Travelling around the Western Cape in South Africa will let you experience an incredibly large diversity of places, landscape and activities.

I have travelled to many places around the globe and I am keen to explore many more that I do not know yet. But South Africa’s Western Cape has become a special place to me, one I continue to return to and that never stops to amaze and surprise me.

Even though this region covers only a comparingly small part of this vast country, you can easily travel there for weeks discovering many beautiful places and see the amazing flora and fauna.

Table Mountain, Cape TownV+A Waterfront, Cape TownBo Kaap, Cape TownShortmarket Street, Cape Town

From Cape Town

Boulders Beach, Cape TownBoulders Beach, Cape Town

passing by Boulders Beach and its huge penguin colony

Muizenberg Beach, Cape Town

Muizenberg Beach

Noordhoek Beach, Cape Town

and Noordhoek Beach

Cape Point, Western CapeCape Point, Western CapeCape Point, Western Cape

down to the most south-western point of the continent, Cape Point,

Tokara Wine Estate, Western CapeWinelands, Western Cape

the gorgeous Cape Winelands

Stellenbosch, Western CapeStellenbosch, Western Cape

with its beautiful small historic towns like Stellenbosch,

Walker Bay, Garden Route

sandy beaches along the Garden Route such as the amazing Walker Bay,

Plettenberg Bay, Garden Route

Plettenberg Bay

Knysna Lagoon, Garden Route

or the beautiful Knysna Lagoon

Tsitsikamma National Park, Garden Route

along with the lush green vegetation of the Tsitsikamma National Park

Klein KarooKlein Karoo

and the spectacular landscape of the Klein Karoo semi-desert.

 

Lion, Western Cape, South Africa
Elephants, Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa

Apart from the many breathtakingly beautiful locations, experiencing the local wildlife starting with the ‘Big Five’

 

Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Western Cape, South Africa
Monkeyland, The Craigs, Garden Route
Western Cape, South Africa

but also so many other big and small animals from giraffes to zebras, kudu, hippos, monkeys, merkats and many others,

 

Birds of Eden, The Craigs, Garden Route
Birds of Eden, The Craigs, Garden Route

lots of exotic birds

 

Babylonstoren, Western Cape
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town

and also many beautiful plants and flowers is one of the reasons that make the area super special.

As an added bonus, the Western Cape is malaria-free. Therefore, you do not have to worry about protective measures and medication.

Grand Roche, PaarlCellars Hohenort, ConstantiaThe Silo, Cape TownGondwana Game Reserve, Western CapeMadi Madi Camp, Klein Karoo

There is no shortage of luxury accommodation wherever you are in the area either, from the gorgeous historic Cape Dutch manor houses turned 5-star hotels, Cape Town’s modern city hotels, beach hotels and luxury safari camps.

Groot Constantia Winery, Western CapeMeerlust, Western Cape WinelandsDornier Wines, Western CapeBlaauwklippen Vineyards, Western CapeBoschendahl Wine Tasting, Western Cape

With more than 800 wineries, excellent wine (and food) is also plenty and you can keep yourself occupied visiting the beautiful historic or stunningly modern design-led wineries for a long time. To stand out (or simply because the local wine scene is innovative by nature), many wine estates offer unique wine pairing options as well.

If you have not been to this part of the world yet, I hope my photos will inspire you to visit.

In case you have been there, they might bring back of the outstanding experiences you will no doubt have made; and maybe entice you to return)