Feel the wind through your hair and drink in the mesmerising beauty of the fast-approaching Cape sunset, your loved one seated beside you, holding you close for love and warmth. This is all part of the City Sightseeing Sunset Bus experience.
After hopping on to the red double-decker bus at the City Sightseeing tour office (stop 1) above the Two Oceans Aquarium at the V&A Waterfront, you’ll find your way through the Cape Town CBD to the sound of the excellent, humorous audio commentary. The chatter of your contented fellow passengers will surround you as you snap a selfie or two with your partner, savouring the sights of the Mother City on a late summer afternoon.
Your destination is Signal Hill; your goal is to catch a gorgeous sunset. The bus will smoothly slip past the stunning Sea Point promenade before finally curling its way around the coastline and entering Camps Bay.
With the vast ocean framing your right-hand side and pristine mansions perched on the Camps Bay and Clifton mountainside on your left, your final destination will begin to loom nearer.
As the bus climbs up Victoria Road and Lion’s Head draws closer, you’ll glance down at the glint of the ocean below and turn in wonder to that special someone by your side.
Finally, you will pass Lion’s Head, which will be starting to fade into shadow, and make your way towards Signal Hill. Below, to your right, you will see the city sprawled out, splendid in the fading afternoon sunshine at the foot of Table Mountain.
Once you approach Signal Hill, you’ll join the traffic of city slickers out to admire the breathtaking views or spend time with friends or loved ones. But you won’t mind the bus taking a few minutes to safely park, because you know what they know: something special is about to happen.
After disembarking, you will find a picnic table or a spot on the lime-green netting used by the paragliders, who launch themselves from Signal Hill daily.
Admire a flock of bold guinea fowl pecking up crumbs, as people unpack their picnics and drinks. You, too, will uncork a bottle of wine or open a fruit juice and tuck into a cheese platter or burger – or you will join those reading a book as you wait for the sunset. After about an hour, all eyes and cameras will be ready to capture the last rays. Pose for a photo with your beloved as the golden hues wash over you, or simply sit back and enjoy the moment, before storing it away in your memory bank.
When temperatures begin to drop, you’ll rush back to the bus, your arm linked with your special someone, and hop back on. As you make your way down twisting Signal Hill road and head back through the city towards the V&A Waterfront, take in the twinkling orange lights. As you do so, you will fall in love with City Sightseeing’s Sunset Bus – if you haven’t already.