Cape Town is regularly chosen as the world’s most beautiful city in opinion polls. Located on the tip of the African continent, the city has been blessed with the most extraordinary landscape and scenic attractions. From magnificent Table Mountain to spectacular white sand beaches; from the winelands to the rolling fields of indigenous flowers, Cape Town is a dream tourist destination. It also has a fascinating history and has developed a superb infrastructure for the millions of tourists who descend on the city.
With its combination of modern high-rise skyscrapers and historic colonial and Malay architecture, Cape Town nestles in the shade of Table Mountain. Reaching out into the bay is the city’s top tourist attraction, the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, while some of the city’s prime residential areas hug the slopes of the mountain on all sides.
Other major sights include the charming Bo Kaap neighbourhood, the famous Clifton beach with its multi-million dollar apartments and nearby Robben Island where the country’s most famous politician, Nelson Mandela, was incarcerated for 27 years. The city is also home to the country’s Parliament, ensuring the presence of a large diplomatic community. While Johannesburg to the north is the business capital of the country, Capetonians claim that their city offers a much higher standard of living. While the country’s wealth may be in the north, Cape Town certainly comes on top in the beauty stakes.
To cater for the host of international visitors, Cape Town has some superb hotels, a number of which have featured in lists of the World’s Top 10 Hotels. Many of the very upmarket hotels can be found in or around the V&A Waterfront, while others lie alongside the beaches by the slopes of Table Mountain. For those on a budget, there are hundreds of guesthouses in most areas of the city.
When it comes to restaurants, the city boasts excellent cuisine from around the globe, along with an increasing number of African eateries. As a major drawcard for the rich and famous, Cape Town is awash with celebrities in the peak summer season (December to February) and a number of exclusive nightclubs and bars have sprung up to cater for them.
Most visitors to Cape Town enter the country through Johannesburg airport on their way to the city, but an increasing number of direct flights from Europe, Asia and the Middle East now fly directly to Cape Town International Airport. There are good bus and train links to the rest of the country, but the long distances involved mean many tourists prefer to fly or rent vehicles to take a leisurely drive.
Getting There
From the Airport to the Hotel
Delegates can buy “My City” Bus tickets at the Airport. Busses leave from the Airport to the centre of town every 30 minutes.
Airport transfers can also be booked directly with the hotel.
Self-drive: There are also various self-drive car rental companies situated at the Airport for those who want to rent a vehicle for the period of the conference.
85 Libertas Avenue,
Table View,
Cape Town,
South Africa
Tel: +27 (0)21 5562254