See city sights from your hotel in Cape Town

History buffs will revel in the opportunity to explore South Africa’s Mother City, Cape Town, with its iconic Table Mountain that is recognised around the world.

Staying at a hotel in Cape Town like the Southern Sun Cape Sun is highly recommended. It offers splendid views of Table Bay, where Jan van Riebeeck anchored at the foot of Table Mountain in 1652, Robben Island, which served as a place of imprisonment, banishment and exile for three centuries, as well as the Cape Town Stadium, which was constructed for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. 

From this luxury hotel in Cape Town, guests can walk or taxi to the V&A Waterfront to catch a ferry from Nelson Mandela Gateway to the island, which is now a World Heritage Site. It previously served as a training and defence centre during World War II, a hospital, and animal quarantine area, before being used to incarcerate political prisoners during South Africa’s apartheid era. In 1997, a museum was established there in order for visitors to absorb some of the country’s heritage on their island tour.

Another hotel in Cape Town in close proximity to these attractions is the Southern Sun The Cullinan. On big football match days or when large concerts are staged at Cape Town Stadium, you can walk from the hotel in Cape Town onto the Fan Walk and soak up the atmosphere generated by the excited crowds. Somerset Road is closed to traffic during these events to facilitate the Fan Walk experience.

These hotels in Cape Town are centrally situated for the exploration of city sights, whether it’s the Gold of Africa Museum, the Bo Kaap Museum or the Iziko South African Museum near the Company’s Garden – the first garden to be established in this part of the world.

En route, a visit to the City Hall is a must. The large Edwardian building dates back to 1905 and is phenomenally intact in terms of its original condition. The beautiful state rooms and auditorium have been the venue for many ceremonial and historical occasions. Its musical tradition dates back to the 1904 commission of a 3 308-pipe grand organ by Norman and Beard of London and Norwich. Purchased for ₤4 600, its replacement value today would be around R12 million. 

In line with proposed renovations, it is hoped that the magnificent structure will find vitality again as a cultural centre.