A Guide to Cape Town: What to Do and Where to Stay

Cape Town is a city of beauty, with one the most scenic coastlines in the world. The Cape of Good Hope has some of the best beaches and sunsets you can imagine. When it comes to food, there's no shortage of delicious cuisine that ranges from traditional South African fare like bobotie (a spiced meat pie) to more international options like sushi or pizza. There are plenty of activities for visitors who want to experience all that Cape Town has to offer including hiking Table Mountain, taking an ostrich safari tour, or visiting one of many museums throughout town.

The best neighbourhoods to visit in Cape Town

Sea Point

Cape Town Sea Point

Slotted between the Atlantic Ocean and the Table Mountain range, the suburb of Sea Point is one of Cape Town’s best places to stay. On weekends, Capetonians come from all over to meet for brunch at the cafés along Main and Regent roads, jog along the promenade or spend a day at the open-air pool.

It’s all just a stone’s throw from Protea Hotel Cape Town Sea Point, where the Atlantic-view plunge pool is a less bracing alternative to the icy ocean. If cold water therapy’s your tonic, there are several tidal pools within dashing distance of the hotel’s hot showers.

There are loads of fun things to do in Sea Point – try kayaking along the coast, where you’re likely to meet dolphins and maybe even spot a whale. Paragliders soar over Sea Point most days, leaping from Signal Hill and landing on the promenade – sign up for a tandem flight to see the area from up high. You can hire bikes or electric scooters to cruise along the prom, stopping for a coffee or ice cream along the way. At the end of the day, make sure you have an ocean-view spot to watch one of Cape Town’s killer sunsets.

Woodstock

Woodstock is also a good location for foodies

Lying just outside the inner city and regenerated with a slew of craft beer breweries, cool coffee joints and independent boutiques, Woodstock is known as Cape Town’s hipster ‘hood. It’s just a short taxi ride from the Protea Hotel Cape Town Mowbray or The Westin Cape Town in the city centre.

For art and design enthusiasts, Woodstock is one of the best places to visit in the whole of Cape Town. Take a street art tour with a guide who can explain the neighbourhood’s patchwork of urban murals and – if you’re still curious about Cape Town’s art scene – suggest where to go afterwards, whether you’re browsing or buying. Many designers have their studios and showrooms in Woodstock – browse the leather goods at Chapel or ceramics at Imiso.

With some great places to eat and dishes to try, Woodstock is also a good location for foodies. Wander around the Old Biscuit Mill, where the popular Neighbourgoods Market sets up on Saturdays from 9am (arrive early). Housed in the Old Biscuit Mill silo, the Pot Luck Club is run by the much-lauded Chef Luke Dale Roberts. The sixth-floor restaurant serves sharing plates such as braaied line fish with mussel chowder and chorizo, or Penang pork belly with coconut and peanut curry and lime pickled onion. Brunch with bottomless fizz or Bloody Marys is particularly popular.

The V&A Waterfront

The V&A Waterfront is the heart of Cape Town's tourism industry

The V&A Waterfront is the heart of Cape Town’s tourism industry. Whether you’re in the city for work or pleasure, it’s a convenient base with everything you need lying within walking distance.

The V&A is often synonymous with the V&A Mall, but there’s plenty more alternative things to do. Visiting the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (MOCAA), for example, is one of the best things to do in Cape Town. It opened to international acclaim in 2017. Politics and history are frequent focuses of the museum's multimedia exhibitions. And the museum’s architecture alone makes it worth a visit; the building itself – an old silo – features a huge atrium hollowed out in the shape of a grain.

Stay at the Protea Hotel Cape Town Waterfront Breakwater Lodge, which has a handy location in the V&A complex. It’s housed in the 19th-century Breakwater Prison building, now reimagined as a bright, comfortable hotel with Table Mountain views. The Two Oceans Aquarium is right around the corner, as is the V&A Watershed – a warehouse full of art and craft stalls – and the V&A Food Market. There are genuinely unique things to do from the V&A, too; it’s the departure point for the ferry to Robben Island and its old prison where anti-apartheid activists were held – most famously, Nelson Mandela.

Tamboerskloof

Lion's head mountain, Cape Town

The suburb of Tamboerskloof is stacked along the flanks of Lion’s Head mountain and Signal Hill, overlooking the city and Table Mountain. This neighbourhood strikes a balance of being residential and centrally located – offering a slice of local life and a convenient place to stay.

The Protea Hotel Fire & Ice! Cape Town straddles the edges of Tamboerskloof and the inner city, with loads of great restaurants, bars, coffee shops and independent clothing and design stores right on its doorstep. Though it’s moments from busy Bree and Long streets, its side-road location means it’s quieter than you might expect.

Tamboerskloof is within walking distance or a quick taxi ride to many of Cape Town’s historic and cultural sites, such as the South African National Gallery, the Cape Town Holocaust and Genocide Centre or Iziko Slave Lodge – so there are countless interesting things to do and places to visit if you base yourself here. Wander through the peaceful Company Gardens or the Bo-Kaap neighbourhood, with its brightly painted houses. And for a quiet evening out, catch a film at the much-loved Labia Theatre.

Go deeper

If you’ve hired a car, you might notice car guards in high-vis vests when you’re parking. These informal workers help people park and keep an eye on unoccupied cars; they make money through tips, so keep some coins around – between five and ten rand is fine. Uber is inexpensive with loads of drivers around at all hours. At night, get a cab rather than walking. During the day, however, do hit the pavement. Capetonians aren’t the biggest walkers (it’s a driving city), but it’s on foot that you’ll discover the cute coffee shops, independent shops and hidden street art.

Published: July 26, 2022