Cape Flats, Cape Town
Once you've booked your Cape Flats accommodation explore our destination pages below for info on attractions and what to do in the Cape Flats.
A large area of wind-blown, flat land, covered predominantly by sand, lies to the north of Cape Town, known merely as the Cape Flats. Described fairly accurately as the ‘dumping ground of apartheid’ it was here that thousands of ‘non-white’ households were forced to move as a result of the Group Areas Act, and today it is home to over a million people who manage to eke out an existence in a combination of townships and informal settlements. Despite its origins, and the harsh conditions under which people still live, taking into account the present government’s housing initiatives, the area is totally unique and has emerged as a vibrant and culturally diverse part of the city that stands in strong contrast to the largely ‘white’ suburbs of Cape Town.
Many visitors’ first impression of the mother city is along the N2, lined with tin and wood shacks that smack of poverty and little access to facilities. Even the country’s successful bid for the 2010 Soccer World Cup did not see these shacks vanish. According to the city’s mayor, it will take 30 years to deal with the upgrading of informal settlements and the city already has a housing backlog of 400 000 units.
Yet a visit through the townships of Langa, Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Cross Roads, Mitchell’s Plain and Manenberg is one of the most revealing and enriching things you can do whilst in Cape Town – for better or worse this area is considered the birthplace of Cape Town’s soul and art, crafts, music and entrepreneurship abound in a collective show of making the best of a bad situation. Add to this the pervasive ‘Cape sense of humour’ – the ability of people who live on the Flats to see the funny side of life – despite the odds, and you will have a better understanding of how the people of South Africa actually live. Yet, despite its association with flat sandy plains, the Cape Flats is also an extensive wetland and home to unique strandveld vegetation that has come under extreme urbanisation pressure.
Destinations / Town & Suburbs of Cape Flats
Athlone
Where to Stay: Accommodation in Athlone
Athlone lies to the east of the city centre in what's commonly known as the Cape Flats - a large and very flat section of low-lying land to the southeast of the Cape Town City Bowl, colourfully described as ... athlone information
Grassy Park
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
Grassy Park is one of the southern suburbs of Cape Town set on the Cape flats, just east of the M5 and the Princess Vlei, and closest to the suburbs of Ottery and Lotus River. Historically the suburb has been around a long time, emerging ... Grassy Park information
Gugulethu
Where to Stay: Accommodation in Gugulethu
The energetic community of Gugs, better known as Gugulethu, lies virtually on top of Cape Town’s International airport, about 20 kilometres outside of Cape Town - one of the oldest black townships in South Africa and arguably ... gugulethu information
Khayelitsha
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
More than half of Cape Town’s unemployed live in the notoriously high crime area of Khayalitsha, a township just outside Cape Town that means ‘new home’. Created during apartheid as a dormitory area for migratory workers, today ... khayelitsha information
Kuils River
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
The tranquil area of Kuils River that lies at the foot of the gentle slopes of the Bottelary Mountains is just being ‘discovered’ by visitors to Cape Town who want to escape the confines of a city for a more rural experience, yet remain ... kuils river information
Langa
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
Set just 15 to 20 kilometres from the centre of Cape Town and accessible where the N2 joins Bunga Avenue, Langa, the birth and resting place of Brenda Fassie - outrageous superstar and queen of pop - is one of the oldest ... langa information
Macassar
Where to Stay: Cape Helderberg Accommodation
Lying on the wind-blown rugged coastal road that takes one from Cape Town to Somerset West the long way - along the coast - is the beach of Macassar, more or less across the road from the Cape Flats suburb of Macassar ... macassar information
Manenberg
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
Manenberg is a largely Coloured community on the Cape Flats, where clotheslines span across apartheid-government-built housing and children play in the streets - the back of Table Mountain visible in the distance ... manenberg information
Mitchells Plain
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
Described in a former resident’s own terms, Mitchell’s Plain is a large, sprawling coloured township originally billed, when it was built about 20 years’ ago, as the area for coloureds and erected to house the middle income ... mitchells plain information
Nyanga
Where to Stay: Cape Flats Accommodation
Nyanga, a sprawling, poverty-stricken illustration of Cape Town’s urban sprawl, is one of the oldest and largest black townships after Langa, establishing itself as early as 1955. It lies about 26 kilometres from the city centre, along the N2 ... nyanga information
Cape Flats
Featured and "Must See" Attractions in Cape Flats
Gugulethu Seven Memorial
Built to commemorate the death of seven young black activists from the Cape township Gugulethu (meaning our pride) on 3 March 1986, the Gugulethu Seven Memorial consists of seven solid and powerful granite statue-like constructions, sculpted by the South African artists Donovan Ward and ... more information
Cape Town Township Tour
This is a full day visit to the poverty stricken “Townships” of Cape Town. Experience Township life, visit schools and be entertained by the school’s cultural groups, converse with the locals. The tour starts with a visit to the District 6 Museum, followed by a drive through District 6. Visit a school ... more information
Cape Care Route
The Cape Care Route, situated in and around Cape Town, offers those who take it a chance to experience the 'other' side of Cape Town, and the creativity and innovation that have come out of the more depressed communities in the Mother City. Designed by the City of Cape Town ... more information
Manyanani Peace Park
The Peace Park, known as the Manyanani Peace Park, which is Xhosa for 'to bring people together', lies in Khayelitsha. The development of the peace park on degraded land in the township was a bid to remove the conflict between two communities who subsequently became friends. The source of the conflict? ... more information
Mzoli's Place in Gugulethu
Mzolis is Guguletus most popular hang-out spot. Every Saturday and Sunday this is where people spend their afternoons, eating meat, chatting and just lounging around. At Mzoli's, seating is outside where you can get a view of everyone passing by. This way you get to interact with people while enjoying your meal. more information
False Bay Ecology Park
False Bay Ecology Park, FBEP for short, lies in Cape Town and is 1200 hectares that includes Rondevlei Nature Reserve and Zeekoevlei Nature Reserves, a strip of the coast, the Cape Flats Waste Water Treatment Works, and the Coast Park landfill site. Aside from being a major green lung within the city, and ... more information
Rondevlei Nature Reserve
One of the country’s oldest ornithological field stations, has some easy walks and fantastic bird hides that offers the bird lover hours of entertainment. Strandfontein’s Waste Water Treatment Works is yet another example of a significant wetland, supporting, for example, a greater bird life than St Lucia’s Estuary. more information
Zeekoevlei Nature Reserve
Zeekoevlei is a huge freshwater lake in the middle of the Cape Flats. With the rather densely populated suburbs of Grassy Park, Lotus River and Pelican Park on its borders, Zeekoevlei is the largest urban natural inland body of water in Cape Town. Jan Van Riebeek may have described the vlei as ... more information
Cape Flats
Featured Things To Do in Cape Flats
Take a Journey of Remembrance
Where: Cape Flats
How much (per person): On Request
On the Journey of Remembrance (JOR) former freedom fighters take you back to a time when incidents as the Trojan Horse and Gugulethu Seven w ... more information
Walking Tour of Gugulethu
Where: Gugulethu
How much (per person): On Request
Join Liziwe for a forty minute walk through the shanties of Gugulethu to experience the everday life of Gugulethu. You will get to interact ... more information
Feast & Party at Mzoli's Place
Where: Gugulethu
How much (per person): R1 to R100
For the most fun in Cape Town, grab a bunch of friends and head out to Mzoli's Place in Gugulethu for a legendary experience! Mzoli's Pla ... more information
Cape Flats
Holiday Accommodation in Cape Flats
For accommodation in Cape Flats see:
• Athlone Accommodation • Gugulethu Accommodation
Visiting Cape Flats?
Also see Cape Town Events to see whats happening or check out Things To Do in Cape Town to view activities by category, including water sports, sightseeing activities, arts & crafts and many more.
- Introduction to the Western Cape
- Destination Guide
- Accommodation Guide
- Search by Map
- Cape Town Conferences
- Wedding Guide
- Touring the Western Cape
- Transport & Travel Arrangements
- Out and About
- Südafrika Reise
Für Deutsche Besucher
Suedafrika-Reise.net bringt Ihnen das umfangreichste Angebot an Links, um Südafrika zu "bereisen": hier und jetzt auf Ihrem Bildschirm.
Urlaub in Kapstadt
destinations / attractions in the western cape
