Cape Town – The Must-See Wonder of South Africa

From rolling mountain ranges, to vineyards and white beaches, there is no contesting Cape Town’s charm. Here is where to eat, sleep and play in the Mother City.

Between the glistening Atlantic ocean, one of the seven wonders of nature that is Table Mountain, and the white beaches, it’s no wonder why Cape Town was named the best place to visit by both The New York Times and The Telegraph.

The Mother City has so much more to offer than just vast expanses of sand (Camps Bay), penguins waddling around rocks (Boulders Beach near Simonstown), mountain ranges (Franschoek) and wine farms (Stellenbosch). This city is one teeming with cultural diversity, which brings with it some major tourist attractions, such as Cape Point, Chapman’s Peak, the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens – a World Heritage Site – and not to mention, the V&A Waterfront. Before we get carried away with listing the points of interest in Cape Town, let’s start with the obvious.

The city of Cape Town has one of the highest levels of biodiversity of any equivalent area in the world

Table Mountain was named one of the Seven Wonders of Nature, and with its commonly known “tablecloth” of cloud cover, 1 000 metre rocky hike, and views that stretch further than 180 degrees it is no surprise. For those that are not so thrilled with the idea of climbing up the mountain, the cable car will get you to the top in just over 5 minutes, where you can have a picnic, or go get something to eat at the restaurant there. To the west of the mountain is Signal Hill, which is a popular spot for sun downers because of its ease of access and magnificent views.

Clifton Beach, which falls under the Atlantic Seaboard, is one of Cape Town’s most famous beaches because of its pearl white sand and crystal clear blue water. Its only downfall is the ice-cold water, which we can blame on the Benguela current, so unless you are a fan of losing the feeling in your toes, legs, arms, and eventually your entire body, the water off the surrounding beaches is best left being admired from a distance. Hey, if you’re lucky, you might see some marine life while staring out towards the edge of the earth.

Before the Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the development of Johannesburg, Cape Town was the largest city in South Africa

This area is also home to some of the country’s most expensive properties, and it is a known fact that Camps Bay, which is a stone’s throw away from Clifton, has the highest concentration of multimillionaires. So if you are looking to spot the latest Aston Martin, a mansion made entirely of glass, or hear the most expensive champagne bottle’s popping, take a drive along Victoria Road and then grab a seat in one of the many restaurants or bars lined up along the Camps Bay strip. Property investors just love this area because of the houses that are up for grabs.

Cape Aghulas is definitely a point of interest, as it is the spot marked as where the two oceans – the Atlantic and the Indian – meet and the most southern tip of Africa. Visitors can take a short walk out towards the lighthouse, which is the second oldest in South Africa.