Cape Point Nature Reserve

A lush wilderness where the Atlantic Ocean and False Bay meet, the reserve mixes jaw-dropping views, invigorating hikes, open bike trails and some wild, wild life.

Cape Point Nature Reserve is an amazing and beautiful reserve about 25 minutes drive south from Cape Town. It contains spectacular coastal scenery, beaches, diverse plant and animal life, shipwrecks and dramatic mountains.

The Point was first encountered by Europeans in 1487. Bartholomew Diaz rounded the Cape while trying to find a route to India and erected a cross in what is now the reserve. This cross helped Vasco Da Gama navigate around the Cape on his way to India a decade later. A large cross commemorates his achievement and still helps ships to find their way.

Bushmen, or the 'San', had been living in these areas for many centuries before the Europeans arrived.

The sea is very wild off the coast and it is easy to understand why there are so many shipwrecks here. The noise, smell and sight of huge waves crashing into the rocks is spectacular. There is a funicular, or railway, that leads up to the historic Cape Point lighthouses that were built at the end of the Point. This is a stunning place to look out over the cliffs, rocks and seemingly endless sea.

Wildlife in the reserve includes baboons, buck of all sorts and wild cats. There is also an abundance of birdlife including ostriches and flamingos. The park contains hundreds of different species of fynbos flowers and plants, some of which are found nowhere else in the world.