In 2017 Cape Town was included in Unesco’s Cities of Design network along with places like Bilbao, Singapore and Helsinki to name a few. It’s no wonder. Long touted as one of the world’s most beautiful destinations, Cape Town is a city to inspire.
Located at the base of majestic Table Mountain where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet*, Cape Town has a sprawling population that wraps around the entire Cape Point peninsula. There are many diverse and interesting communities that comprise the municipality of Cape Town with breathtaking scenery that incorporates white sandy beaches, boulders sculpted by centuries of rough seas and ancient rocky outcroppings. It all fosters the creative spirit here.
Cape Town is a must visit location for your holiday. You won’t be disappointed as Cape Town has so much to offer. It’s a world class city and feels very European, although the cultural components of Southern Africa are everywhere for you to soak it in.
In our week long visit, we could only make a small dent in seeing all the creators and amazing artisans that call this area home. We spent many hours in the car zigzagging around the Cape Peninsula trying to soak it all in. For now, here are a few of our favourites:
Kalk Bay Modern – Kalk Bay
This gallery/ gift shop/ fine art framer could easily be missed if you weren’t paying attention. It is located on the M4 Main Road that winds its way along the eastern coast of the Cape in the small fishing enclave of Kalk Bay. You’ll find the gallery on the 2nd floor of the Olympia Building above the Olympia Cafe and Bakery (also a great lunch stop).
Heading up the staircase to Kalk Bay Modern, there were beautiful textile collages lining the walls by Yda Walt. Yda’s pieces are gorgeous and charming. Based in Johannesburg, her work evokes the street life of the city. In addition to her artworks, she also constructs pillows and linens.
Inside the Gallery you’ll find a vast collection of well curated pieces from designers and artists hailing from across Southern Africa; including traditional carvings, ceramics and jewelry along with an excellent selection of contemporary art (sculpture, photography and canvases). Kalk Bay Modern is a feast for the senses.
KBM’s collection of San (Bushman) art is the largest in South Africa. The San are the aboriginal people of Southern Africa and their genetics have been dated at over a million years old. It is believed that they carry the oldest genetic stock in existence. With a very small population, The San are now dispersed across the region and trying to keep their traditional art alive is paramount. Artists pull from their hunter/ gatherer heritage and San art is inspired by the cave drawings of their ancient ancestors. It re-interprets their history and mythology that has been handed down through the generations. Gallery director Cheryl Rumbak has been running workshops to help the San people re-discover and preserve their artistic heritage by carrying on this millennia-old tradition before it is lost to history.
The contemporary art collection at Kalk Bay Modern is also vast. It is quite fun to explore their stacks of canvases in the back room searching for incredible treasures. We were particularly smitten with several pieces painted by the Zimbabwean artist, Patrick Makumbe as well as paintings by local Cape Townians, Ben Coutividis and Cathy Layzell. Don’t miss the wonderful collection of numbered etchings and engravings by world-renowned South African artist William Kentridge (who recently featured in a solo show at The Broad in Los Angeles in early 2023).
Be sure to allow a good hour or so for your visit here. It’s easy to get lost among all the amazing pieces. The good news is that Gallery Manager, Lacely is an excellent steward to guide you through the collection.
Mungo – Downtown & Constantia
While technically their main studio is located in Plettenberg Bay (about a 6 hour drive east of Cape Town along the legendary Garden Route), we were grateful to be able to visit one of Mungo‘s two Cape Town area stores. One is located in High Constantia, Cape Town’s oldest wine making community and one is located downtown on Hout Street. Johannesburg also has a shop. Luckily they have a robust webstore and International fans can easily order online and have items shipped.
Mungo is the first Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified weaving mill in South Africa and creates the most beautiful cotton fabrics which are turned into bedding, towels, kitchen linens and blankets. We particularly love their Boma Cloth line and have several sets of their napkins and dish towels which are 100% organic cotton. They seem to get softer and more durable with every wash.
A stop at the downtown Cape Town shop offers a hands-on look at their product line as well as a glimpse at their weaving process in action with two looms located in the ground floor showroom.
Merchants on Long – Downtown & V&A Waterfront
Merchants on Long is hailed as the Home of African Fashion. And rightfully so, offering a variety of African designers (fashion and lifestyle), Merchants delivers a very well curated product line that supports the local design ecosystem.
For treasures for the home they carry a selection of luxe African textiles by Ardmore, whimsical animal wall hooks carved by People of the Sun and eclectic designs by local Cape Town ceramicist Jan Ernst. They also offer a selection of candles, jewelry and leathergoods. I picked up a sweet beaded bracelet by Sidai, a collective of Maasai women artisans from Tanzania.
They have two locations and a webstore. The main location is at 34 Long Street in the Cape Town City Centre. The second, smaller location is situated in the V&A Waterfront shopping mall. If you’re making the time to visit Merchants, the Long Street shop will offer a wider selection.
AAFRICAA
Aafricaa is a self described emporium of African design. Located in the Alfred Mall area of the V&A Waterfront, this is a concept store that is impeccably curated with the most well known local, South African brands. In addition to a very cool clothing selection this is a great place to source beautiful baskets, impeccable beadwork and great textiles including Kikoi. Originally found in Swahili culture, the Kikoi is a piece of colourful woven fabric that is worn similarly as a sarong. Often seen on men, the Maasai have also adopted the kikoi and wear it as a wrap for warmth. Kikoi also make a lovely light blanket, beach towel, scarf or sarong.
This is a great place to pick up souvenirs to bring home. There is a vast selection of smaller items that will travel well including beaded keychains, locally made scented candles and stunning carved wooden candlesticks.
Where to Stay
The Silo Hotel – located at the V&A Waterfront, the Silo is one of the newer hotels in town and offers and fantastic, walkable location. Additionally, the hotel is home to MOCAA the world’s largest Contemporary African Art museum.
The Dorp Hotel – a decidely off the beaten path, but eclectic choice if you’re not into the 5 star experience and crave something more unusual and experiential.
The Marly – with a prime location across from the massive beach at Camps Bay, The Marly will offer a more tropical vacation vibe. With plenty of restaurants just outside the door and the world class Camps Bay beach at your feet, this spot will charm you even before you have a chance to experience the epic sunsets.
Where to Eat
Bilboa – don’t let the name fool you, this place is definitely more Middle Eastern/ Mediterranean than Spanish tapas. But it is delicious and the location above Camps Bay beach cannot be beat. Try and make it here to view the spectacular sunset.
Mojo Market – this spot in Seapoint offers 30 different food vendors as well as a collection of bars, live music and lots of entertainment. A great spot to accommodate various tastes.
Bistro Sixteen82 – named for the year of the founding of Steenberg Winery where the restaurant is located in the leafy enclave of Constantia. The food here is impeccable, delicious and plentiful. We also enjoyed a bottle of Steenberg’s delicious sparkling sauvignon blanc. The design of the dining room is quite modern for a winery with such a longstanding heritage and we particularly enjoyed the sculptures throughout their garden.
What to Else to See & Do
- Hike up Table Mountain
- Visit the penguin colony at Boulders Beach
- Spend a day soaking up the sun at Muizenberg, Clifton or Camps Bay beaches
- Surf at Kommetjie or Muizenberg beaches (Muizenberg Surf Emporium offers surf lessons and gear rentals)
- Take a walking tour of the colourful Bo-Kaap neighbourhood
- Wine tasting in Stellenbosch or Constantia
- Take a ride along Chapman’s Peak Drive
- Check out The Watershed Market – be sure to check out our review of the market here
- Take the ferry to Robben Island to visit the prison where Nelson Mandela served his sentence for his role in protesting Apartheid
- Hike to the end of Cape Point to see the Cape of Good Hope and see some wildlife like baboons and zebra
A Note of Caution
While Cape Town is seemingly less violent/ dangerous than Johannesburg for tourists, make sure to use common sense to keep you and your belongings safe. Don’t wear flashy jewelry or clothing. Lock valuables such as passports and electronics in your hotel safe. Never leave anything of value in your rental car. Take care with handbags and backpacks, don’t leave them unattended or hanging off the back of your chair (I always keep mine on my lap). Limit time outdoors after dark. We didn’t venture onto the local transit, but we did use Ubers often with no problems. Basically you take the same sort of safety measures as you would in any large city.
Cape Town, like the rest of South Africa struggles with frequent load-shedding (power outages). Check with your accommodation to see if they have a generator or batteries/ inverter to help avoid the inconvenience of the power outages. Most restaurants have generators and service goes un-interrupted. These outages are generally planned, so you can follow the area you’re in on the Eskom Loadshedding app.
*Note: while for many years we were taught that the Cape of Good Hope is where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet, in fact the actual dividing line and true Southern most point of Africa is Cape Arghulas around 3 hours east of Cape Point.
