Cape Town

chrussell

Hi,

I'm going to Cape town next month for 10 days and im not quite sure what sort of money to be bringing with me. I want to do all the touristy things, shark diving, elephant riding, catch a rugby game or two and just generally have fun. Has anyone been there recently that would have any idea how much in cash i'd need??

Thanks guys

ByrdsFan

chrussell wrote: »

Hi,

I'm going to Cape town next month for 10 days and im not quite sure what sort of money to be bringing with me. I want to do all the touristy things, shark diving, elephant riding, catch a rugby game or two and just generally have fun. Has anyone been there recently that would have any idea how much in cash i'd need??

Thanks guys

hey, im thinking of heading aswell in feb, trying to get a deal at the mo. Who did you get your deal from and the cost involved, if ya dont mind me asking? Cheers

chrussell

I'm not quite sure who we got it with, one of the guys booked it for us, we're flying to amsterdam and from amsterdam to cape town. We got return flights for 9 days for €660

J-blk

ByrdsFan wrote: »

hey, im thinking of heading aswell in feb, trying to get a deal at the mo. Who did you get your deal from and the cost involved, if ya dont mind me asking? Cheers

I'm going in late March myself . Try ebookers.ie - I got flights with British Airways from them, Dublin => London Heathrow => Cape Town and back, 16 days for ~ €850 per person. There's also expedia.co.uk (expedia.ie does not do flights it seems, but I think you can book Dublin flights from the co.uk one...).

ByrdsFan

I'm not quite sure who we got it with, one of the guys booked it for us, we're flying to amsterdam and from amsterdam to cape town. We got return flights for 9 days for €660

I'm going in late March myself . Try ebookers.ie - I got flights with British Airways from them, Dublin => London Heathrow => Cape Town and back, 16 days for ~ €850 per person. There's also expedia.co.uk (expedia.ie does not do flights it seems, but I think you can book Dublin flights from the co.uk one...).

Lovely, thanks for the info guys, will check them out

themacdaddy

Hi all,

I have been to Cape Town twice....

I will try break it down on my experiences:

food is cheap compared to here...mug'n'bean is a brilliant place to eat....massive portions mind you anywhere you eat is great over there...tourist places like on the waterfront are more expensive

(big brands like Nike etc) clothing is relatively the same price as here, however South African brands like Old Kaki are cheap, trendy and great quality. I still wear those tops I got a few years back.

Bring obviously enough Rand to get you around and use your ATM/Credit cards, they will work over there no problem..try not withdraw money from your bank a/c by going directly into banks at they require alot of security information which is time consuming (although very safe).

Try not stick out like a tourist.

Popular tourist things like shark diving etc are expensive in South african terms but not too bad when u convert into euro.

Lastly Cape Town is my idea of heaven so have a great time and enjoy...

J-blk

Cool, thanks for the info Themacdaddy - I'm going to a friend's wedding and combining in a holiday so he should be sending me some suggestions soon of places to visit/things to do as he was born and raised there. I'll post back with any good ones he has .

LaMer

I've just been over there, came back last week. Its gotten abit more expensive in the last few years since I've first been there, but the good exchange rate will make things alot more even.

Shark diving should cost about €150 or so, probably abit more now. I haven't heard about doing elephant riding, never even looked into it but I don't think it's possible in or around Cape Town. You can do ostrich riding out near cape point, or else if you travel towards the Eastern Cape in Oudtshoorn. I'd say you'd be looking at €1500, but I spent €2000 for 3 weeks up north, but that's alot cheaper than Cape Town.

ByrdsFan

Ive been reading about cockroach infestations in hotels and hostels in Cape Town, did any of you guys have such problems when you were down there, and could you recommend hostels / hotels that would be least likely to have that kind of problem. I have been reading up on it (user reviews for hostels and hotels), and some of the stories are mad, ie roaches all over the bathroom etc . I know that not many places would be totally roach free, but just the places where they are kept to the bare minimum
Any info would be much appreciated
Cheers

stainluss

cape town had 3,000 murders per year and is one of the crime capitals of the world there is a large security prescence in the city specifically to protect tourists but keep vigilant and don't walk around too late alone. Avoid the 'Cape Flats' area

Spider_Piglet

ByrdsFan wrote: »

Ive been reading about cockroach infestations in hotels and hostels in Cape Town, did any of you guys have such problems when you were down there, and could you recommend hostels / hotels that would be least likely to have that kind of problem. I have been reading up on it (user reviews for hostels and hotels), and some of the stories are mad, ie roaches all over the bathroom etc . I know that not many places would be totally roach free, but just the places where they are kept to the bare minimum
Any info would be much appreciated
Cheers

There's a hostel on New Street called "The Africa Backpacker and Travel Centre"...it's absolutely amazing!
One of the top 3 hostels of my entire world trip.
Its a few little houses all joined together to make one big hostel. It's got a pool, and a great bar/restaurant. Everyone gathers there in the evenings so there is a great atmosphere. You can organise all your activities and trips there too.
I couldn't recommend it enough!
Oh, and it's verrrry near to Long St. where all the pubs are. It's also a short cab ride to the V&A waterfront area too, and table mountain.

ByrdsFan

Spider_Piglet wrote: »

There's a hostel on New Street called "The Africa Backpacker and Travel Centre"...it's absolutely amazing!
One of the top 3 hostels of my entire world trip.
Its a few little houses all joined together to make one big hostel. It's got a pool, and a great bar/restaurant. Everyone gathers there in the evenings so there is a great atmosphere. You can organise all your activities and trips there too.
I couldn't recommend it enough!
Oh, and it's verrrry near to Long St. where all the pubs are. It's also a short cab ride to the V&A waterfront area too, and table mountain.

Thanks a mill dude

Must go look that up now, should be getting my plane tickets this week , happy days.

Spider_Piglet

ByrdsFan wrote: »

Thanks a mill dude

Must go look that up now, should be getting my plane tickets this week , happy days.

No probs!
It's 2 years since I was there, but I reckon the hostel is still fab.
I was in the Long St Backpackers for a couple of hours (drinking with mates) one night. It's quite popular...but verrry basic compared to the one I recommended on New Street.

The New Street one rocks! Seriously. Great vibe in the place. Nice little pool, great bar. When I was there they used to hold a HUGE bbq every Wed and Fri evening. It was about €3 a head, and heaps of food. About 50 people went to it the 2 nights I went so it was great craic.
Then on different nights during the week they offer drumming lessons.
Here's the website:

http://www.backpackers.co.za/

Enjoy!!!

chrussell

stainluss wrote: »

cape town had 3,000 murders per year and is one of the crime capitals of the world there is a large security prescence in the city specifically to protect tourists but keep vigilant and don't walk around too late alone. Avoid the 'Cape Flats' area

Oh great....can't wait to go now, thanks!

LaMer

stainluss wrote: »

cape town had 3,000 murders per year and is one of the crime capitals of the world there is a large security prescence in the city specifically to protect tourists but keep vigilant and don't walk around too late alone. Avoid the 'Cape Flats' area

I would'nt really worry about this, I've walked around cape town with incident many times, and have gotten minibus taxis around aswell without a problem. Most violence takes place in the townships, and very little affects tourists. Just be wary of your surroundings at night etc. etc.

J-blk

Exactly, use some common sense and you should be fine... I'm not really worried about things, even though it's going to be my first time there too, just don't look/act like a total tourist in public, flash lots of cash, wonder into dodgy areas late at night and you'll be ok.

Qprmeath

http://www.alternativeroute.net/ashantibackpackerhostel.htm

We stayed in this hostel. Had no problems. Its in a very windy area of town though. Its beside The Lord Nelson Hotel where you should definitely go for "Afternoon Tea"