Apologies for being away for a long time! I had a hectic busy week.
One of the challenging sightseeing activites in Cape Town for me was a trip to the Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. When I looked up online, I was only able to find out information about the guided tours that started from 500 Rand. An alternative option was to do self-driving. The problem was - and I am telling you guys for the first time- I don't have a driver's license. Luckily, I have friends who do (as pragmatic as it sounds). So, we decided to rent a car.
How to rent a car in Cape Town?
Manual cars start from 350 Rands per day while the automatic ones can rise up to 500-600 Rands per day. In addition to that, most rental companies will require a deposit of around 3000 Rands that would be returned to you if the car is unharmed and in one piece.
There are cheap rental companies, although they will only accept purchasing of three days and longer. In that case, you can go long distances by paying 150-200 per day.
Our Route
Basically, our route was as follows: Chapman's Peak- Noordhoek- Kommetjie - Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope- Simon's Town. Here is the map
Chapman's Peak
It is highly regarded as one of the most scenic drives in the world.
It was first discovered in the 17th century by John Chapman, the captain of a British ship. Source. When I first came to the Hout Bay, I had a chance to walk some of it but saw a lot people jogging and cycling.
The construction and the enginnering of the road was really hassling since there were frequent landslides until the year 2009.
Noordhoek
After absorbing every inch of Chapman's Peak, our next stop was Noordhoek. Noordhoek is the widest beach of Cape Town on the Atlantic Coast.
The captain who discovered Chapman's Peak actually mistook the place for Cape of Good Hope so approached the coast, however the ship ran aground. In fact, the shipwreck still lies out in the open of the Noordhoek Beach. Source
The most prevalent activity to do here is to ride a horse, although we didn't have time for that.
I also heard that this is a popular weekend getaway place for Capetownians, including some celebrities.
Kommetjie
The next is Kommetjie to the south of Noordhoek. This is known as one of the best surf spots of Cape Town. It's also known for the abundance of a lobster type called the Spiny Lobster. Just like Noordhoek, Kommetjie is also known as a weekend getaway spot.
Cape Point & Cape of Good Hope
Now we are at the southern-most point of the Cape Peninsula, at the entrance of the Cape Point National Park. We first had to pay the entrance fee of 135 ZAR per person. The officer told us that we had until the sunset to leave the park, otherwise we would have to pay a penalty fee. Then, he handed us a map of the sightseeing in the park. Cape Point National Park is not all about Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope. In fact, there is a diversity of attractions from hiking to whale and bird watching.
We first decided to stop by Cape Point. I could notice the baboons with the bank clerk-ish kind of grumpy looks on their faces. I wish I could say "don't be fooled by these looks, they are so friendly", but that's not the case. I watched a video on Youtube where one baboon literally opens the door of an unlocked car and reaches for the purse of a woman before running away. It's not because they are trained by professional thiefs or anything, but they have been aggressive upon spotting food ever since being fed by humans. So, don't try to feed them or don't flash your food in front of them.
It took us about 10 minutes to reach the Cape Point. The amount of wind I was exposed to on that day was greater than the total amount experienced in my entire life! It was the strong currents and wind that caused a lot of wrecks. The lighthouse was built to make the place more visible and to prevent future accidents.
Cape of Good Hope is 5 minutes driving distance from Cape Point. This is often confused for the southernmost tip of Africa and the merging point of Indian and Atlantic Ocean. However, it's not Cape Point, it is Cape Agulhas 4 hours away from Cape Town along the southern coast.
Cape Point was discovered by Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias. It was then used as the ultimalte trade route between Europe and Asia up until the constuction of the Suez Canal.
We tried really hard to take a picture of the sign without the annoying tourists (because I wasn't one of them).
We also spotted a lot of ostriches here. Did you know that ostrich is the only animal whose eyes are bigger than their brain. Source
As I mentioned before, Cape Point has a lot of attractions, but we unfortunately have to move on because we still have to visit Simon's Town.
Simon's Town
So, we headed towards the north east of the Cape Peninsula towards Simon's Town. Even the least knowledgable about Cape Town would know that this place is famous for the African penguins. These penguins generaly accumulated in the area called Boulder's Beach, but also found in various spots throughout South Africa and Namibia. They are becoming extinct, so they are under protection. That's why, you can't cross to the site of penguins while at the main Boulder's Beach. Although there are small beaches around that contain fewer penguins where you can swim amongst them.
Costs
Since we were four people:
Car Rental: 400/4=100 Rand
Fuel: 250/4= 62.5 Rand (you can calculate the total distance using the route planner of Google Maps)
Entry to the Cape Point National Park: 135 Rand
Boulder's Beach entrance = 70 Rand
Adding in the small expenses such as coffee and snacks, the total amount per person throughout the day was 400 Rand. For a cheaper price; not only did we save at least 100 ZAR per person, but we also constructed a more flexible schedule and got to stop at multiple destinations.
I will try to not leave a wide gap between my posts, I hope you find this article helpful though. Don't forget to drop me a comment ;)
Cheers;
Haritakurdu