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Cape Town ATTRACTIONS  click for large image Table Mountain Hike up Table Mountain for an unforgettable view. The cable car is such an obvious and popular attraction you might have difficulty convincing yourself that it's worth the trouble and expense. It is. The views on the way up and from the top of Table Mountain are phenomenal, and there are some good easy walks on the summit. The mountain is home to over 1400 species of flowering plants, which are particularly spectacular in spring. For an adrenalin rush like no other consider doing the abseil. It's also possible to walk up the mountain from both the City Bowl side or the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens side. back to top Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (165 kb)  Take a virtual tour of the V&A Waterfront by selecting a 360° panorama. View across the Victoria Basin - from Table Mountain on the left to the Victoria Wharf Shopping Mall on the right. Always known simply as 'the Waterfront,' this rehabbed area is a buzzing place where pockets of dockside life remain alongside good attractions like the Two Oceans Aquarium and quite a lot of nightlife. Despite all the development, it remains a working harbor and that is the source of most of its charm. Although it's tempting, don't walk between the city and the Waterfront; muggings do happen here. back to top Bo-Kaap Museum This small but engaging museum gives an insight into the lifestyle of a prosperous, 19th-century Cape Muslim family and a somewhat idealized view of Islamic practice in Cape Town. The house itself, built in 1763, is the oldest in the area. Many of the Muslim Bo-Kaap residents are descendants of the slaves imported from the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia (hence the term Cape Malays although few of them actually hailed from what is today called Malaysia). back to top Cape Medical Museum           On the way to the Waterfront from Green Point, the Cape Medical Museum is worth a few minutes. Of particular interest is its display on Dr James Barrie, a woman who kept herself disguised as a man for years so she could practice as a doctor; she performed the colony's first successful Caesarian operation in 1818. back to top Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve Truly awesome scenery, some fantastic walks and deserted beaches, plus the chance to spot rare wildlife is what a visit to the Cape of Good Hope is all about. If you come on one of the many tours that whip into the reserve, now part of the Cape Peninsula National Park, pause long enough at the tourist center for you to walk to Cape Point and back, and then zip out again, you'll not even have seen the half of it. If possible, hire a car and take your time to explore the reserve the way it should be: on foot. If the weather is good - or even if it isn't - you can easily spend at least a day here. It's particularly beautiful in spring, when the wildflowers are in bloom. There are a number of picnic spots as well as a decent restaurant at Cape Point, generally packed with the tour bus crowds. It's not a difficult walk, but if you're feeling lazy a funicular railway runs up from beside the restaurant to the souvenir kiosk next to the old lighthouse. Pick up a map at the entrance gate if you intend to go walking, but bear in mind that there is minimal shade in the park and that the weather can change quickly. back to top Castle of Good Hope Built to defend Cape Town, this stone-walled castle has not seen action in all its 350 years, unless you count the more recent stormings by hoards of school kids and tourists. It's worth coming for one of the tours, although you can quite easily find your own way around. Besides extensive displays of militaria, some interesting ones on the castle's archeology and the reconstruction of the so-called Dolphin Pool, the highlight is the bulk of the William Feur Collection, which includes some fabulous bits of Cape Dutch furniture, such as a table seating 100, and some more paintings by John Thomas Baines. Also within the Castle grounds are a noted wine shop, a cafe and a good restaurant. back to top City Bowl Walking Tour A sightseeing walk around the City Bowl could take the best part of a day, depending on the stops you make. The Castle of Good Hope is an appropriate place to start. Immediately to the west is Grand Parade, the former military parade and public execution ground and now home to a lively market every Wednesday and Saturday. Nearby, the impressive old Town Hall has been superseded by the hideous civic. Other stops might include the District Six Museum, Church Square, Groote Kerk, the Slave Lodge, cobbled Greenmarket Square and the Old Townhouse balcony overlooking the bustling square and a colorful Monday to Saturday crafts and souvenir market. back to top Cultural History Museum & Slave Lodge This rather muddled museum occupies the former Slave Lodge of the VOC and contains displays on that period as well as bits and pieces from ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome and the Far East. It's worth pottering around, particularly for history buffs, and will likely be recast one day as a museum about slavery in the Cape. The Slave Lodge is one of the oldest buildings in South Africa, dating back to 1660. Up until 1811 the building housed as many as 1000 slaves who lived in damp, unsanitary conditions. Up to 20% died each year. The slaves were bought and sold just around the corner on Spin St. From the late 18th century the lodge also doubled up as a brothel, a jail for petty criminals and political exiles from Indonesia and a mental asylum. back to top District Six Museum Get to grips with Cape Town's troubled history, which is summed up movingly at the District Six Museum. The fate of the city's large colored community is fascinating and essential for putting Cape Town fully into context. The museum is as much for the people of the now-vanished District Six as it is about them. Most memorable of all are the staff, practically all displaced residents, each with a heartbreaking story to tell. If you only see one museum in Cape Town, make it this one. back to top Houses of Parliament Arranging a visit here is one of the most fascinating things you can do in Cape Town. If parliament is in session, fix your tour for the afternoon so you can see the politicians in action. Opened in 1885 and enlarged several times since, this is where British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan made his famous 'Wind of Change' speech in 1960. The articulate tour guides will proudly fill you in on the mechanisms and political makeup of their new democracy. back to top Michealis Collection Donated by Sir Max Michaelis in 1914, this Greenmarket Square art collection is in the Old Townhouse, which used to be the city hall. The Dutch and Flemish paintings and etchings from the 16th and 17th centuries (including works by Rembrandt, Frans Hals and Anthony van Dyck) suit the somewhat gloomy atmosphere. Nip upstairs for views from the balcony overlooking the square, or come for lunch or a drink in the relaxed cafe in the back garden. back to top Rust-en-Vreugd This delightful 18th-century mansion was once the home of the state prosecutor. It now houses part of the William Fehr collection of paintings and furniture (the major part is in the Castle of Good Hope). Paintings by John Thomas Baines show early scenes from colonial Cape Town, while the sketches of Alys Fane Trotter are some of the best you'll see of Cape Dutch architecture. There's also a pleasant garden. back to top South African Jewish Museum Entry to this imaginative museum is through the beautifully restored old synagogue, from where a wooden gangplank leads to galleries with displays on the vibrant history of the nation's Jewish community. Downstairs you'll find a partial recreation of a Lithuanian shtetl (village). Don't miss the nearby Cape Town Holocaust Centre and baroque Great Synagogue. back to top South African Museum & Planetarium At the mountain end of the Company's Gardens, South Africa's oldest museum is beginning to show its age. There are, however, plans to upgrade it and the building contains a truly fascinating collection of objects, starting with a fossilized human footprint believed to be 117,000 years old! Next comes the Lynton Panel, one of the most amazing examples of San rock art. There's also a planetarium. back to top South African National Gallery This exquisite gallery in the Company's Gardens always has interesting exhibitions as well as permanent displays; check out the portrait of Desmond Tutu, the remarkable carved teak door in the courtyard, and a dinosaur sculpture made from wire. There's a good shop with some interesting books and a pleasant cafe.   This will give us some idea of what accommodation you are looking for and will aid us in best answering your query. I hope you enjoy our site and best of all enjoy your holiday in Cape Town. Beulah Barber in Cape Town South Africa  +27 21 521 1190 Craig Barber in New Zealand                        +64 (0) 21 2632881 Steven Spencer in Scotland or UK               +44 (0) 7739 107412 DUTCH selfcatering cape town   cape town holiday Self catering accommodation  ! Self catering accommodation! Self catering accommodation ! 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