A how to guide for tourists visiting Cape Town
These include wine tastings in Constantia or Stellenbosch, gourmet restaurant tours, BBQ's, Golf, horse riding on the beach, shark diving, whale watching (in season), helicopter flights along the cape, mountain biking and surf lessons.
Wine tastings
There are more than 150 vineyards in the Cape Town area. You can find fantastic red and white wines and evening sparkling wines, which are referred to as "Cape Classic".
Gourmet Restaurants
Eight out of ten of South Africa's best restaurants are within an hour's drive of platinum guesthouse. There are so many culinary delights to choose from...
Cape Point
Robben Island
Whale watching
Watching the majestic whales from a boat in their natural habit is a very unique experience. The best time for watching the Southern Right Whale in South African waters is from June to November along the Cape south coast, although some will already be as far north as KwaZulu-Natal. Peak calving season is July and August, but whales can be seen through September and October. The curious humpback whale can be seen between May to December, moving up along the coast from Hermanus to St Lucia in KwaZulu-Natal. The medium-sized Bryde's Whale can be spotted all year round. On rare occasions Orca Whales can also be seen.
The Southern Right Whales breeding ground are the sheltered bays of the Western Cape Coast, with the majestic animals spending up to five months a year here. They pass their time playing, courting, and nursing their newborn calves, providing spectacular land-based viewing. In Cape Town you can see Souther Right Whales from the road along the False Bay coast, and they are distinctly visible on the western seaboard if you get on high grounds. On the Cape west coast, excellent sightings of Southern Rights Whales can be enjoyed all the way from Strandfontein to Lambert's Bay, Elands Bay, St Helena, Saldanha and Ysterfontein, just north of Cape Town. The town of Hermanus probably offers the best land-based whale watching in the world. The animals can be clearly seen from a scenic cliff-top walk. The town also holds a whale-watching festival every September. Whales can also be seen all around the Cape Peninsula and along the south coast to Cape Agulhas, the southernmost tip of Africa. Cape Agulhas is particularly rewarding, with great views of southern right cows and calves at play.
Shark Diving
It is difficult to get more excitement for your money. Watch the sharks from the boat, or take the plunge and enter the diving cage to see a Great White Shark up close.
Visit the Penguins
Many of us have seen penguins in a movie or in a Zoo. Have you seen them up close, though? In their natural habitat? In Cape Town you can!
Boulder's Beach has a colony of wild penguins which you can see - up close.
Horse Riding on the beach
Does it get any better than enjoying the beauty, power and elegance of these creatures? Yes, it does. Enjoy them while riding along a lonely, beautiful beach. In Noordhoek you can make this dream come true!
Riding lessons and beach excursions are available by the hour.
What is next?
Decide if you want the "excitement" of packing and unpacking your bags every few days to travel from one guest house to another, or if you prefer to limit the number of accommodations and use them as a base for day trips.
In our experience, most first time visitors to the Cape Town area book several different accommodations as they neither know the area nor the available guest houses. Those visitors who have been in Cape Town before usually book one or two accommodations and then make day trips. This is usually the more relaxing approach as you will not have to deal with check-out times of one accommodation and the check-in time of the next one. Instead, you can focus on the beauty of South Africa and spend your valuable time enjoying the many sights and activities.