We have been to South Africa multiple times but have never made time for the southern point – Cape Town. On this journey, the decision to visit was easy because we could get from Johannesburg to Cape Town on a non-stop flight and then from Cape Town to Qatar for our next flight. With logistics out of the way – let’s go on a new adventure!

We scheduled three days in Cape Town and seven days driving the Garden Route. After experiencing it ourselves, you shouldn’t do one without the other. Driving in SA is very easy and the roads are quite well marked. And actually, the Garden Route is only going to take you along two highways – easy peasy.

Cape Town

We seem to luck into things and our hotel in Cape Town was a fantastic find. It was in a great location, full of historical significance and the staff was just unbelievable. The area around The Cape Heritage Hotel has become a foodie location and with that piece of info, you have “Sigworth” written all over it!

On our first day, we spent two hours with Nathan, a local guide (guruwalk.com), learning the local history and getting our bearings around this new town. The next day, we visited several of the same locations to explore, more in depth, the areas that interested us and then added a few additional waterfront sights and restaurants.

St. George’s Cathedral and The Company Garden

St. Georges’s Cathedral is renowned for the political stance it took during apartheid. Nobody was refused admission to the church during their apartheid struggles. It was a common meeting place for activists for all causes.

Desmond Tutu, the first black archbishop of South Africa, led many marches from this church and he is buried at the front of the altar.

The Company Garden is located directly behind St. George’s Church. This is a massive garden, of almost eight acres, that comes complete with statues of Cecil Rhodes, an aviary, memorial gardens, restaurant, benches, fountains and a lovely rose garden.

It is also the oldest garden in South Africa that was created in the 1650’s. The Dutch East India Company originally created the garden to grow vegetables to sustain the growing Cape Town community and to provide food to the ships that came into port. Over multiple years, they figured out a crop rotation that provided fresh produce all year long.

In 1680 they changed the layout of the garden because they claimed that people arriving from Europe wanted to see beautiful gardens and not veggie gardens. Therefore, today you will see the gardens that were designed to impress the Europeans.

Victoria and Albert Waterfront

You must walk down to the Victoria and Albert waterfront when visiting Cape Town. Of course, there are all types of shoppes, but there are also so many great seafood restaurants. Plus, if you are looking for a SA diamond, you can visit the exhibit that tells you all about the De Beer mining process.

Bo-Kaap

Bo-Kaap has a rich history dating back to the 18th century. Originally known as the Malay Quarter, it was established as a residential area for slaves brought to the Cape by the Dutch. Many of these slaves were from Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia and Malaysia. Along with the slaves that were brought to Cape Town, the Dutch East India Company was also bringing cargoes of spices. The Atlas Trading company is still in operation today and sells a wide variety of spices. Be sure to stop by when visiting and pick up some yummy curry blends.

Over the years, the community in Bo-Kaap evolved and developed a unique cultural identity. The distinct colorful houses, now a trademark of the neighborhood, were painted by residents as an expression of freedom after the end of apartheid.

Bo-Kaap is also known for its significant Islamic heritage, with several mosques in the area. Today, it stands as a symbol of Cape Town’s cultural diversity and is a popular tourist destination. 

Hout Bay and Chapman’s Peak Drive

Both Hout Bay and Chapman’s Peak Drive are integral parts of the Cape Peninsula’s charm and we highly recommend it for anyone visiting Cape Town. It’s a great way to explore the natural beauty of South Africa’s coastline.

Hout Bay is a coastal suburb of Cape Town, situated twenty kilometers south of the Central Business District of Cape Town. It is surrounded by mountains to the north, east, and west and the southern Atlantic Ocean to the south. It is a beautiful bay and a we stayed here a couple nights because it was conveniently located close to the Kirstenbosch Gardens and then the beginning of the Garden Route drive.

Chapman’s Peak Drive is a renowned scenic route that connects Hout Bay to the town of Noordhoek. It is famous for its stunning panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean and its engineering feats. The road is carved out of the face of the mountain and offers numerous viewpoints where travelers can stop and take in the breathtaking landscapes. Chapman’s Peak Drive is considered one of the most spectacular marine drives in the world. You will have to pay a small toll fee. These fees are used for road maintenance.

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is one of the most prestigious botanical gardens in the world. Established in 1913, its primary aim was to promote, conserve, and display the extraordinarily diverse flora of southern Africa. The garden is part of the Cape Floristic Region, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Kirstenbosch places a strong emphasis on the cultivation of indigenous plants in its 528 hectare garden. The garden serves as a conservation, research and teaching facility, and it plays a crucial role in the study and preservation of rare and threatened species.

We explored a wide variety of gardens and features including the Fragrance Garden, Medicinal Garden, Protea Garden, and the unique Boomslang Canopy Walkway. Of course, the Protea Garden was my favorite.

Stellenbosch

This is the area that you must visit if you want to enjoy some of those yummy South African wines and visit their vines. The drive through the wineries is simply breathtaking. It is twice the size and it truly rivals the Napa Valley. Yes, it is worth the four hour drive from Cape Town.

We visited the Ernie Ells Winery and restaurant. The food selection is divine and the view as you eat is just breathtaking. Be sure to make overnight or meal reservations before you arrive.

Rooi-Els, Stony Point and Betty’s Bay

Rooi-Els is a very quiet coastal Cape Town village. It has beautiful views of the Indian Ocean to the south and the towering Klein-Hangklip mountains to the north. The sunsets over the Cape Peninsula are excellent. However, the wind that flows through this area is incredible and will knock you off your feet at times. Be prepared.

We visited this beautiful town for one reason – to find the endemic Cape Rockjumper. We had a gps point where it was last seen by a friend and so we headed off in that direction heading directly into some unbelievable winds.

Within about 30 minutes we had found our feathered friends, took a few pics and headed off to our next destination. Yes, we are all creatures of habit.

Our next stop was Betty’s Bay and then onto Stony Point to see the interesting local residents in that community. Betty’s Bay is a quiet little community that has some lovely little BnB’s, breathtaking ocean views and a very casual vibe. We ate several meals at Cafe Jacks because the food was so good and the owners were full of great travel tips for the area.

Yes, there are penguins in South Africa! There are quite a few places you can find them along the coast but Stony Point has a great colony that is always in residence.

This was once an old whaling station that was taken over by the penguins and various other birds. There are apparently 3,600 penguins in this now thriving colony.

Be sure to put on your windbreaker when you get out of the car because this is a windy seashore.

Note: If you are sightseeing by car from Cape Town, this is only about 90 minutes away.

Knysna Elephant

This lovely park offers various elephant interactions with their herd of elephants. We selected the premium room pkg ($75 per night) that gave us breakfast, unlimited tram tours and feeding of the ellies during our stay.

For a small additional fee ($30), we did the morning walk with the elephants where we fed them their morning snack of assorted fruits and veggies. After the fruit and veggie buckets were consumed, we then walked with them to their morning grazing location.

To be able to get so close to these magnificent creatures fulfilled a lifetime dream for me.

Oudtshoorn

Oudtshoorn is the Ostrich capital of the world and you can visit multiple ostrich show farms in this area. But ostriches aren’t the only attraction in this great town.

You can also taste some locally produced gins, visit Cango Caves and drive to the top of Swartberg Pass, go on a game drive, enjoy wonderful cuisine, checkout the meerkats or take a hike in the beautiful Klein Karoo biosphere. This town has it all!

Why so many ostriches? Ostrich eggs are an enormous source of protein, can provide several meals and the shells were used by the early San people to transport water. In the late 1800’s, the area had a large number of wild ostriches and so they started taming them.

Why would they want to tame these crazy looking creatures? Because the nobility of Europe were gaga for the beautiful feathers for their garments and for their hats. After all, who doesn’t love an ostrich feather hat?

We LOVED our travels around Cape Town and the Garden Route. This area is certainly on our list for a repeat performance.