South Africa Travel Guide

Get Straight To It

There’s so much to do in South Africa, you can stay for 3 weeks like I did and never run out of things to do. I spent 5 days in Johannesburg, 4 days in Stellenbosch, and 10 days in Cape Town. Johannesburg is like New York City. It’s huge. Definitely great for the party animals, folks who like to shop in giant malls, and go to endless restaurants. The food here was BOMB! It’s also super clean in Joburg. It’s where we met people who come to work and nobody who actually from there or living in the city lol. Our Hotel had a really nice restaurant downstairs called the Codfather. There was a whole birthday celebration/function happening there. Since we went while there were still covid restrictions (December of 2021) There was also a curfew that had people utilizing the restaurants as the club scene. Anyways the seafood was good

We noticed that early breakfast was few and far between. I’m talking not many places were open prior to 9am. Parc Ferme Restaurant was a God-send. It was the place we ate breakfast for like 3 days because I’m an early bird. The vibes and food were good.

While in Joburg we went to the “township” of Soweto. That was definitely a highlight. We opted for the tour through Cebu our guide. He was extremely knowledgeable. First we went to the Hector Pieterson Museum which honors the boy who was killed during the peaceful protest that started an uprising for Freedom. The Museum is captivating with large black and white photos depicting the protests, tv screens and movies giving content, and audio for those who choose not to read. Then we headed to a local restaurant to try kota (pronounced quarter). Its sort of like a egg in the hole sandwich. Its made with thick toasted delicious bread (reminded me of Texas toast), minced meat, an egg, fries, lettuce, cheese and sauce. Its thick and it ain’t the prettiest dish but its goodt! After lunch we headed to Nelson Mandela’s House then Desmond Tutu’s home and lastly to the Soweto Towers. At the Soweta towers its a whole vibe. There’s music and no frills bars. Great place to kick it with the locals.

While in Joburg we went to Montecasino for the bird sanctuary but when we arrived realized there was a day’s worth of things to do there. That place is beautiful. Its like a mini Vegas. There’s a casino, restaurants, and shopping. It’s beautiful and absolutely worth a visit. The bird sanctuary was dope, they had so many exotic birds I’d never seen before. They also have other animals such as snakes, sloths, etc.

We took a quick flight from Joburg to Cape Town. In Cape town we ate at Truth Roastery which is a MUST. Its a steampunk themed restaurant and they are committed to the theme yall! The wait staff was dressed up in goggles, top hats, and clothes to match the theme. The menu is a newspaper and the item descriptions are crazy. Bae said the coffee was delicious. The food was fresh and I highly recommend it for breakfast or brunch.

We went to Bo-Kaap which is where the colorful houses are. There’s something about a colorful house that just brings up the energy. You’ll see many people taking photos here. If you take a long walk all the way up the hill you’ll find a fabulous view and a restaurant Bo-Kaap Kombuis where we ate traditional Cape Malay cuisine. This place is authentic and the view isn’t bad either. This is a great place to eat at a no frills restaraunt, enjoy the view, and learn about the history of Bo-Kaap. The owners are passionate about the history and the menu features a couple of highlights of the town’s history as well.

We took a trip to Muizenberg which is a colorful beach town. That beach was packed, but its a huge beach. There’s plenty of room for everyone. When we were in Muizenberg we ate at a restaurant called Tiger’s Milk. You’ll see this chain all around Cape Town. I especially enjoyed the flatbread with the halloumi cheese, feta, arugula, cucumber, and olive tzatziki. Great appetizer, and I enjoyed the ribs as my entrée.

We then choose to change locations and stay by the beach. Our next homestay was an amazing guesthouse a couple blocks from the Blouberg beach. Its called Bentley’s Guesthouse and its run by a lovely couple that used to work on yachts. The best part about the stay wasn’t the detail-oriented décor, music, scents, and meal. The best part was being greeted by dogs each morning when we came out for breakfast. They sent excellent recommendations on things to do in Cape Town and were attentive to our needs. I highly recommend this little boutique hotel if you’re looking for a comfortable stay by the beach away from it all.

There’s a nearby restaurant called Mozambique where you need to try the king clip fish. I’m still thinking about how delicious it was. You also need to try Hulis Donuts. They are a vegan donut shop but you wouldn’t even know it because I am no where near vegan and their donuts were delicious. My favorite was the lemon curd, then apple crumb, then blueberry & cream and strawberry & cream.

In Kirstenbosch you can check out the Botanical Garden. It’s a peaceful chill spot. It’s pretty large. Great value for your money. There were many people laid out on the ground just enjoying the view. They also have live music there during the summer on their stage. There’s a nice long canopy walk with views of table mountain as the backdrop. Great place to snap a picture.

I also tried a surf lesson in Blouberg, that was very subpar because there were so many people in the area I was trying to surf in. I recommend going early if you plan to surf. I almost hit a couple kids with my board and I don’t need those problems lol. Never again will I try surfing on a packed beach at 2pm. Yall be safe out there!

After the beach scene we went to Stellenbosch to get our wine on. We did the Franschhoek Wine Tram which was LIT! Please do this. You have to choose a route there are like 8 different color lines. The hard part is they don’t tell you how they differ except by which stops they go to. I did my own research and choose the red line. We saw that the stops had some of better options for food and activities. Once you choose your line you still have to choose which 5 stops you want to go to when there are 8 stops total. The host on the bus will give you an overview like this place only has sparkling wine so if you like sparkling wine go here. We choose to skip La Luz, Lynx, and Maison. We also accidently skipped another stop because we were tipsy and didn’t realize we had stayed past an hour at our second to last stop. Our absolute favorite was Paserene. We bought 2 bottles here and had 8 tastings of wine. For the 2 bottles of wine, 8 wine tastings, fresh honeycomb, and salmon flowers and a 20% tip we paid $35. This is just one example of how cheap everything is.

When switching locations we had a bit of a tiff with the host of our stay at Baruch Guesthouse on Lovell. She was quite rude and hassling us about our arrival time saying we were inconveniencing her by not showing up at lunch and we were her only guests that day so she wanted to go home and to come back it would take her 40minutes. When we arrived she apologized and upgraded our room so we obliged. The place is actually really nice. Despite our welcome, It’s beautifully decorated, extremely clean, fully stocked, and the pool area is picturesque. Loved the stay, despised the host.

We spent the last couple days back near the V&A waterfront. That is a nice central area. There’s so much to do. We made it to see the penguins at Boulders Beach, took the cable car up Table Mountain, had clothes made, took a helicopter ride over Cape Town, did a sunset cruise around Cape Town, went shopping at the markets, and went to the beaches.

Transportation

DCA-EWR-JNB via United Airline

JNB-CPT via Safair

CPT-EWR-IAD via United Airlines

Used Uber and Bolt for transportation throughout SA

Activities

Visit Nelson Mandela Square

Visit Soweto

Go to Montecasino (Casino, restaurants, shopping, and bird sanctuary)

Visit colorful beachtown Muizenberg

Hike Table Mountain or take the cable car

Franschhoek Wine Tram

Visit wineries in Stellenbosch

See tropical penguins at Boulders Beach

Bo-Kaap colorful houses

Kirstenbosch botanical garden

Go to the beach (Blouberg, Clifton, Camps Bay, Muizenberg)

Go shopping at the markets (The Biscuit Mill, Hout Bay Market, Cape Point Vineyards in Noordehoek)

Take a helicopter ride over Cape Town

Take a sunset cruise in Cape Town

Gets clothes custom-made

Activity	Price
Soweto Tour through Airbnb Experience (Can book direct with guide Cebu whatsapp +27 07 257 54136)	$26
Boulders Beach Penguin Colony	$11
Montecasino Bird Garden	$6
Kirstenbosch Sanbi Botanical Garden	$13
Helicopter Ride over Cape Town with Cape Town Helicopter	$72
Sunset Boat Cruise with Tigresse	$25
Table Mountain Cable Car	$25
Cape Town Surf School	$27
Franschhoek Wine Tram	$18
Fabric @ wholesale rates located at Shop No 19 Cnr Long & Wale Street Cape Town 8001 whatsapp +27 78 777 2215	$7/6 yards
Tailor Abou custom pieces whatsapp +27 60 401 0260	Dress $46 Pants $52

Other Things to do (Things I didn’t have time to try)

Apartheid Museum (was closed when I went)

Go to Carnivore or another restaurant to try exotic meats

Maropeng Cradle of Humanity

Pilanesberg National Park Safari

High Tea

Paragliding at Signal Hill or Seapoint

Jazz Clubs

Jozi X adventure park (I’m so sad this place was closed when I was there)

Accommodations

Johannesburg- Sandton Skye

Cape Town Airbnb- Explore the city from a central Art Deco Loft

Cape Town Beach stay- Bentley’s Guesthouse

Stellenbosch- Baruch Guesthouse on Lovell

Cape Town- Head South Lodge

Recommendations

Food: Try ostrich, king clip fish, antelope venison, kota, and traditional cape malay cuisine

History: Please don’t go to SA without acknowledging and learning the history. It doesn’t matter if you go to one of the many Nelson Mandela sites or the apartheid museum etc. It’s not pretty but it’s important and apartheid wasn’t long ago. My personal opinion is that that’s apparent in how some South African’s treat others.

Planning Tools

Suggested Minimum Budget	$60/night accommodations $20/day food $10/day transportation
Suggested Duration	21 days +
Suggested Time of Year	May to September

Inside Scoop

I’ve thought long and hard on how I wanted to break down my experience in South Africa. I will admit, I had some preconceived opinions based on people I had met from SA. When I went, I felt many parallels to the United States. Apartheid in SA is to segregation in the USA. The difference is Apartheid didn’t end until the 1990s. With that in mind, I felt the divide, especially when I was in Cape Town. I loved Cape Town for the beaches, mountains, and things to do. What I didn’t love in Cape Town was the stuck up vibes from some of the people, and seeing all the homeless people sleeping 5minutes away from the most posh areas. It’s hard to not notice all the inequality.

I loved Joburg for the energy I felt from the people. Think dressed to the 9’s out for the night in DC or NY. I also loved that Joburg was super clean and the food was on point. Me personally, I enjoy smaller cities rather than the giant ones. They all seem the same to me. I overall preferred Cape Town over Joburg because there was so much to do outdoors. The wine region of Stellenbosch gave similar vibes to Cape Town when it came to the way people interacted with me. I had a great time just minding my own beautiful black business and enjoying the wine, rest, and relaxation. I would suggest spending a weekend in Stellenbosch instead of the 4 days like I did if you rather explore Joburg or Cape Town longer but still want to visit the wine region. Despite my indifference for the way that I was received in South Africa, it’s an undeniably beautiful destination. I suggest living your best life no matter where you go and no matter how people treat you.

One thing about South Africa is I did feel safe but in certain areas you have to be veryyyyy careful about having your phone out and how you carry your money. There’s danger everywhere you go so it’s up to you and your comfort level on tolerance.