Cape Peninsula

Jutting out into the ocean on the Western Cape, the Cape Peninsula offers not only a range of unmissable sights but is also a biodiversity hotspot. With Cape Town at its foot, it is easy to get to from the city, and spectacular if you take the Chapman’s Peak Drive, and is a must on any itinerary. Boasting clear waters, pristine beaches and dramatic cliffs, the beauty of the peninsula isn’t just in its nature, you’ll also find plenty of fascinating history and charming towns too.

Cape Point itself is the end of the African continent and the point where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet. Standing here, at the foot of the picturesque lighthouse, with the water crashing below at the foot of hundred-metre-high cliffs, you can look out to see and watch waves that haven’t seen land since Antarctica.   

Boulders Beach is home to a colony of African penguins, who waddle up and down the boulder strewn sand and dive in and out of the turquoise waters. A walkway takes you in and among the penguins as they go about their day, giving you an up-close view – it would be easy to spend hours just watching their comings and goings!

While there is plentiful beauty of note on land, don’t forget to keep one eye on the sea. As well as penguins, there are huge colonies of seals and sea birds to spot and, at the right times of year, whales and sharks out in the deep waters.