Use Cape Town as your launching point to explore the base of South Africa. There is much for families to do and see both within the city and its surrounding areas.
When people think of visiting South Africa, safaris come to mind. However, the city of Cape Town is well worth being included on your itinerary. In addition to an exciting urban experience, there are numerous opportunities for day trips from the city.
Cape Town
Cape Town (also known as the Mother City) is the legislative capital of South Africa, located at the base of the country in the Western Cape. For an overview of the city, take a cable car to the top of Table Mountain. More adventurous folks can climb up for their panoramic view.
Once down from the mountain, your visit should include the Government Avenue area to see the Houses of Parliament, Company Gardens and the Great Synagogue. You could spend at least a day at Victoria and Alfred Waterfront (27 21 408-7600), which is full of shops, clubs, eateries and the five-star Table Bay Hotel (866/435-9277). A stroll on the streets of Cape Malay provides a site for sore eyes: the residents, whose ancestors hail from Malaysia, have painted their homes with every color of the rainbow.
Victoria and Alfred Waterfront is also home to the Two Oceans Aquarium (27 21 418-3823), which claims to be “Fresher Than Sushi.” Its over 50 exhibits include a predator tank with sharks, a kelp forest, the typical touch pool, and an interactive microscope display.
The South African Maritime Museum (27/21-405-2880) on the waterfront provides nautical buffs with historical information and artifacts about whaling, shipwrecks, and other aspects of maritime life near the Cape of Good Hope. The more general South African Museum (27 21 481-3800) shows off the country’s natural and social history, with everything from a large collection of giant squid to ceramics, furniture, toys, and weapons. The Planetarium is housed there as well.
Cape Town’s Waterfront & Townships
From Cape Town’s waterfront, you take a ferry 12 kilometers offshore for a tour of Robben Island (27 21 409-5100). I feel that because of the subject matter, this tour is not suitable for younger children, so this is more of an adult and teen excursion. Robben Island was a place of banishment for over 400 years. Its most famous resident was Nelson Mandela, who was held there during the apartheid era. It is gut-wrenching to see the abysmal way in which this man lived for over two decades. The fact that Mandela was still sane at the time of his release made me scratch my head. The tour is conducted by former political prisoners and includes a viewing of the beloved former president’s cell.
Visitors to Cape Town are encouraged to take a trip to the Townships. This tour will be an eye-opener for North American families who by and large have so much more. First, you might go to a visitor’s center to see the arts and crafts produced by the locals, and then you’ll step into the world of the poor and the very poor. Local residents will invite you into their homes; some, owned by the lucky educated ones who stayed in the community, are actually nice, but most homes are only shacks without electricity. So unreal–but unfortunately, it is very real. Amongst all this poverty are children, and believe it or not, they had smiles on their faces and just wanted to hold a foreigner’s hand.
Companies such as African Insight (27 21 426-5359) and Zikho Tours (27 82 687-0409) offer specialized cultural tours, including excursions to the Townships.
Details, Details
Other day trips from Cape Town include a visit to Hout Bay, once a fishing village, now a residential area in stark economic contrast to the Townships. Chapman’s Peak and sandy beaches make for stunning natural scenery in the area. From Hout Bay, you can take a cruise to Seal Island. Make sure to have plenty of film on hand–the seals are there in droves, and you might see a dolphin or two as well.
The 40-kilometer coastline of the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve leads to Cape Point, where you can take The Flying Dutchman Funicular high to the top of the cliffs for the best view. Also at Cape Point, you can see old and new lighthouses, check the over 1,000 species species of indigenous plants and, from June to November, even do some land-based whale-watching.
On your way back to Cape Town, check out the adorable Jackass Penguins at Boulders Beach.
South African Airlines flies from New York to Johannesburg with frequent domestic connections to Cape Town.
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Cute. Made me hungry. Have you gone back since?
WOW ITS REAL BEAUTIFUL..
Much better place in Palawan… like El Nido and Club Noah in taytay
Congratulations on your son's upcoming graduation!
For all the information you'll need to plan a houseswap, please search the familytravelforum.com site for "house swapping" or "home exchanges" and you'll find some recommended services that specialize in this.
Let us know how it goes! thanks
Angela, you can read more about the requirements of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative at this link:
http://www.familytravelforum.com/how/vacation_deals/227-News-Families-Have-Cheaper-WHTI-Options-for-Kids-Land-and-Sea-Borders.html
According to the WHTI website, you are required to obtain parents' permission, and we quote from them:
Groups of Children:
Beginning June 1, 2009, U.S. and Canadian citizen children under age 19 arriving by land or sea from contiguous territory and traveling with a school group, religious group, social or cultural organization, or sports team, may also present an original or copy of his or her birth certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, a Naturalization Certificate, or a Canadian Citizenship Card.
The group should be prepared to present a letter on organizational letterhead with the following information:
* The name of the group and supervising adult,
* A list of the children on the trip, and the primary address, phone number, date of birth, place of birth, and name of at least one parent or legal guardian for each child,
* A written and signed statement of the supervising adult certifying that he or she has obtained parental or legal guardian consent for each participating child.
Thank you for your post. We are looking for a family vacation in France for my son's senior graduation and this sounds just perfect! I've never thought about house swapping or how that is done. Could you please give me more information on how one would go about doing that. I am very interested. I'm glad your family had so much fun.
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This sounds great! I’ve always wanted to go to New Orleans.
Wow, I didn’t know that the disabled were shunned in Jamaica. This was informative and heartwarming!
“I was served a sublime slice of humble pie.” I liked that a lot. You have a bunch of great one-liners in here. Really well written!
Backpacking’ll do it. Great title!
I highly recommend another excelent option to do bike tours in buenos Aires, Buenos Aires City Tours on Bike | Urban Biking.
Thank you very much,
Regards,
Guille
Nepal is good destination for adventure lover. We can announce proudly we have more then 13 highest mountain among the world. Nepal is not famous just for mountain it is famous other adventure activities too. Like river, natural beauty and different culture, society, and many religion too. Nepal have very good destination for trekking, hiking, peak climbing, paragliding, bungee jumping, and other more we offer all above activities at suitable price for you .we would like to be your family member, and Thing positive be positive Nepal will be your's Home and I will be your family member if you choose me .hope see you at my place with your sweat smile.
Sandesh Sharma
http://www.nepalvillagetrek.com
nepalviewtrek@hotmail.com
+9779841397842
Really a fabulous article……………
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I like the bit about the B- movie vampire. Interesting!
Wow. I can’t imagine doing anything like this! Have you climbed more since?
Funny. Cool story!
good afternoon
wowww beautiful… nice place
thanks for sharing this camp, i think i should visit it with my family.
good read, thanks for this article
We have eaten at the restaurant and had drinks at the bar at this Ritz. Both times we left saying they need better customer service. Not up to Ritz standards in our opinion
Would visiting this resort cost me a lot?
Hi, we have been in Athens last summer with our 2 children. It was great!if you are traveling to Athens, there are many attractions for families e.g> Copa copana Park, Allou fun park,Hellenic Cosmos, the cultural center which is a child-oriented museum with exhibition halls, its really great! and many other things for family, try this> http://www.facebook.com/cityofathens?ref=ts,
our senior group from penn estates would like info on a day trip to your facility as we have in the past. please forward info price etc for us to plan and open dates
We love KBH. We have returned many times and are always treated great and have a wonderful time. Price is great too.
This is definitely the wave of the future and will be a demand for traveling business people. I think it has a great design and works well for its intended purpose.
This is devastating. Well-written and insightful, though. Nicely done.
Wow, amazing. It’s interesting that this stuck out in your mind so well even after travelling to so many different locations. Well done!
This IS really good. You have a very captivating writing style; it brought be in at the very beginning. The rose thing was amazing. Well done!
what a joyful clever piece
i can see myself there
i think i dream when i see this beach
but i live in egypt
i love it so much. it's my dream. but now i dont have any money:-(
Please confirm my reservation for Aug 23 in the name of Hansford and Bortels. My question is: is the dining casual as in shorts and sandals? Thank you, and again please confirm my reservation.
Thanks yahoo.
Sounds like fantastic, chaotic fun! Take us along next time!
Hilarious review. I'm not sure I would go but your honest review makes it almost tempting.
This place sounds just great. We had a similarly cultural and fun weekend at Kutscher's in the Catskills and perhaps some of their guests go to the Doral Arrowwood on alternate weekends!
Thanks for sharing what sounds like a great cheap family vacation.
i hope travel to uroup but i am poor i dont have more money ,
Nice article…I appreciate the effort for posting this…
In my experience, babies usually like the sound and smell of someone they miss, and may stop crying.
maybe your partner can make a tape/phone message of their voice, and leave behind some clothes, like pajamas, that they might feed the baby in. Having that to offer the baby might comfort her.
Another option is giving baby something warm and moving, like the feeling of being rocked in someone's arms. our son loved being wrapped in a blanket and held on top of the clothes dryer (turned on low), which moved a bit, made some sounds, and seemed to help him stop crying.
Otherwise, just wait. It is sure to pass.
wah it is v amazing and wonderful resort
Nepal is a very popular destination for trekking and expedition. The range of treks in Nepal varies from a short gentle hike through terraced foothills to lengthy expeditions to Mount Everest’s summit. Depending on your level of fitness, stamina or experience, you’ll find an adventure of your lifetime. The Himalayan regions of Nepal contain some of the best places in the world to go trekking. You can choose from treks like Everest base camp, Annapurna or Langtang to less popular trekking options including Mustang or Kanchenjunga Base Camp.Trekking is the gift of Nepal to the world in adventure tourism. To be one with Nature, to regenerate one's own confidence, to relive oneself, to appreciate Nepal's exquisiteness, to interact with its generous and responsive peoples are some of the places of interest of trekking in Nepal. Trekking is one long-lasting activities that draws reiterate visitors to the country. Consequently, Nepal is the definitive objective for the trekking supporter. for more information log on to nepal travel information website: http://www.nepalvisitors.com
no!!! the best beach in world is boracay!!!! ^_______________-
thanks n v informative
i'like porto saint georgo in italy why not in your list?
Funny. I enjoyed the bit about Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, etc.
This gave a wonderful picture of Dublin in my mind. I went to Ireland eight years ago; his brought me back.
I am also curious: what writing program were you on?