Cape Town, South Africa
Fred and I traveled to South Africa back in November and I am so excited to finally share the details of our trip with you! This post will be dedicated specifically to our time in Cape Town, followed by 2 additional posts to recap our time in the Cape Winelands (Stellenbosch & Franschhoek) and lastly, our incredible 5 days on safari.
We flew from Miami to London, and then on to Cape Town via British Airways. When we arrived to the Cape Town airport, we grabbed an Uber & made our way to our hotel - The AC Hotel Cape Town Waterfront.
This location was perfect as we were within walking distance to the V&A Waterfront restaurants & shops nearby. Our hotel also provided a complimentary shuttle which we utilized during our stay.
As always, we also vlogged during our trip so make sure to check out my Youtube channel here for the video about our time in Cape Town and if you’re not already, please subscribe to my channel.
One place we frequented was the Time Out Market. It was a food hall that featured a variety of different cuisines including local Cape Malay flavors as well as Italian, Japanese & even Greek stalls. In fact, it was our first meal in Cape Town. I was quite excited to try my first authentic South African dish called “Bobotie”. It was so flavorful & comforting - described as sweet curried beef mince in egg custard, topped with a chickpea shard, homemade chutney & toasted coconut, which I found to be delicious.
Later that evening, Fred and I met up with one of his old neighbors from his childhood who now lives in Cape Town. She recommended a restaurant called Marble and we were quite impressed! Not only was the decor stunning, but the ambiance & food were also exceptional.
Before the start of our trip, I made a note on my phone listing the foods I wanted to try during our time in South Africa. The list included:
Bobotie
Biltong
Droewors
Beskuit
Springbok
Ostrich
Kudu
I saw that the menu included Springbok carpaccio as an appetizer so we ordered that to start. The meat was tender and flavorful, and I was excited that we were able to check off 2 dishes from my list of foods on our very first day!
The next morning Fred and I spontaneously booked a helicopter ride to get some amazing views of Cape Town. We were truly WOW’d by this experience. Although it was only a 12 minute ride, we saw so much and captured some incredible photos! This was the first time either of us had been on a helicopter but I can for certain say it won’t be our last.
I often get asked what Fred & I use to film our Youtube vlogs & also take our high quality photos for my blog. We mostly use our phones (iPhone 16 pro max & iPhone 17 pro) and shoot video in 4K. I have also linked the gimbal we use to ensure we have smooth video footage as well as the microphone & also our Sony camera and the 2 lenses we used for this trip. You can click on the photo above to get the direct links to our equipment.
After our exhilarating helicopter ride, we ventured over to the Sea Point neighborhood because I found a matcha place I wanted to try called “Nice to Matcha”. The lovely lady working at the cashier recommend their most popular drink - the Vanilla Bean & Sea Salt and it was 10/10! I love that they use ceremonial grade matcha, it truly makes all the difference in quality and taste!
The views walking next to the ocean were spectacular - so much so that we somehow managed to walk almost 3 miles to the Camps Bay neighborhood and stopped for lunch at a place called “Codfather”. The concept of this restaurant was quite unique. The chef comes to your table, invites you over to the display counter where he shows you each type of fresh fish & seafood they have on that day, then you get to decide what you want & how much, then it will be prepared to order.
Fred & I opted for some fresh oysters that paired perfectly with a glass of local MCC, which quick;y became my favorite South African wine. MCC stands for Méthode Cap Classique, and follows the traditional bottle fermentation method, which is the same as Champagne produced in France. I found the flavors of the different MCC’s I tried to be just as good as some of the best champagnes on the market, but for a much lower price!
We also loved that the restaurant had spectacular views of Lions Head from our table.
That evening for dinner, we found ourselves back at the Time Out Market. Fred and I both had bao buns and they were delicious! After dinner we strolled over to La Parada to grab a drink. Fred said his spicy mango margarita was the best cocktail he had the entirety of our time in Cape Town.
The next day began bright & early with a short drive over to Table Mountain to catch the cable car to the top. We originally bought the regular ticket, but once we arrived (just as it opened) and saw the line was already incredibly long, we decided to pay to upgrade our ticket to the fast track line. It made all the difference, as we were able to get on the cable car within 20 minutes versus the 4+ hours we would’ve had to wait in the regular ticket line.
I also wanted to mention that Fred and I were not solo on this trip as my best friend, Sadie and her husband, Nolan joined us. It was so exciting to travel to a new country with them and we are so grateful for the amazing memories that were made throughout our time in South Africa together.
I was able to get.a reservation at the super cool rooftop bar at The Silo Hotel so right after our cable car adventure, we went there to grab a drink & some snacks. Sadie and I saw a few months prior to our trip that THE Simone Biles & her husband stayed at this hotel during their honeymoon in South Africa, so we wanted to check it out for ourselves. The ambiance was laid back, the cocktails were delicious and they even had 2 more things from my food list that I was able to try - Biltong & Droëwors. They are both dried meats (most similar to beef jerky in the US) but have different textures & shapes.
The next day began with taking the ferry over to Robben Island. It was about a 30 minute ride but because of the wind that day the seas were quite rough!
Fred and I were very glad we decided to take this tour as Robben Island is the home to the prison where Nelson Mandela was held for 18 years. The tour began on a bus with a local guide and then continued on foot where we were lead by a former prisoner. It was very eye-opening to see that these men were imprisoned for simply opposing the apartheid laws in South Africa.
Although our tour guide, Derrick, did not want videos of his story to be taken, he did allow a few photos. At the end of the tour he led us to the actual prison cell where Nelson Mandela was held.
Once the tour concluded, we returned to Cape Town via the ferry and met back up with Sadie & Nolan to grab some lunch at one of the restaurants we had been eyeing at the V&A Waterfront - Life Grand Cafe
Pictured above is Fred’s lunch order - Ostrich. It was one of the few foods left on our list of things to try and it was pretty good - although he ordered it, I did try a bite to say I’ve had ostrich.
Our final day in Cape Town started bright & early at 7AM. We finally got to try a coffee shop I had saved for months called Truth Coffee and it 100% lived up to the hype. Not only was my coffee delicious & perfectly prepared, the guys working there were so kind & had impressive latte art skills.
After we got our caffeine fix it was time to hit the road for our journey down to Boulder’s Beach.
I have to say, I think we saved the best for last because our final day was so packed with amazing views & once in a lifetime adventures.
We arrived at the entrance for Boulder’s Beach, paid our National Park fee and then it was off to the races to see if we could find the cutest animals this beach is famous for - African penguins! I know what you’re thinking… wait there is penguins in Africa? Yes, Boulders Beach is home to a unique and endangered land-based colony of African Penguins.
It was absolutely incredible to see these adorable animals up close & personal. I would like to emphasize that for the sake of their existence, it is VERY important not to touch them. We were able to get within a few feet of the penguins as they are used to humans and not phased by our presence, but touching them at all can harm their health or even lead to stress or injury.
We spent about 1 1/2 hours at Boulders Beach before making our way down to the Cape of Good Hope.
The drive there was quite scenic and we even saw some baboons at the entrance of the park. We also had to pay an entrance fee to see the Cape of Good Hope since it is also within the Table Mountain National Park.
Once we got to the end of the road where the famous “Cape of Good Hope” sign is located, it became quite crowded with lots of buses and other cars filled with tourists there for the same reason as us, to take a photo at the Southwestern most point of the African Continent. We stayed just long enough for a few photos & videos for our vlog, then made the drive back to the exit.
On our drive back, we came across a group of seals & also a massive whale bone. One of the best parts of renting a car for this portion of the trip was that we could be on our own schedule. Whenever we wanted to stop to see something or take a few photos, we could spend as much or little time as we wanted at each site.
For lunch, we stopped at a restaurant called Jake’s. The food & drinks there were delicious & just the pick me up we needed before our next adventure.
If you have never heard of Chapman’s Peak Drive, neither had we until we began doing some research for our trip to South Africa. Let me tell you, until this point we thought the most scenic drive we had ever done was on the Amalfi Coast in Italy, but I can confidently say that this drive is just as, if not, even more beautiful and picturesque. Parts of it truly look unreal.
Directly from their website:
Chapman’s Peak Drive toll road winds its way between Noordhoek and Hout Bay on the Atlantic Coast on the south-western tip of South Africa. Chapman’s Peak Drive is one of the most spectacular marine drives in the world.
Also, I would like to note that we also were unaware until our lunch at Jake’s after our waitress informed us that the road is not always open. We were just lucky enough that Jake’s is located right outside the entrance to Chapman’s Peak Drive and were finished eating just as the toll road was about to open, so we were one of the very first cars to begin the drive. It was nice that there are several places to pull over and take photos along the way. The last photo I posted with Fred & I truly looks like a green screen because of how beautiful the landscape is behind us. We were in constant awe the entire drive.
One area I wish we had spent more time while in Cape Town was Camps Bay. There are so many cute restaurants and bars that overlook the ocean here so we stopped by “Surf Shack” to have a drink before heading to our last dinner. Not only were the views great, but we also met the Manager who happened to be Kenyan, so of course he & Fred chatted for a bit.
Our final dinner was at the famous GOLD restaurant. It is a truly immersive dining experience like no other in Cape Town. They serve a 13-course menu served family style, which highlights different dishes from all over Africa. From Namibia to Egypt and of course a few Cape Malay dishes as well, you truly get to enjoy a full culinary experience. They also have a few different shows throughout dinner and even had a woman that offers face painting, which of course Sadie and I participated in.
To end the dinner, everyone is served ice cream with a cookie shaped in the African continent. We also may have told our waitress that we were celebrating the guys’ birthdays, so she brought them a complimentary shot of Amarula and they even sang happy birthday to them!
I know this was a quite lengthy post, but I hope you have enjoyed reading about our time in Cape Town. We absolutely loved our visit here. Fred and I have already said we can’t wait to go back to this vibrant, picturesque city in the future.
Also, make sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel where our vlogs about this trip will be posted.
