The City Code · South Africa
Cape Town
A mountain in the middle of a city, and the wind decides the plan.
Arriving
Car from CPT, twenty-five minutes. A car for the week is worth it: the peninsula and the winelands need one.
Book this first
The mountain — go up on the first clear morning, not the day you planned.
What is worn
Layers and a windbreaker; summer evenings turn cold fast.
Money & manners
Ten to fifteen per cent, and something for the car guards. Cards everywhere.
The golden hour
Seven in the evening at Camps Bay from December to February, when the sun sets into the Atlantic.
The usual mistake
Saving Table Mountain for the last day. Take the first clear morning you are given.
When to come
January — see where to go, month by month.
From the collection
The stay, the table, the morning
While you are there
What moves the city
Festival · 2 Jan
Kaapse Klopse minstrel carnival
Troupes parade through the Bo-Kaap and the city centre. Central roads close for most of the day; plan around the CBD.
Season · 15 Dec to 10 Jan
High summer
The busiest weeks, with long evenings and south-easter winds. Restaurants need booking weeks ahead; the cable car queues from 08:00.
Go deeper
The rest of Cape Town on Velori
Elsewhere
Other city codes
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