Township Tours in Cape Town

Any visitor to South Africa should visit a township to understand how the majority of South Africans live and the importance of the New South Africa to them.

The trend of township tours is establishing itself not only in South Africa, but in developing nations across the world. Initially, tourists may be concerned that taking a township tour in South Africa, or indeed a favela tour in Brazil or slum tour in India, is a money-making scheme allowing middle-class tourists to look at poverty from the tinted windows of an air-conditioned minibus. Township residents will soon set any visitor straight on that misconception. Not only are they proud that foreign visitors are interested in learning about their lives, but it also provides them with the opportunity to earn a living.
A Typical Township Tour in Cape Town

There are now scores of tour operators and individuals offering township tours in Cape Town. The majority of tours tend to follow more or less the same formula and will take visitors to the townships of Langa, Khayelitsha and Guguletu.

Langa is Cape Town's oldest informal settlement and was established in 1901 when inhabitants from a farm called Uitvlugt were resettled in the belief they posed a threat to health as the city had just recovered from a bout of the bubonic plague. 'Langa' means 'sun' and the township's residents played an important role in the struggle against apartheid.

Khayelitsha, which means 'Our New Home' in isiXhosa, has a mixture of formal and informal housing and is the largest single township in South Africa. Home to approximately 1.5million people, Khayelitsha covers an area of 47 square kilometres.

Guguletu, affectionately known as 'Gugs', was established in the 1950s to house migrant workers from the Eastern Cape. Men were housed in cramped hostels, but when their families joined them, they were forced to build shacks as no additional accommodation was provided. Guguletu thus became an informal settlement. Nowadays, some of the poorest families live in the hostels. Rooms typically have at least three beds, with one family taking each bed.
Amy Biehl

Guguletu is also home to the Amy Biehl Memorial and provides a constant reminder about a tragedy of the apartheid, as well as inspiration to move forward. Amy Biehl was a Canadian exchange student studying at the University of Cape Town in 1993. She had friends in Guguletu and visited them often, despite being unwelcome in the 'blacks-only' zone. A mob of more than 100 residents descended on her in the township one day, beating her up then stabbing her to death. Following the heartbreak of losing Amy, her parents went on to forgive the two boys ultimately responsible for killing her and adopted them. Amy's legacy lives on through The Amy Biehl Foundation set up in her honour.

Which Township Tour?

As well as visiting the three notable townships, different tour operators offer various additional items to the itinerary. Most tours will include a combination of walking and driving tours of the three townships and a visit to a shebeen (a township tavern). The drivers/tour guides typically have a wealth of knowledge, factual and anecdotal, that they will share with the group en route. Grassroute tours also include a visit to the District Six Museum and a stop with a witch doctor. Springbok Atlas offer a half day cultural tour, which also includes a visit to the Bo Kaap, home to the city's Muslim community. Taking the blue route of the hop-on hop-off city sightseeing bus offers the opportunity to take the Imizamo Yethu township experience at stop 22. Uniformed community guides walk visitors around the township themselves and all funds apparently go back into the community. Other noteworthy township tours are run by Camissa, Inkululeko tours and Babi's tours.

With the increasing commercialisation of township tours, it can be a concern that more money goes to tour operators and less to the township communities themselves. The Grassroute tour employs a township resident called Archie, who does the walking tour around Langa. Those who categorically want to make sure that at least the majority of their money goes into the townships need to do their homework. Talking to any local resident of Cape Town will help, as they may have friends or family who would be willing to do a tour around their township. It's worth remembering, however, that the more informal tours may not be as safe as the more established tour operators who have more back-up should anything go wrong.

There are a number of projects in the townships that take international volunteers. In particular, there are a number of crèches that volunteers are sent to in Masiphumelele (known as 'Masi'), meaning 'We will succeed'. Volunteering will give visitors a greater insight into township life far greater than can be gleaned from a tour.

Township tours, whether run by tour operators or individuals, tend to cost 300 to 400 Rand for a 3-4 hour tour. The Imizamo Yethu tour along the hop-on hop-off bus route costs 50 Rand for 40 minutes.
Township Accommodation

Another emerging trend comes in the form of township bed and breakfasts. Staying overnight in a township is increasingly seen as an extension of the whole township experience. Vicky's B&B in Khayelitsha is the most established B&B in a Cape Town township. Vicky was the first to spot the gap in the market for tourist accommodation in townships and has now extended her brand to a self-sustaining sewing centre across the road. Ma Neo's B&B in Langa also comes highly recommended, as well as Kopanong B&B in Khayelitsha and Liziwe's Guest House in Gugulethu. In addition to providing accommodation for the night, the guest house owners tend to give much more to visitors who stay. They may invite them to help prepare the meal, watch their traditional cooking methods or take them to local music and dancing events.
Johannesburg Township Tourism in Soweto

Staying the night in townships in Cape Town is less established than in Soweto, south-west of Johannesburg. There are dozens of guest houses in Soweto and a number of decent bars and restaurants have emerged in response to the increased interest from tourists. The more advanced township tourism in Soweto is undoubtedly due to landmarks of historical significance, including Nelson Mandela's house, which is now a museum.

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Cape Town – A Holiday With a Difference

Cape Town, in South Africa, is one of the world’s great marvels and a destination that’s guaranteed to give you a unique holiday. Sometimes however holidays can be as much of a challenge as they are a pleasure. The discerning traveller typically has limited time and high expectations and this leads to certain requirements.

• You may not enjoy spending endless hours trying to sort out your itinerary – and you simply may not have the time.
• You probably won’t welcome finding on arrival that you’re being shoehorned into agendas and sightseeing trips that are simply not to your taste.
• You probably are looking for holiday experiences that are a little more individual than the traditional packaged holiday.
• You may very well be a little jaded with many of the ‘conventional’ holiday destinations.

If this sounds like you, a tailor-made holiday to Cape Town may suit you better and here’s why.

Why Cape Town?

Few destinations can offer the variety of holiday experience that you’ll encounter in the Cape area. Although it’s something of a painful cliché, in reality there really is something for everyone including:

• Magnificent beaches on the peninsular – you can even choose whether to swim in the Indian or Atlantic Ocean.
• A city with centuries of history.
• A vast and diverse cultural legacy that incorporates elements of African, Dutch, British, Indian, Indonesian, Chinese and many other origins.
• An incomparable natural backdrop of Table Mountain, which offers walking and countryside exploration.
• A world famous centre for exotic plants (Kirstenbosch National Gardens).
• Access to great game and wildlife encounters in various reserves.
• Coastal path explorations with rare wildlife and penguin colonies.
• Access to the great South African vineyards and wine industry (and samples!).
• Superb shopping at any one of several major centres.

Cape Town is sometimes called Africa’s most cosmopolitan and interesting city. Whether you agree with that or not, just a glance at the above list indicates why it is a serious contender.

Your holiday

Interesting as the above list of attractions may be, not all of them may be to your personal taste. That’s why a holiday that shapes your time in South Africa to meet your requirements rather than somebody else’s may be of interest. It will allow you to indulge your tastes and in a fashion to suit you. So, for example, if you wish to visit the art galleries or museums then you can do so – and without being limited to a 15-minute breakneck tour.

Perhaps you’d then like a day on the beach followed up by a tour of the vineyards. After that you’d possibly like a guided walking tour around some of the historic streets but really aren’t too bothered about trips into the countryside to see wildlife. If so – that’s not a problem. Whatever your needs, an itinerary can be constructed to ensure that you see what you want to see and most importantly, enjoy your time in this great city.

Experience the Rainbow

People have lived in the cape region for millennia. Europeans have been coming here since the 15th century and people from all corners of the earth have made it their home. The city fully and proudly plays its part in the development of the modern South Africa’s ‘rainbow nation’ culture. So, come and explore it and see why Cape Town is so highly regarded as a holiday destination. It’s waiting to welcome you!

Rachel Hill is a Southern Africa Travel specialist, a company specialising in luxury, tailor-made Cape Town holidays, as well as holidays to other destinations in Southern Africa. Our experienced consultants will help you design your very own luxury South Africa holiday, and will be happy to provide you with a free quote.

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Chill Out With Cape Town Car Hire

It's the end of the year and the party mood is upon us all, and for many of us party central is the Mother City, Cape Town. If you're going to be heading down to the Cape for the festive season then you'll want to know that when you get off the plane that there's a hire car waiting for you so that you can immediately set off on your Cape adventure with the minimum of fuss and bother.

Cape Town car hire can represent extremely good value for money and allow the visitor the choice from amongst a wide variety of motor vehicles.

Cape Town car hireis as easy as making a phone call to one of the many car hire companies in the Peninsula or using the Internet and your credit card to pre book your hire vehicle. The key to successful car hire is timing. The popularity of Cape Town as a holiday destination means that you should book your vehicle well in advance of the holiday season.

If you're looking to take advantage of the convenience of Cape Town car hire then you should shop around at least a month before you are due to leave for the Cape Province, this will ensure that you get the best bang for your buck.

When you're making your choice don't limit yourself to the mundane, this is a city that is comfortable with individual expression, if you want to book a Harley, or an open top sports car then don't hesitate, it'll make your holiday that much more fun.

In fact it can be just as much fun as the holiday itself, don't hold back, you only live once. Take advantage of the sun and the sand and make sure that you get the most out of your holiday in the Cape Peninsula.

Whatever choice you make as far as Cape Town car hire try to get the most out of the experience and make sure that you don't limit yourself to just the city, get out into the countryside. You'll be glad you did.

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Car Rental Cape Town