Virtual Tour 2

THE CAPE TOUR 1

Arderne Gardens

Ralph Arderne established this public park situated on Main Road in Claremont, a residential suburb on the eastern side of the mountain, in 1840. He planted one of the finest collections of trees in Southern Africa here, there are species from all over the world. The gardens are also renowned for azaleas and rhododendrons. The Black River, which runs north towards Table Bay, has its source in a spring in the gardens. There are even many Capetonians that do not know about this little jewel.

SA National Gallery

Art Galleries

Cape Town is home to some of South Africa's finest artists and art consultants, and some outstanding artists teach at the local art schools. The studios and headquarters of about 45 artists, sculptors and designers are housed in the Castle Brewery Building in Woodstock.

The SA National Gallery in the Company Gardens is South Africa's premier art museum, it is the venue for impressive temporary and permanent exhibitions of South African and international art and craft. The Irma Stern Museum in Rosebank is home to a permanent exhibition of Irma Stern's work, as well as her extraordinary collection of art and artifacts from all over the world.

Cape Town has plenty of commercial galleries where the visitor can look, get expert advice, and buy. There is a free Arts & Crafts Map available at galleries, tourism bureaus and selected stores.

Bloubergstrand Beach
View across Table Bay of Cape Town city centre and Table Mountain. Surely one of the most famous and beautiful views in the world. Also popular for its surfing, windsurfing and rubber-ducking, or just for long romantic walks on the beach.

Cape Peninsula National Park
Situated at the south-western tip of Africa, the Cape Peninsula National Park (CPNP) encompasses the incredibly scenic Cape Peninsula mountain chain that stretches 60 km from Signal Hill in the north to Cape Point in the south. This narrow finger of land with its many beautiful valleys, bays and beaches is bound by the cold waters of the Atlantic ocean in the west and the warm waters of False Bay in the east
It has within its boundaries two world-renowned landmarks - the majestic Table Mountain and the legendary Cape of Good Hope - both important beacons for the early explorers. Recognised globally for its extraordinarily rich, diverse and unique flora and fauna, this singular land formation - with its rugged cliffs, steep slopes and sandy flats - is a truly remarkable natural, scenic, historical, cultural and recreational asset locally, nationally and internationally. Nowhere else in the world does an area of such spectacular beauty and such rich biodiversity exist almost entirely within a metropolitan area. South Africa is the only country in the world to have within its borders an entire floral kingdom (only six such kingdoms exist). The Cape Floral Kingdom - of which this park forms an extremely significant part - is recognised as the world’s most prominent "hot-spot" of plant diversity. The Peninsula has more than 2,285 species of plants - more than the entire British Isles (1,492 species) and New Zealand (1,996 species). Of these, 90 are considered endemic. Park administration can be contacted on 713 0260. Check out their website on www.cpnp.co.za

Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve

This is a must for any visitor to Cape Town, the reserve is about 1 hour's drive from the city centre, but it is such a scenic route that one should not rush it. The nature reserve is a nature lover's paradise - there are over 7750ha of unique fynbos vegetation with indigenous antelope, and exquisite and spectacular scenery. Cape Point is not the southernmost tip of Africa, it is however the place where the seas of the Atlantic Ocean and False Bay meet.

The reserve, which is now part of the Cape Peninsula National Park, has several very interesting walks and some lovely picnic spots. There is no public transport to the nature reserve, but tour companies run trips to the reserve on demand, making full use of the numerous scenic drives. The reserve is open to the public during the daytime only. There is a very good restaurant at Cape Point (tel. 780 9200, www.two-oceans.co.za), as well as food kiosks and curio shops. For further information contact the reserve at telephone 780 9100. www.capepoint.co.za

Cape Point

Castle of Good Hope
The first solid stone building in the Cape, it is a treasure house of colonial and military history. The Castle, in the shape of a five-pointed star with walls of stone and earth, was built between 1666 and 1679 on the site of Van Riebeeck's old earthenware fort. The changing of the guards is at noon on weekdays when the noon gun is fired on Signal Hill.

Cavendish Square Shopping Mall

Situated in the middle of the Southern Suburbs, in Claremont, this modern shopping complex is one of South Africa's premier shopping malls, it recently won a prestigious design award at the annual Convention of the International Council of Shopping Centres held in Las Vegas.

Cavendish has a variety of shops, boutiques and restaurants. It also boasts one of the largest CD and video shops in South Africa, and it houses the largest cinema complex in the southern hemisphere. It is also the home of the Cinema Nouveau complex, dedicated to art and foreign films.

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