Capetown 3-day itinerary?

Old Jun 14th, 2015, 12:45 PM
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Capetown 3-day itinerary?

Husband and I (mid 60s) have an opportunity to visit Capetown en route back to the US after a wedding/safari. Any suggestions re: length of stay/things to do? We will have had several safari days by that point, and while we are adventurous, hang-gliding and other extreme sports are not likely. I appreciate any advice.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 02:46 PM
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We just got back from Cape Town and safari trip. We liked Cape Town, but hearing that it was one of the top tourist destinations in the world, it took us a bit to understand why. (We were there 5 days). I would say that tops on the list is to go to the Cape Point and visit the penguins. Shocknig, how adorable they are!! And the Cape coastline is gorgeous. We had a private driver to do this, and really loved it. Table Mountain is a must for most people.. but do it at the first weather-opportunity. There are frequent closures due to weather. We didn't want to visit the winelands because we live in a wine area in California-- but ended up going and it was a very pretty area. The botanical gardens were the best I've seen... the canopy trail being one highlight. I found Camps Bay to be small, but enchanting. The waves were quite spooky and dramatic on the day we were there. If I had it to do again, I might stay there as my base... especially if I could get an ocean view.

Those are all really obvious suggestions... maybe you can tell us more so that we can help.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 06:26 PM
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The advice above is good. Robben Island is also worth a visit. The Muslim Quarter - the Bo Kaap - is pretty. For something a bit off the beaten track, try the Gold of Africa Museum.

To get more of a feel of Africa, consider a township tour.

If you will be visiting in warmer weather, the beach at Muizenberg is good for swimming and has very colorful cabanas in the background.

And if you want to get out of the city, you can do a day trip to Hermanus for whale watching. Its also a nice little town to walk around.

The Victoria and Albert Waterfront is vastly overrated.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 06:51 PM
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Hi there Trebex,

we will be in Cape Town for 5 days as well, can you recommend a company for a township tour?

Thank you!
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Old Jun 15th, 2015, 01:05 PM
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I wish I could. It was 9 years ago already and I don't remember the name or know if they still exist.
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Old Jun 15th, 2015, 02:05 PM
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I would highly recommend Selwyn Davidowitz as a tour guide. You can look him up on google and then check Trip Advisor. He was recommended to us by this board when we went to Africa and he made the Cape Town trip special. He will take you to all of the above mentioned sites and also to a township that he is personally involved with. This is a rather small township and he knows the people there and helps support the children. He is wonderful.
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Old Jun 15th, 2015, 03:50 PM
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Hi Olia_ok!

Many clients use Siviwe of Cape Town Township Tours. You can look at the website and see his reviews on Trip Advisor.

http://www.townshiptourscapetown.co.za/

Happy to help!

Have a great trip!
Dianne
Africa Direct USA
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Old Jun 15th, 2015, 04:03 PM
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Hi Joanne958!

There are many wonderful suggestions already mentioned. With 3 full days, you could accomplish a lot if you plan your days wisely.

If you are into the outdoors and gardening, the Kirstenbosch Gardens are lovely. As Kawh mentioned, there is a Tree Canopy Walk there that opened just over a year or so ago. Its architecture was inspired by the "boomslang", translated as Tree Snake. So it literally snakes up and down and winds around. Beautiful!

If you are into history, there is certainly Robben Island and District 6 Museum and more!

Do you have any particular interests or things you like to do? It would help to offer more specific ideas.

I recommend you use a private guide for the trip to the Penguins and Cape of Good Hope and it could be very useful to you for other activities as well, depending on what you would like to do. It is not a lot of money and is money well spent -- you really get the full benefit of all their cultural, historical and local knowledge.

Have a wonderful trip!

Best
Dianne
Africa Direct USA
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Old Jun 16th, 2015, 01:32 AM
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<The Victoria and Albert Waterfront is vastly overrated.>> It's a nice area to walk around in the evening and to have a meal. There are several good restaurants to choose from. The V&A Market on the Waterfront is a great place for an inexpensive lunch and you can buy locally made items as souvenirs.
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Old Jun 20th, 2015, 06:29 AM
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Hello All,

Thank you Ladyrep, Diannelovestravel and Trebex!

We booked our Guest house in Camps bay and are very exited for the trip. TICK-TACK 3 weeks left
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Old Jun 20th, 2015, 11:43 PM
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let us know how staying in camps bay works for you... and did you find a place with a sea view??
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Old Jun 24th, 2015, 07:27 PM
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Hello Kawh,
hello All,

Yes, I did! And it is just amazing, i'm keeping it secret from my husband .
We are landing in CPT at 9pm. We will get to the hotel, one way or another, lol, even later..., so i thought it is not worth it to book an expansive hotel for this night... we also wanted to stay at the Waterfront against all odds. The mall is there.. etc. So I booked V&A Hotel for 2 nights (it was on sale and also with an option of free cancellation). So we will be there for 2 first nights or if I can, I will switch it to Radisson Blu, that one was even more on sale, but I missed it thinking Expedia is bluffing, but the price really went up. So when V&A went down next, i booked it .

And Then we will move to A secret Beautiful place in Camps bay for 4 nights before leaving for the Kruger Park!

About landing at 9pm... i'm leaning towards to not to get the car at the airport at that time. It will take time (LLoong), my husband will want to check everything on the car.. i know how it goes. It will be dark, we never drove on the left side, we will be exhausted after two days in transit... so i'm thinking to take a taxi and get to the hotel. Next day we can walk 25 min (i checked) from the hotel to Avis location and pick up the car.

What you think of my plan? Please kindly share.

Thank you so much!
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Old Jun 24th, 2015, 07:47 PM
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Regarding Cape Town's activities. I booked tickets to Robben Island already. We will go on the Table mountain cable car, Franschhoek winery trum, Penguins most definitely, at the Hope point (if i'm not mixing up the location), and the whale watching.
Hopefully there will be enough time.. we still need to enjoy our beautiful ocean front!
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Old Jun 24th, 2015, 09:55 PM
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oliaok...
question... WHERE are you staying?? when it's no longer a secret, please share.

yes, that sounds like a perfect plan. if you don't want to walk to avis, taxis are pretty cheap in c.t.

on your driving to the cape, don't forget to take chapman's peak drive back. they were (are) doing roadword when we were there in may... our driver kept calling to see if it was open for the day yet. maybe plan to drive it later in the afternoon, when construction is done for the day. it's just spectacular!

btw.. we had an amazing meal at the v.& a. waterfront... "meloncino" is an italian restaurant, which we never would have tried, but our b&b owner said it was good and locally owned.... you can see my review on tripadvisor ... they had a truly great house-made ravioli with burrata. memorable, and we've been to italy many times. best of all, they had -and probably still have- a winter special until 6 or 7 pm with entrees and pizza half off. a bargain with a view!!
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Old Jun 25th, 2015, 03:12 PM
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Thanks for so much great advice. More suggestions are welcome
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Old Jun 26th, 2015, 11:02 AM
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Old Jun 27th, 2015, 07:21 PM
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Hi Kawh,

Only because you gave up the Meloncino, i can now disclose the secret - just kidding - the place i've booked is called AZAMARE Guest house. Their website clearly describes and shows their units, INCLuding a virtual tour which i encourage you to see. I booked their Nautilus suit which has a private balcony and a pool - yes, i'm aware it is winter - and i checked, it is not heated. But, hey, the jetlog can be blamed for the swimming, and after all, the suit has a 'Living room' area which comes with an incredible view!
http://www.azamare.com/camps-bay-suites-rooms.shtml
[please note, all other units have shared balconies (with the next unit) ].
Thank you for mentioning the Chapman's peak drive, i looked it up and the pictures are just amazing.
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Old Jun 27th, 2015, 08:06 PM
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Hi Ladyrep,

I contacted Selwyn Davidowitz and he replied apologizing that is gracefully retired after 16 years in businesses. Good For Him!

he recommended Jenny Housdon
http://www.nomvuyos-tours.co.za/index.shtml
but I didn't contact her yet.

Thank you!
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Old Jun 27th, 2015, 08:53 PM
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well... i don't need to tell you that the b&b looks amazing!! i just fell in love with the water and waves and mystery of camps bay and, as i said above, would stay there if i had it to do again. (much as we loved bo kaap) if you need a driver, someone here can surely find you one. we really liked ours... but i only know his name was irshad... and don't remember the company. however, he was booked through gavin at wild wings safari (he booked our entire trip) so if you write to him, he will know his company. we had him for a full day, and a half day... and just loved driving around with him. (he was supposed to tour the town with us by foot on the 2nd day, but we had such a great time being driven the day before, we asked him to drive us to the wine area instead on day 2. have fun!!
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