Cape Peninsula Guide

Cape Point

Cape Point
Cape Point - Lighthouse
This landmark is part of Table Mountain National Park and is located at the end of the Cape Peninsula. In 1488 Bartolomeus Dias rounded the Cape during a dreadful storm. He subsequently named it the Cape of Storms. On a second voyage, the weather was much kinder to him and he renamed it the Cape of Good Hope. A few years later, Dias died while trying to round the Cape. A monument in the form of a navigational beacon has been erected in the Park in his honour. The Park offers a rich diversity of plant species as well as a marine reserve and animals such as baboons and Cape Zebra. The peak is 249m above sea level and can be reached by foot or the funicular railway. The lighthouse at the tip of the Peninsula is the most powerful in the Southern Hemisphere.

Boulders Beach

Penguins on Boulders Beach - Simonstown
Jackass Penguins
They are comical, clumsy and very eye-catching in their black and white dress. In 1982 two breeding pairs of African penguins (once known as Jackass penguins because of the braying sound they make) moved into prime beachfront estate at Boulders beach between Simonstown and Cape Point. Today there are over 3 000 of these birds living here and the area is now a National Park. Penguins can be viewed up close as they frolic in the water and waddle on land. Sometimes it’s hard to tell who is watching who. You’re likely to see penguin pairs strolling along the boardwalks and in the park. This is the one place in the world you will be able to swim and sunbathe with penguins. In a survey done by the BBC, Boulders Beach was rated one of the five best beaches to visit before you die. All in all, a great place to meet the locals!

Chapman's Peak Drive

Chapman’s Peak Drive between Noordhoek and Hout Bay on the Atlantic Coast on the south-western tip of South Africa is one of the most spectacular marine drives in the world. The 9km route with its 114 curves skirts Chapman Peak, the 593 m southerly extension of Constantiaberg and follows the rocky coastline to unfold stunning views in both directions.

Chapman's Peak Drive, originally known as the Hout Bay - Noorde Hoek Road, is a natural asset and resource, and is of strategic economic importance to business, local residents and tourism. This scenic route is now a toll-road.

Cape Peninsula Accommodation Listings

Backpacker Bus services any of the following accommodation establishments.
 
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