top of page
Search

Cape Town Off the Beaten Path

  • Writer: Erin
    Erin
  • Sep 20, 2021
  • 3 min read

Updated: Jul 31

Cape Town is a beautiful destination and is considered one of the best places to visit. Cape Town holds the title of the oldest city in South Africa and the second-largest city, only to be beaten by Johannesburg. Cape Town is full of culture, history and has so many things to do. This week we are going to dive into destinations that are off the beaten path and that is sure to provide you with one of the most unique and unforgettable visits to South Africa.


A row of vibrant, colorful houses in the Bo-Kaap neighborhood of Cape Town, South Africa, stands prominently in the foreground under a bright blue sky with white clouds. The houses feature striking facades in red, blue, yellow, and pink, with white trim and balconies. In the background, the iconic flat-topped Table Mountain rises majestically. A green tree branch is visible in the upper left corner.
Bo Kaap Neighborhood with Table Mountain

Bo Kaap

The most colorful suburb in Cape Town is worth a day to explore the cobbled streets and experience the historical significance. During the apartheid, the Muslim slaves from Malaysia and Indonesia were segregated, and Bo Kaap was noted as the "Cape Muslim Neighborhood." During Eid (a Muslim holiday), the community would paint their homes in a variety of colors for the celebration. What was once the Muslim capital of Cape Town is now open to all in the community. The colorful houses are a can't miss off the beaten path stop in Cape Town.


An aerial view of Chapman's Peak Drive, a scenic coastal road winding along a dramatic, rocky mountain that plunges into the ocean. The road snakes around the cliff face, with a single white car visible on a curve in the mid-ground. The ocean stretches to the horizon, and the sky is filled with the warm, soft light of a sunset or sunrise.
Champan's Peak Drive

Chapman's Peak Drive

If you would like to venture outside of the city, Chapman's Peak Drive is one of the most hair-raising and beautiful drives that you can take in Cape Town. It is a drive that wraps around the mountains with awe-inspiring views of the Atlantic Ocean. The drive starts in Hout Bay, a small fishing village on the northern part of the road. You can then travel south and end at Noordhoek, which is an even smaller country village. Be sure to take a horseback ride or a short hike up the mountain to take in the beauty of the bay. Along the drive, you can pull off for beautiful photos and purchase small souvenirs along the side of the road. The drive up to Chapman's Peak is worth the hairpin turns for the experience.


A multi-story building in District Six, Cape Town, features vibrant orange and red facades with numerous arched windows, each framed in white. The building has decorative white crenellated rooflines. A tall, slender lamppost stands in the foreground, with part of a parking lot visible at the bottom. Other buildings, including one with exposed brick and another with a more modern, grey facade, are partially visible on either side. The sky above is clear and blue.
Colorful Facades in District Six

District Six

South Africa has a troubled past full of slavery and racism, and District Six is at the heart of this conflict in Cape Town. Prior to the 1960s and 1970s, district six was a diverse and thriving neighborhood with families that had lived there for generations. During the 1960s and 1970s, segregation laws had been passed that forced diverse families from their homes and their neighborhood destroyed. St. Mark's Anglican Church refused to accept the stipend that the government offered the religious institute and continued service for its congregates that now traveled from all over Cape Town. Today, the community has started to rebuild, and all of the oppression is displayed at the District Six Museum. There is even a plot of land that had been bulldozed left as a memorial to all of those removed from their homes and neighborhood.


A single scoop of light brown, creamy ice cream is perfectly centered in a white disposable cup, set against a pure white background.
Ice Cream

Tapi Tapi Ice Cream

If you are traveling to Cape Town for a unique experience of African food, you will be sorely upset. The food in Cape Town has shifted toward European Cuisine. If you are hoping to experience traditional food, you can check out Tapi Tapi Ice Cream. A local man, Tapiwa Guzha, was upset that traditional African food was being passed up. He decided to turn this local food into delicious ice cream. He has flavors that include: "kelewele," Ghanaian plantains with ginger and fire-roasted peanuts, "rondo," edible clay full of nutritious value, and for the extremely adventurous eater, even "matemba," a dried fish with toffee. You can stop by six days a week or even see how the ice cream is made on the seventh. His goal with the shop is to give back to the community, so you can take in ingredients to donate, pay it forward for someone in need, or just enjoy the work that he has put into the shop.


Now that you've seen some of the off-the-beaten-path attractions in Cape Town, we can start to plan your trip to South Africa. Schedule a consultation to ensure we fit the best of the country into your trip.

Comments

bottom of page