When recently looking at my Facebook page and reading through my different group messages I’ve noticed that when people look at coming to Cape Town they tend to stick to the city and all the usual tourist attractions.
I’m here to tell you there is so much more. Hidden gems around every corner, and local is so exciting!
Go and explore.
The city centre, filled with special places and things to do is a must see. If we go on a city tour, I’m glad to show them all and share them with you. From vibrant and aromatic coffee bars to quaint little bakery’s, cape Malay kitchens where you can cook your own curry dish while getting a Bo-Kaap Tour and history lesson, painting your own cup, plate, vase, etc in a pottery bar. Sitting in a beach club sipping your cocktail, to walking small boutique style streets with little markets and terraces.
Cape town has it all, but there is a whole world just outside the city. Go and explore.
1 hour in each direction.
From the east side to the west side, you can explore wine farms, wildlife, nature reserves, adventure, art gardens and local markets. Places like Gordons Bay, Somerset West, Elgin and Grabouw. But also, the very well-known once have yet to be discovered hidden gems, like Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl. Having lived in Somerset West we’ve discovered and experienced almost everything with people from all different ages and backgrounds, and everybody loved it.
The beautiful rural and unknown West Coast.
Living in Somerset West was nice, but the big city is always so busy. So recently we have decided to move to the West Coast, only 45 min out of Cape Town. And let me tell you it is a life changing place, small little towns surrounded by fields and nature as far as the eye can see does something to you. It is like lying down on a cloud, on a bed of feathers completely at peace and at rest. Away from all the buzzing and humming of the big city you can reconnect with what’s important, that is what the small towns on the West Coast will do to you.
So much to do.
In all this peace and quiet you would think there is no excitement, nothing to do or to see. Boy are you mistaken! We have moved to Darling on the West coast near Yzerfontein with the most beautiful 16 mile long beach. These little communities are hidden gems and packed with the best local products that you will find in any big store in the city. Now local gets interesting and real, you get to see and feel the community behind the product on the shelves, a lot of them award winning. In Darling and Yzerfontein alone there is Darling milk and dairy factory, the Darling olive farm, Darling brewery, Darling Sweets factory, the wine Estates, Ormonde, Groote post, Cloof, Darling Cellars, and Contreberg. There is Wright’s gin, Yzerbrew, and the Rosemead Artisan bakery. Then there is the history behind it with the Darling Museum and !khwa ttu the San people museum and nature reserve bringing you back to the very roots of South Africa. Adventure for all ages, surfing, kite surfing, kayaking, sailing, lots of hiking and mountain bike trails by Living Colours and Horse riding in the nature reserve and on the beach by Blombosch venue.
So nice to stay.
If I got you excited, and curious, which I hope I did then go and google accommodations in Darling and Yzerfontein. Again, you will be blown away about what these towns have to offer and the standard that they keep. Little businesses with such’s a personal touch, from B&B’s, guesthouses, cottages to coffee bars, restaurants and little shops that make you feel you are part of the family. There is a charter service and guide that will gladly take you and your family around to see, taste and experience all of it to the fullest.
Famous last words.
If you come to Cape Town, you will see the city is vibrant, alive and full of diversity in every way, a world nr 1 travel destination. But while you are there go and experience Africa in the small towns on the West Coast, don’t forget these small local communities, where time stand still and look in to the peoples eyes and discover the soul of Africa.
Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed.
Glenn.