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The school holidays are upon us and with the long days of blissful freedom comes the inevitable whine of kids: “I’m booooored!” Thankfully, there is no shortage of fun, family-friendly activities in Cape Town—activities that are just as engaging for mom and dad as they are for the little ones! Here are a few of our recommendations for families visiting or living in Cape Town….
Defy gravity at Rush Indoor Trampoline Park, Claremont
Image source: www.rushsa.co.za
Test the bounds of gravity without fear in this 30,000 square foot facility that features wall-to-wall, interconnected trampolines, a battle beam, a huge foam pit, three basketball slam dunk lanes, and, for the older kids, two dodge ball courts. Rush Indoor Trampoline Park is extreme fun and an incredible workout for the entire family. To keep toddlers safe, the park dedicates the hours between 10:00 and 11:00 (Monday to Thursday) and 9:00 and 10:00 (Fridays to Sundays) to the little ones and their siblings.
Address: Stadium on Main, 104 Main Road, Claremont
Experience the art of “Paintertainment” with Art Jamming
Unleash your inner Picasso, Rembrandt, or even Andy Warhol with Art Jamming; a fun, engaging, and wholly unique activity that is guaranteed to put your artistic talent to the test. They supply the tools (canvases of varying sizes, a spectrum of paint colours, and brushes) and you just let loose your creativity. Art Jamming allows each and every participant to create his or her masterpiece in an interactive environment and have enormous fun in the process. There are two studios in Cape Town: (1) Shop G26 Willowbridge, Carl Cronje Ave, Tygervalley, Bellville and above Toy Kingdom at the V&A Waterfront.
Explore the living kaleidoscope at Butterfly World Animal Sanctuary
Butterfly World is a lush sanctuary for a polychromatic legion of butterflies from all over the world. Located in the beautiful Stellenbosch winelands, this attraction also features a bird sanctuary, a hair-raising arachnid exhibit (spiders and scorpions), the rather gruesome yet interesting Road Kill Skeleton Park, and daily animal shows. Afterwards, visitors can sit down at the delightful tea garden or stock up on padkos at their farm stall.
Address: Right off the N1’s Exit 47, R44, Klapmuts
Summit the icon of the Mother City, Table Mountain
Take the kids on an exhilarating pilgrimage to the top of Cape Town’s iconic mountain. Once at the top, you could spend hours admiring the incredible city, ocean, and peninsula views and wandering the network of pathways that wind around the mountain’s fynbos-carpeted summit. Look out for colourful agama lizards and sunbathing rock hyraxes (known locally as “dassies” – small, rabbitlike animals with sombre faces). You can take a picnic with you or, alternatively, stop at the Table Mountain Café for a family-friendly lunch.
Go ice-skating at Grand West Casino’s indoor ice rink
Image source: www.facebook.com/theicestationcapetown/
It may be 30 degrees outside but inside the cool, grandiose interior of the Ice Station at Grand West Casino, it’s winter all year round! Here, people of all ages and levels of experience can rent skates and hit the ice. If you’re not up for it, being a spectator is just as entertaining given the number of first-timers on the ice on any given day. There’s also a mini-rink for very young kids, which keeps them safe and out of the way of those clumsy first-timers.
Address: Grand West Casino, 1 Jakes Gerwel Drive, Acacia Park
Get your hands dirty at The Clay Café in Hout Bay
Who doesn’t love using their hands to make things? The Clay Café in Hout Bay is all about crafting something unique, which is then fired and painted so that you can take your creation home with you to use and admire. Whether you want to make a vase, a mug, a plate, or even just something decorative, the Clay Café provides families with the guidance they need to create something meaningful. They even have a decent (and licensed) on-site restaurant and a huge garden for kids to play in.
Address: 4080 Main Road, Hout Bay
Go strawberry picking at Mooiberge farm stall in Stellenbosch
Located in the heart of the Stellenbosch Wine Route right next door to a cluster of wine farms, the Mooiberge Strawberry Farm is a lovely outdoor family destination. From October to December every year, the strawberries ripen and are available for picking by the public. After filling your box, you can head over to the restaurant and farm stall for lunch, or even swing by one of the neighbouring wine estates, where mum and dad can enjoy a well-deserved glass of wine.
Address: R44, Between Stellenbosch and Somerset West, Cape Winelands
Volunteer at an Animal Shelter
Teaching kids to take pleasure in helping those less fortunate than ourselves is an incredibly important lesson and what better classroom could there be than an animal shelter? There are several—the SPCA, DARG, F.A.L.L.E.N Angels, and Uitsig Animal Rescue—all over Cape Town and they readily accept help from volunteers to walk the dogs, help kittens become accustomed to loving contact, groom horses, clean cages, and more. Volunteers get the pleasure of interacting with the animals and knowing that their time and energy is helping them live more comfortable, love-filled lives.
Spend the day at the Noordhoek Farm Village
Image source: www.thefarmvillage.co.za/the-village/
Located right off Noordhoek Main Raod in Goedehoop Estate, you’ll discover a large open space for children to run free, a great variety of restaurants, pubs, and art shops, and a thrilling kiddies’ playground. This is the leafy and atmospheric Noordhoek Farm Village and it’s the perfect weekend destination for families with kids of all ages. Here, you can easily while away most of a day perusing the interesting stores and eating a leisurely meal, while the kids get a little outdoor time.
Address: Village Lane & Noordhoek Main road, Goedehoop Estate
Hike up Lion’s Head
Right next door to Table Mountain is another of Cape Town’s iconic mountains: Lion’s Head. There is a short 1-2-long hike to the top, the summit of which reveals panoramic views of the city, peninsula mountains, and up the West Coast of the subcontinent. The hike is extremely popular for people of all ages and fitness levels and families with clutches of small children are a dime a dozen along the route. Just keep a sharp eye on your little ones because there are some steep dropoffs and, in parts, hair-raising climbing to be done.
Eat, drink, and stock up at a farmers’ market
Cape Town’s selection of crafts and farmer’s markets have proven to be the perfect venues for weekend entertainment and indulgence for the whole family. From food, beer, and wine to fresh fruits and vegetables, artisanal produce, arts, crafts, live music, and kiddies’ entertainment, Cape Town’s numerous weekend and evening markets have it all. Some of the markets we love include the Chilled Market @ The Range in Tokai, the Earth Fair Food (also in Tokai), Hout Bay Harbour Market, Noordhoek Community Market, The Old Biscuit Mill, The Oranjezicht City Farm Market, and Mojo Market in Seapoint.
Kenilworth Go-Karting
The need for speed is an affliction that hits hard during childhood and while it might fade with age, it only takes one lap in a go-kart at the Kenilworth racetrack to bring it screaming back to life. A ticket gets racers 10 laps around the 310-meter course and a lifetime of adoration from your kids (and husband). There are lightweight 140 cc vehicles and a junior track specifically for younger racers (shorter than 1.5 meters) so you can rest assured that they will be safe.
Address: 10 Myhoff Road, Claremont
Visit Cool Runnings, Africa’s first toboggan family park
Image source: www.coolrunnings.capetown
Ever since bobsleighing was immortalised in the movie ‘Cool Runnings’, it’s been adopted by adventure sport and outdoor companies as an awesome and unforgettable family-friendly activity! In Tygervalley, there’s a whole park dedicated to tobogganing and it’s a great day of fun. It’s also perfectly safe. So get inside one of the bullet-shaped bobsleds and shoot down the 1.2-kilometer steel pipe track like you’re at the Olympic Games!
Address: Carl Cronje Drive, Tygervalley
Visit the Two Oceans Aquarium
Dive beneath the waves of the Atlantic Ocean at the Two Oceans Aquarium at the V&A Waterfront (without a wetsuit and without getting wet). Explore the enchantment of the kalaeidescopic life that thrives beneath the surface of the ocean embracing South Africa: an educational experience that thrills people of all ages. From sea horses and starfish to enormous marine fish and sharks, there are live exhibits to explore and even interactive experiences for the little ones.
Address: Dock Road, V&A Waterfront, Cape Town
Sandboarding the Atlantis Dunes
Image source: www.sandboardingcapetown.com
A 40-minute drive from the city, near Atlantis, lies an impressive dune complex composed of fine white sand and boundless potential for thrills. You can sign up for the adventure with a local company, such as Sandboarding Cape Town, that will provide the equipment, show you the ropes, and take you out to the dunes for several hours of sand boarding fun in the sun. This one is for slightly older kids.
Address: Off the R27 past Melkbosstrand, Atlantis Dunes, Cape Town
Iziko Museum and Planetarium
Located on Queen Victoria Street in the heart of Cape Town, you’ll discover a cultural haven at which a family could easily spend an entire day: the Iziko Natural History Museum and Planetarium. The museum maintains a fascinating record of South African history from well before the arrival of the settlers until well after. There are life-like and life-sized replicas of dinosaurs and whales, which kids will love, and an extensive collection of Africa’s (taxidermied) birds and beasts.
Attached to the museum is the Iziko Planetarium, which has just recently been revamped and updated. Here, visitors are invited to sit all the way back in their recliner seats and watch as a fascinating digital show about the stars, constellations, and universe unfurls on the darkened dome above.
Unlock your inner Sherlock Holmes at Hint Hunt
Hint Hunt is an exciting yet challenging live escape game that has been perfectly designed for groups of three to five people. Players are locked in a themed room and must put together the hidden clues they find to overcome various puzzles they encounter in order to escape the room before their time is up!
Address: The Old Biscuit Mill, Woodstock, and the V&A Waterfront
Explore the Cape’s natural wonders at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens
Located on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain, Kirstenbosch’s sweeping, emerald gardens are a colourful and audacious celebration of life. Visitors here can get to truly appreciate the majesty and diversity of the Cape floral kingdom by meandering on the network of pathways that lead through protected Fynbos, ancient trees, forests, edible food gardens, and more. When the kids get hungry, you can stop in at the Kirstenbosch Tea Room (ktr.co.za) for a lovely menu of family-friendly treats – they also prepare picnics while you wait, which you can take into the gardens to enjoy.
Address: Rhodes Drive, Newlands, Cape Town
Go picnicking at a Cape wine farm
Image source: www.boschendal.com
With literally hundreds of wine farms scattered throughout the Western Cape and scores within a 30-minute drive of Cape Town (if not closer), every summer’s day is an opportunity to get outside and enjoy a picnic in some of the country’s most beautiful landscapes. From Stellenbosch and Paarl to Franschhoek and beyond, many wine farms like Boschendal, Delheim, Grande Provence, and Allée Bleue offer sprawling manicured lawns, towering trees for shade, and pre-packaged picnics, which you can order online and collect upon arrival.
Learn to rock at the School of Rock Cape Town
Image source: www.locations.schoolofrock.com/claremont
If there were one skill virtually no one would turn down, it would be the ability to make music. Now, with the School of Rock opening its doors in Cape Town, the entire family can sign up for a totally rockin’ adventure that will put an instrument in their hands and a stage under their feet to experience a thrill that very few ever get to. There are a variety of performance-based courses, programmes, and camps to choose from (depending on age and experience) but the goal is the same: “to inspire the world to rock on stage and in life.”
Address: Suite 202, 2nd Floor Standard Bank Galleria, 120 Main Road, Claremont
Feed the Squirrels in the Company Gardens
In 1650, the first European settlers in the Cape established the Company Gardens, the original task of which was to grow fruits and vegetables to refresh and restock the merchant ships travelling to India via the Cape. Today, the Company Gardens are beautifully kept and a wondrous, historic place for families to explore by foot. We recommend a winding walk through the garden’s various attractions: the rose garden, bird aviary, minute forests, and past the historic buildings that line Governors Avenue. Here, you’ll find vendors selling snacks so why not purchase the kids a packet of peanuts, get comfortable on one of the gardens’ many lawns, and encourage them to entice the resident squirrels – of which there are scores – to eat the nuts out of their hands?
Cape Town Science Centre
Expose your children to the fascinating realm of science from an early age and open their minds to its fathomless fields of wonder. You might even learn something in the process too! The Cape Town Science Centre is a not-for-profit attraction that offers up a smorgasbord of exhibitions, awesome experiments, and interactive discoveries to keep the whole family delighted and engaged. They also run workshops and science camps over the school holidays so go to the website to check out their programmes.
Address: 370B Main Road, Observatory, Cape Town
Take the Kids to the World of Birds Sanctuary
The World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park is an enchanting daylong activity that immerses visitors in nature. Wind your way through humid microbiomes populated by kalaeidescopic tropical birds, large raptors, and owls; take a step into the squirrel monkey enclosure and feel their little paws as they crawl all over you; and watch the keepers feed the penguins, flamingos, and pelicans. Bird enthusiast or not, the World of Birds is an institution and a delightful diversion for families visiting Hout Bay.
Address: Valley Road, Hout Bay
Go Diggin’ at the Scratch Patch, V&A Waterfront
The Scratch Patch is a total gem (pun intended) tucked away across the road from the V&A Waterfront’s revamped warehouse district, although the original is in Simon’s Town. With shimmering glass cases full of glittering crystals, colourful rock specimens, and jewellery and a veritable treasure of polished semi-precious stones on the floor of the Scratch Patch den, any self-respecting adventurer could keep busy for hours! The entry to Mineral World is free, but it costs between R25 and R130 to fill a small to large bag up with pebbles from the Scratch Patch.
Play a little Cave Golf
Literally right next door to the Scratch Patch is the aptly named Cave Golf: an 18hole indoor putt-putt course located in a moodily-lit room that’s been elaborately done up as a cave, complete with running streams and low-hanging rock ceilings (in places). It’s deceptively tricky at times, making it a decent challenge for the whole family. A round of golf only costs R30 per player (R25 for groups of 10 or more) with a refundable deposit of R20.
