Walking Tours

Join us for a historical overview of Cape Town. Learn about the indigenous Khoikhoi people and their lifestyle prior to colonisation, and how the Cape of Good Hope came about — from the first Europeans to reach our shores, through the first and second Dutch periods, the first and second British periods, the Apartheid era, and finally the New South Africa.

• See how the naturally available rock was used in the construction of buildings and other features
• Cape Town was the first city in Southern Africa — the first government, hospital, church, police station, fire station, banks, cathedral and jail buildings in the sub-continent
• The Flower Market and how it came about
• The ruins of the oldest structure built by Europeans in Southern Africa, and artefacts unearthed during the construction of modern buildings
• British influence in the streets — including where Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 21st birthday
• The Castle of Good Hope, the oldest building still in use in Southern Africa, almost 400 years old
• The dark side of the Cape Colony and of South Africa — slavery and apartheid — and how these practices impacted the Khoisan and mixed-race people of the region
• The influence of leaders like Nelson Mandela in the birth of the New South Africa

The Bo-Kaap Walking Tour is one of those bucket-list must-dos when visiting Cape Town — a photographer's paradise where you can admire the friendly locals casually going about their daily routines. The tour takes us into a largely Muslim quarter of the city, the oldest residential area in Southern Africa, rich in culture from Africa, the south-east Asian islands of the Indian Ocean, Europe and the Middle East.

• See the colourful houses
• Smell the aromas of the spices and home cooking
• Feel the peaceful yet vibrant community lifestyle
• Hear the call to prayer from the various mosques, the Noon Gun on Signal Hill, or a fish horn echoing in the distance
• Taste the Cape Malay cuisine that originates from the Bo-Kaap
• Visit places of worship, including the oldest Mosque in Southern Africa, and learn how slaves introduced Islam to the Cape

A walk to learn about the details certain sectors would rather not have on record in our history books — from the onslaught inflicted on the indigenous Khoikhoi people from as early as 1487, through the system of slavery in the Cape Colony, the unique oppression suffered by the Bantu people who migrated from Central Africa, and the systematic segregation of the apartheid era.

• The resistance movement — armed struggle, boycotts, sanctions and exile
• How these practices impacted the mixed-race people of the region
• The influence of leaders like Nelson Mandela in achieving the birth of the New South Africa

The Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens is a natural wonder situated adjacent to the Table Mountain National Park. Evidence found here supports the fact that the area was inhabited by Stone Age man more than 2000 years before Europeans first discovered this land, and the area was also part of the Khoikhoi's pastoral land before the Dutch East India Company set up a refreshment station at the Cape.

• Indigenous vegetation, trees, flowers and fresh floral displays
• The Dinosaur and Cycad Garden and prehistoric fossils
• The Braille Trail, desert display and conservatory
• A baobab tree, bonsais and the Nelson Mandela display
• Sculptures and other art displays, and an elevated bridge walkway with beautiful views
• Natural water springs and birdlife

A walking tour of the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, touching on the old as well as the new installations of the biggest tourist attraction on the African continent. From the history of the Khoikhoi, to Table Mountain, Table Bay, the working Victoria and Alfred harbours and the large Duncan Dock, you'll get a sense of how important the port and its marine connections have been in the development of Cape Town.

• What there is to "must do", plus good restaurants and child-friendly attractions

Your guide will take you back in time and talk about how Robben Island was named, and how the island has played an important part in the history and development of the Cape of Good Hope. A family member of the guide is actually a surviving political prisoner from the apartheid era — he served many years on the island, his cell right next door to Nelson Mandela's.

• A "must do" for anyone planning the trip across Table Bay to visit the island — giving you a good background and a better understanding of the experience
• A good way to learn about Robben Island if the weather is too bad for the passage, or the ferry trip is out of commission

A memorable visit to old jail cells, a swimming pool, guard houses, cannons, old games from the period of the first Dutch occupation, the Cape Malay museum, the Torture Chamber, Nelson Mandela's diaries and letters, audio-visual displays, and the history of the Armed Struggle, apartheid and uprisings.

• A very good educational travel through time