We visited South Africa in April/May 2023 for our 5th wedding anniversary and had the best time exploring Cape Town, The Winelands and Kruger National Park! We spent 5 full days in Cape Town, 3.5 days in The Winelands and 2.5 days in Kruger National Park.
Read below for my South Africa itinerary as well as advice/thoughts on what we would’ve done differently.
WHERE TO STAY
● Bantry Bay Suite Hotel (Cape Town): Boutique hotel with ocean and mountain views located in the Sea Point neighborhood *Booked on Hopper
● Marriott Crystal Towers (Cape Town): Located within Century City Shopping Plaza/near airport and offered many amenities including a rooftop pool + mountain views *Booked on Hopper
● Klein Waterval Riverside Lodge (Winelands): Boutique hotel located in Franschhoek with beautiful mountain views and bedrooms and pool overlooking a vineyard *Booked on Hopper
● Kruger Gate Hotel (Kruger National Park): Budget friendly hotel with luxury design and amenities located right outside Kruger National Park. *Booked on Hopper
WHERE TO EAT/DRINK
● Oakberry for acai bowls (Cape Town)
● Zest Restaurant for dinner (Cape Town) *ocean views
● Strolla for drinks / coffee (Cape Town)
● Step Brothers Restaurant for brunch (Cape Town)
● The 41 Restaurant for happy hour lunch/drinks (Cape Town) *beach/ocean views
● Mischu for coffee/breakfast (Cape Town)
● FaithJuiceBar for smoothies (Cape Town)
● Harbourview Restaurant for lunch/drinks (Cape Town/Simon’s Town) *ocean views
● Truth Coffee Roasting for coffee/brunch (Cape Town) *unique atmosphere
● Grand Cafe & Beach for drinks (Cape Town) *beach club/ocean views
● Radisson RED for rooftop drinks (Cape Town) *mountain/ocean views
● Chinchilla for rooftop dinner/drinks (Cape Town/Camps Bay) *beach/ocean views
● The Art of Duplicity for speakeasy drinks/light bites (Cape Town)
● Fable for drinks (cape Town)
● Latitude Cafe for rooftop brunch (Cape Town) *ocean views
● GOLD Restaurant for dinner + entertainment (Cape Town) *African cuisine + dancing
● Jarryds Brunch & Bistro for brunch (Cape Town)
● Carne Grill Room for dinner (Cape Town)
● Tuk Tuk Microbrewery for craft beer/lunch (Winelands/Franschhoek)
● Mont Rochelle for drinks (Winelands/Franschhoek)
● Invincible for dinner (Winelands/Franschhoek)
● Babylonstoren for wine tasting/lunch (Winelands/Franschhoek) *via Hop-on Hop Off Wine Tram
● Plaisir Wine Estate for wine tasting (Winelands/Franschhoek) *via Hop-on Hop Off Wine Tram
● Vrede En Lust Estate for wine tasting (Winelands/Franschhoek) *via Hop-on Hop Off Wine Tram
● Boschendal Wine Farm for wine tasting (Winelands/Franschhoek) *via Hop-on Hop Off Wine Tram
● Cafe Du Vin for brunch (Winelands/Franschhoek)
● French Connection Bistro for dinner (Winelands/Franschhoek)
● Zorgvliet Wine Estate for wine tasting (Winelands/Stellenbosch) *via Electric Bike Vineyard Tour
● Thelema Wine Estate for wine tasting (Winelands/Stellenbosch) *via Electric Bike Vineyard Tour
● SushiBox for lunch (Winelands/Stellenbosch)
● Kruger Gate Hotel for dinner/breakfast/poolside drinks (Kruger National Park)
WHAT TO DO
● Walk along the Sea Point Promenade & boardwalk (Cape Town)
● Swim at Sea Point Pavilion Pool: large public infinity-style pool (Cape Town)
● Hike Lion’s Head – hike on your own for free or take a guided tour with AWOL Tours (Cape Town)
● Visit the many beautiful beaches including Camps Bay, Clifton Beach, Saunder Rock Beach, Muizenberg Beach (Cape Town)
● Take a Full-day Cape Town Tour which includes stops at all major sightseeing destinations including: Cable Car up Table Mountain, Seeing the penguins at Boulders Beach, Driving along Chapman’s Peak, Visiting Muizenberg Beach, Cape Point + Lighthouse, Bo-Kaap and much more! (Cape Town)
● Shop, dine, sightsee in Downtown + V&A Waterfront (Cape Town)
● Shop, dine, sightsee in downtown Franschhoek + Stellenbosch (Winelands)
● Book a wine tasting tour with the Hop-on Hop off Wine Tram (Winelands)
● Visit the Franschhoek Village Market for live music, local artisan and food vendors and cocktail bar (Winelands)
● Book an electric bike vineyard tour + wine tasting with Winelands Guide (Winelands)
● Book a morning, afternoon and/or night safari tour/game drive (Kruger National Park)
ADVICE/THINGS TO NOTE/WHAT WE WOULD’VE DONE DIFFERENTLY
● Compared to the US (especially Boston), everything in South Africa is A LOT cheaper – food at restaurants, hotels, ubers/taxis yet the quality of everything was so much better – food/ingredient quality, more readily available ubers
● South Africa has many power outages (known as load-shedding) almost every day that can sometimes last up to 1-2 hours – most places have generators but if you stay at an Airbnb or small hotel, they may not have a generator. Would make sure to always have electronic devices charged + bring 1-2 portable chargers
● Car Rentals aren’t necessary but helpful if you feel comfortable enough driving on the other side of the road. With the cost of Ubers being so cheap and readily available we found it to be the best options for us. The only place I’d recommend having a car rental is in The Winelands because ubers/taxis were not as available as they were in Cape Town – not a major issue if you give yourself extra time but could be an issue if you are running late/need an uber quickly
● There are no vaccine requirements however we were confused about this + felt pressured to get vaccines from the travel clinic we went to. The most highly recommended vaccine is Malaria but we ended up getting 3 vaccines total: Malaria, Typhoid, Hepatitis A – we regret getting these vaccines because they were very expensive, not required and overall didn’t seem completely necessary.
● We traveled in late April/early May which is end of summer/early fall in South Africa: weather and temperatures kept changing but ended up being 60-70 degrees (very cloudy/some rain) in Cape Town, 70-75 degrees in The Winelands (sunny/clear skies) and 80-90 degrees (sunny/clear skies) in Kruger. Because of this we didn’t get to enjoy the beaches in Cape Town as much as we would’ve liked to. If I could go back again I’d go in either early April or sometime in December (Jan-March can be very hot)
● I wish we spent one less day in The Winelands and one extra day in Kruger. Even though there’s more to do in The Winelands, I personally could (and would love to) watch those animals all day/everyday and I enjoyed the hotter weather the most.
● We heard not many places accept USD however we didn’t see a lot of signage (at restaurants, etc) about not accepting it so not sure if it’s just a known thing. However we did exchange our currency before we left the Cape Town airport. Credit cards are widely accepted.
● Make sure to bring/buy the correct outlet adapter/converter – South Africa’s outlets are different than Europe/UK.
● We felt very safe during our entire trip however we were warned a few times not to go to downtown Cape Town at night. With that being said, we had some dinners in downtown that ended late and one night we almost walked from one bar to the next one because they were near each other and a couple of minutes into our walk we decided to get an uber because it seemed eerie – dark quiet streets with people huddled in one small area.
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