Cape Town, Table Mountain, Garden Route and Stellenbosch: My Complete Western Cape Guide for 2026
Browse more guides: South Africa travel | Africa destinations Cape Town, Table Mountain, Garden Route and Stellenbosch: My Complete Western Cape Guide for 2026 TL;DR I spent close to three weeks across the Western Cape last whale season and walked away convinced that this corner of South Africa is the single best value scenic trip on the planet right now. The rand is weak against the dollar and rupee, so a glass of award-winning Stellenbosch wine costs less than a bottle of water back home. Cape Town anchors the trip with Table Mountain at 1,086 metres, the cableway that lifts you up in five minutes, and Lion's Head at 669 metres for the sunset hike. Cape Point feels like the end of the world, but the actual southernmost point of Africa is Cape Agulhas, two hours further east. Robben Island, UNESCO-listed in 1999, holds Mandela's cell from his 1964 to 1982 imprisonment. Boulders Beach near Simon's Town has roughly 2,000 to 3,000 African penguins waddling between sunbat...