For anyone attempting to drive the Cape Town peninsula in a day, this is a great guide to follow! I highly recommend getting away from the hussle of the city and into the open roads of dramatic scenery, surf beaches and seriously cute penguins along the way.
Let’s get into it! The best day trip along the Cape Town peninsula:
First stop: Kalk Bay
Famous for their flea market bargains, antiques, shabby chic homewares, bohemian threads and a great cafe culture. Kalk bay is an hour’s drive from Cape Town, making it the perfect first stop for a well deserved coffee and for us, a second breakfast. We couldn’t go past Lekker (mostly because we’d only just learnt what the word meant, and loved it! (It’s an Afrikaans word used to express satisfaction)) You could spend an entire day here seeking the best finds, and if you have plenty of time, I highly encourage it. But for us, it was time to continue along the Cape Town peninsula!
Next stop: Boulders Beach
Home to the South African penguin, Boulders beach should definitely make it on your list of places to stop off and explore. Here’s a little tip if you’re on a bit of a budget. Once you’ve parked, you can either walk left to the penguin colony or right toward Windmill beach… if you’re on a budget, skip the colony and take the second option (picture below). We still saw plenty of penguins, rock pools with starfish, sea urchins of beautiful colours and even fur seals sunbaking on some rocks – you just won’t see as many penguins – but at least it’s free.
We did both options and while it was a little cramped on the boardwalk to see the colonies near the water’s edge, it was a beautiful setting. You also have access to swim on Boulders beach, which was truly serene.
Next stop: Cape Point
{full disclosure} We didn’t actually make it down here, we had planned to come trekking or cycling later in the week and skipped it, trying to avoid seeing it twice and in hindsight we shouldn’t have because we never made it back (it turned out to be more difficult than we’d thought, and expensive!)
Next stop: Kommetjie
THE perfect place to really get away from it all. I adored Kommetjie, the long stretch of beach and ‘shack style’ amenity block reminded me of Australia. Even though the surf was small, I was devastated not to have a board with me, it looked like a lot of fun. There wasn’t much to do other than enjoy the serenity, but if you’re a beach person, you wont regret it! Just don’t forget your board!
Next stop: Chapman’s Peak Drive
Cape Town’s answer to the Great Ocean Road and boy does it deliver. You do need to pay a small amount to drive this route, but if you can, opt to cycle it because driving it, leads to it ending so soon. The views are absolutely stunning, if we didn’t have lunch plans, this would be a great place to stop for a picnic, check out the view from above!
Next stop: Hout Bay
Time for lunch! We parked up at the Mariner’s Wharf maritime-themed restaurant for some legit seafood.
The Fisherman’s Wharf Market sells local and imported seafood. Here you can watch your fresh fish get soled and filleted, treat yourself to fresh sushi or old style smoked fish delicacies from the in-house smoker. I highly recommend the calamari! We sat upstairs for a beautiful view of the bay and took it all in.
To stretch the legs, we walked around the fishing docks to find souvenirs and boatmen looking busy. It was here I saw the biggest seal I’ve ever seen in my life. I’m pretty sure it was the biggest you’ve ever seen too – but I didn’t want to pay for a picture (I’m not sure it was in the seal’s best interest to have a picture with me) so you’ll just have to believe me and use your imagination.
Next stop: Llandudno Beach
If there was a beach that was going to remind me of home, this was it. Non-beach lovers may want to give this one a miss, but I absolutely loved it. We didn’t head into the town (it was around the time of school pick up, so we avoided the main streets, wisely), simply enjoyed the beach. Again, I wish I had a surfboard with me and here is the first time I wish I’d brought it with me on this trip. While it wouldn’t have been feasible to send it here or buy a new one – I had to make peace with the fact that I’d really missed out on some epic breaks today.
Next stop: Camps Bay
A brilliant last stop if you’re staying around this part of town, beautiful waterfront restaurants with plenty of space for activities. We saw an abundance of people out and about, playing footy on the sand, surfers, joggers and kids bouncing over play equipment. There was definitely something for everyone. And if you’re the kind of person who gets a kick out of sunsets over the water – this is THE place to see it (with a beer or wine in hand, obviously.) We went to Tigers Milk.
Last stop: Dinner at Black Sheep
Our last stop along the Cape Town peninsula seemed to coincide with dinner time. Seeing as we were based in Stellenbosch, we were still a good hour from base and we’d just hit peak hour, so instead of sitting in traffic, we opted to sit in a restaurant, serving wine! We swung past Kloof Street and opted for Black Sheep. While they had a lot of different types of cuisine on the menu (something I am always cautious of), they only had a few things on offer, preferring fresh ingredients and limited stock. In other words, order quickly, because it might be sold out before you’ve even ordered your amuse-bouche!
So! If you find yourself in Cape Town with a free day up your sleeve, I highly recommend hiring a car and self navigating your way through each of the above pit stops!
Have you been to the Cape Town peninsula?
Tune in next week for a post about feminism and South African wine – a classic combination!
Until then xo
Absolutely stunning! No place like home! 🙂
There’s really no other word for it!! 👌