In which quarter house in Cape Town?

Destination Cape Town for your holiday? Discover the best areas to stay in Cape Town, the capital of Western Cape in South Africa!

South Africa’s parliamentary capital in tormented history, Cape Town is located 47 kilometers from the famous Cap de Bonne-Espérance, on the foothills of the Table Mountain. This metropolis is home to 433 688 inhabitants, but 3.5 million inhabitants live throughout the Cape Town municipality. Moreover, it is the agglomeration of more than 50,000 southern inhabitants of Africa. Despite innumerable social inequalities resulting from the apartheid era, the standard of living in Cape Town remains high, and finding housing can be difficult. The offer of accommodation is abundant, but expensive in the city centre.

Whether you choose to sleep in Down Town, Vredehoek, Camps Bay, Clifton, Greenpoint, Seapoint, Millie Point or Waterfront, rents can be high, paradoxically at the low cost of South Africa’s famous life. These can range from 5000 ZAR (rands) to 17 500 ZAR, from 338 € to 1180 € per month. As elsewhere, you will have the choice between the backpacker – the youth hostel –, the guesthouse, the hotel or the apartment at the home to stay in Cape Town. Here are the neighborhoods where to sleep in the nearest city centre of Cape Town.

Bo-Kaap

A former Malaysian quarter with shackled houses of all colors, this area was built on the slopes of Signal Hill Mountain, within the City Bowl , name given to the neighborhoods of the city center for their topography taking the form of a bowl. Bo-Kaap – meaning the “high of Cape” in Afrikaans – brings together a high concentration of Muslim population, from the descendants of slaves from Malaysia, India and Indonesia, deported by the Dutch Society of Eastern India from the 17th century. A trip out of Time, in this neighborhood subject to galoping gentrification and increasingly "bobobo". If you choose this area where to stay in Cape Town, you will surely hear the calls to a minaret prayer, not far away.

Gardens

This central area between the Table Mountain and Signal Hill is full of history: it symbolizes the old vegetable garden created by Jan van Riebeeck in 1652, to refuel the Dutch ships on their way to India with fresh fruit and vegetables. It is literally the garden area, a lush greenery and lush nature in the middle of the city, overlooking the cliffs of Table Mountain. A good area to sleep in Cape Town if you want to go on a hike or stroll through the streets of downtown without taking public transport.

Vredehoek

At the foot of Table Mountain, Vredehoek is a quiet, peaceful and residential area, offering a splendid view of the city. If the area is exposed to winds, it is less at the expense of prices: rents to rent an apartment are lower than in other areas of the centre. A good point, so.

Camps Bay and Clifton

Located on the cornice, on the border between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lion’s Head Mountain, these neighborhoods give privileged access to beautiful beaches and enjoy great animation at any time of day and evening. If you don’t have any fears by paying with your credit card, it’s a quiet area where to stay in Cape Town: a hupped and popular area, it’s a bit the Promenade des Anglais niçoise version hemisphere sud and anglophone.

Waterfront

Here is the most touristic and frequented area of the city, and for cause: it offers a breathtaking view of the Table Mountain. Located in the marina of Cape Town, there are all the infrastructures to satisfy all tastes: shopping centers, restaurants for lovers of good table, bars for the most fun and many street activities. If you target this area where to stay in Cape Town, wait to meet high prices for your apartment or hotel.

Main photo credit: Flickr – Gilbert Sopakuwa