Tourism Update selects some of the new and out-of-the-ordinary options for exploring the city.
- Electric cycles
Transport out-of-the-ordinary seems to be all the rage in Cape Town at present. GoNow Bike Tours is offering electric bike tours, or simple rental, by the hour, half-day or full-day. It’s just like riding a bike they say, with a little extra boost, and won’t leave the rider gasping for breath.
- Scooters and skateboarding
Then there’s Scootours’ off-road adventure down Signal Hill into Bo-Kaap as well as down Table Mountain, on Monster Mountain Scooters (non-motorised push bikes propelled by gravity). Or the City Skateboard Tour from City Cycle Tours, a three- to four-hour adventure starting at the Cape Town Stadium and ending in the city centre.
- Racontours
The services of a highly personalised tour operation, Racontours, are now on offer to both in-house and outside guests of the Last Word Constantia Hotel. It is headed up by David Bristow, dubbed the walking enviro-pedia. The service describes itself as specialist guiding collective, using highly qualified experts in their fields. It caters for a variety of interests from walking, flowers, history and culture.
- Kiff Kombi Tours
New on the day tour scene is Kiff Kombi Tours, started by a South African-born Aussie, Drew Campbell. Transport is by kombi and on the itinerary is street art in District Six, the Devil’s Peak Brewing Company, the Bo-Kaap, the Signal Hill viewpoint, cocktails at Hout Bay’s Dunes Beach Restaurant and Bar, the Chapman’s Peak drive and, on Saturdays, the Old Biscuit Mill Neighbourgoods Market.
- Township Art Tours
Street art is also a focus of Township Art Tours, where Juma Mkwela exposes visitors to the vibrant street murals of Woodstock. He has now launched Township Art Tours in Khayelitsha, giving tourists a glimpse into local life, along with the opportunity to participate in creating a home garden, painting a mural or taking a local cooking lesson.
- Royal Enfield tours
Enfield Tours is operating a full-day Peninsula Tour from the aha Harbour Bridge Hotel & Suites near the V&A Waterfront. Participants get their own Royal Enfield motorcycle for the day, with helmet, and head off to Cape Point with a professional guide in service. They lunch at the Black Marlin at Miller’s Point or Bertha’s in Simon’s Town. Cost per rider is R1 200 (€83) and pillion riders pay R600 (€41) each. Fuel is additional. Clients must have a valid motorbike licence.
- Historic Cape Town
Your Africa is employing some drama in its showcasing of Cape Town in 2017. Says Sales and Marketing Director, Suzanne Banadie: “On our Mother City Full-Day Theatrical Tour, guests are guided through Cape Town by a guide dressed as Jan van Riebeeck. They also have the opportunity to meet ‘Bartholomeu Dias’, the renowned Portuguese explorer, during the tour. The tour explores the historic spice and trade routes, Castle of Good Hope, Company Gardens, District Six and other famous attractions, however the theatre provided by our guides, who come alive as historic features prominent in the history of the city, provides an interactive experience for the guests.”
- The foodie scene
The Foodie Thursday Tour from Cape Food and Wine Tours appeals to culinary interests and makes stops at trendy food spots, at the Bo-Kaap and at the Company Gardens’ vegetable and herb garden. Cheesemakers, chocolatiers, charcuterie and craft beer breweries are on the itinerary.
- The Cape Camino
Inspired by the Spanish pilgrimage route Camino de Santiago, the Cape Camino walk stretches from Cape Town’s north to Cape Point in the south, and is divided into seven sections of 20km each. The route hosts sacred buildings and spaces, interesting communities and natural wonders, as well as a diversity of flora, fauna, coastline and mountain landscapes.
10. Family fun
New in the way of family fun is the be.Up indoor park, with maze, climbing walls and trampolines, in Pinelands; the Rush Trampoline Park at Claremont Stadium; and Maze World at Imhoff Farm, with its wildlife conservation and geography themes. The Outdoor Blind-Friendly Park in Bellville caters for children with special needs and includes a rubber-matted area with equipment such as jungle gyms and slides.
