al

Hi, the Townhouse Hotel is very good and centrally located. I would recomend you hire a car as puplic transport is not good or non-existent when you want to leave central Cape Town. Table mountain - cable car runs from early to late but if you intend walking up you should set aside a whole day and only do it if the weather is good. There are some smaller game reserves around CT but for serious game viewing there are better options in the northern part of SA. Regarding the shark diving, many operators offer this but be carefull - two weeks ago there was a serious accident with three or so people who drowned. Make sure the company you choose is responsible and safety conscious.

Hello:
You don't have to go all the way to Hermanus to see the whales. Go to Simonstown - they are plentiful and really playful there.
I was born in Cape Town but live in Toronto. I looooove my origin, and have a tiny, but very pretty house on the mountain and overlooking the sea at Simonstown. You can actually see the whales from the balcony.
You need to do a drive around the Peninsula, and go to the wine route in Stellenbosch. Check out all the beaches on the Atlantic side of Cape Town, they are stunning. Take rides around Ou Kaapse Weg, Sir Lowry's Pass - go through the Houw Hoek Pass and there are cute little farm stalls there.
If the hotel you have chosen is not nice, I will arrange for you to stay at my house in Simonstown (free of charge - I am not looking for money) - I would just like to know that someone else in the world appreciates the beauty of Cape Town. Go to Canal Walk and Cavendish Square for shopping, and of course, downtown Cape Town - then there is the newer Willow Ridge Mall in Tygerberg. The northern suburbs are beautiful too - but you will find that the south peninsula (false bay) side is just spectacular and the water at the beaches are warmer than at the Atlantic side. Don't forget a tour of the Garden Route. Pity I won't be there at that time - but I suggest a professional tour guide for the Garden Route.
Let me know if you have other questions.
Angela Schuller

Hi dears,

Table mountain can be a bit misty in August, which means you could get lost and there are also not that many people up there. In tems of safety in numbers please contact www.cumhike.org.za or www.meridian.org.za-they are hiking clubs that charge you something like 10 Rand to join tem for the day and you get to meet the locals.

In terms of whale watching I would recommend a surf lesson in Muizenberg. That is false Bay. I surf there regularly and I come very close to whales this time of year all the time while with them in the water-its fab! In Muizenberg there is also an interesting shark spotting system in place.

The great thing about Hermanus is that you can in fact do whalewatching of the land because they come soooo close. There is an easy path along the cliff in Hermanus...you just walk along there and enjoy them...

In terms of sharks: Appently they are breaching lots more in False bay than in Gansbaai. Ive done it in Gansbaai in off season and there are still plenty of them but because the water is not as deep they are not breaching as much.

Hope that helped a bit.

Happy trip!

Michaela
www.arbeiteninkapstadt.com



Cape Town looking forward to you....

Thank you so much to all of you for the info, it's very helpful, I really apreciate it.
Kisses from Spain.

Hi
For the white sharks I imagine that you will be seeing/diving in Gansbaai (approx 2 hrs from cape Town) there are many different companies- all are good!!www.sharkcagediving.co.za is one i often hear of.

The Townhouse hotel is in the CBD is clean and pleasant- its not in a busy area (especially at night) but if you have a car you should be fine.

Table Mountain - simple - you drive (approx 8 minutes from the hotel) you park and you go on the cable car - eat lunch/beer at the top and come down the same way - lovely - give yourself half a day for this excursion.
Hermanus is about 45 minutes from gansbaai - in the direction of cape town - its amazing as the whales come right up close - you can even hear them!!! do it by yourselves- basically you just walk to the seaside and you see the whales-

I can give you a list of other things to do- what are your interests?/budget?/ kind of restaurants? There are game reserves - the main ones are closer to johannedburg- but there are some closer to cape town that people go to and really enjoy like this one : www.aquilasafari.com


email again what exactely you like then i can give you finer points
Love mandy

mandybee: thank you very much for your answer, unfortunately we do not have a car, I guess we will contract tours, but we would like to know good restaurants to go ( we do not mind if they are expensive, for once we visit CT.. )
I would also like to ask if there is something we should not miss from the area.
Thank you very much again. Kisses.

Hello,

I am answering on behalf of my friend from Fish Hoek (near Cape Town), who is sitting here as I type, full of information for you!

Regarding the Townhouse Hotel, my friend has been there, but says it is a pricey tourist hotel. He has a beautiful 2 bedroom apartment in Fish Hoek (under 30 mins from the centre of Cape Town), with an enclosed sun-porch within 2 minutes walk (literally!) of the beach. Would you be interested?

For Table Mountain, don't book a company. You have 2 options: with a local map, you drive there; or you get a bus or taxi yourselves and prepare to join a queue. You have to see it, but expect a wait!!!

Cape Peninsula: absolutely! Only this one should be with a tour (unless you know a local).

Hermanus: again absolutely! But you can do this by yourselves. Just get there. (Visit Tourist Board Info).

Game reserve: worth it, but ensure you visit Cape Town's Acquila Game Reserve (an hour from Fish Hoek). Best value in SA!

For restaurants, depending on budget: The Spier is world-famous, again near Fish Hoek! (expensive); Cape To Cuba, a funky restaurant for drinks & eats! (cheap); The Red Herring, the beach scenes for the film "Ryan's Daughter" were filmed here! (cheap - under £5!).

If you want any more info, please contact me via VT or at jooljay@hotmail.com or email Chris from Fish Hoek at c.a.bingham@talk21.com.

Best wishes,

Julian (& Chris from Fish Hoek!)