Guides ·Day trips

The train, the drive and which to choose

Simon's Town sits 40km south of Cape Town on the False Bay side of the peninsula, and it is the rare local trip where public transport beats driving. Metrorail's Southern Line runs from Cape Town station via Observatory, Muizenberg, Kalk Bay and Fish Hoek to the Simon's Town terminus in about 70 minutes for roughly R25 in MetroPlus. From Muizenberg onwards the track runs on the beach itself, close enough to be splashed at high tide. Travel in daylight, off-peak, mid-carriage, bag on your lap.

Driving takes 45 to 55 minutes via the M3 to Muizenberg then the M4 coast road, and gives you the flexibility to continue to Cape Point, 20km further south. Parking in Simon's Town is free on Jubilee Square and metered on St George's Street at about R10 an hour; Boulders has a paid lot near R30. Uber from the city centre runs R350 to R450 each way. In peak summer the M4 through Fish Hoek and Glencairn crawls after 11:00, which is another argument for the train.

Boulders Beach and the penguins

Boulders is part of Table Mountain National Park and entry is about R200 for international adults, R100 for SANParks Wild Card holders and less for South Africans. There are two entrances. The Foxy Beach boardwalk off Kleintuin Road puts you on elevated walkways two metres above a breeding colony of African penguins, of which about 2,000 live here; the Boulders Beach entrance on Bellevue Road leads down to the sheltered coves between granite boulders where you can swim with penguins pottering nearby.

Come at 08:00 or after 16:00 and you halve the crowds. Nesting peaks from March to May, moulting from November to January when the birds stand about looking miserable and cannot swim. Seaforth Beach, a five-minute walk north, is free, has a restaurant on the sand and often has penguins on its rocks anyway, and False Bay water sits at 18 to 22 degrees in summer versus 13 on the Atlantic side. Do not touch the birds; they bite hard and they are endangered.

The town: Jubilee Square, the dockyard and Just Nuisance

Simon's Town has been a naval base since 1814 and remains the South African Navy's main harbour, which is why the town has stone Victorian shopfronts and a working dockyard rather than beach condos. St George's Street, the single main road, holds the Simon's Town Museum in the 1777 Residency at around R30, the South African Naval Museum which is free, and the Warrior Toy Museum. Jubilee Square, the waterside plaza, has the bronze statue of Just Nuisance, the Great Dane enlisted as an able seaman in 1939.

Below the square, the marina at the Waterfront quay has boat operators, a couple of restaurants and views across False Bay to the Hottentots Holland mountains. Bertha's on Wharf Road does breakfast until 11:30 and mains around R190. The Sweetest Thing patisserie on St George's Street sells decent tarts for R55. Allow 90 minutes to walk the town properly, and note that most of it closes by 17:00; this is a village, not a night out.

Kalk Bay and Muizenberg on the way back

Kalk Bay, 10km north, is the best stop on the return leg and a station on the same train line. Its working harbour still lands snoek and yellowtail, sold off the quay in the morning, with Cape fur seals loafing on the slipway. Kalky's, a shed on the harbour wall, serves battered hake and chips at about R80 on plastic tables and is the definitive False Bay lunch. Main Road above the harbour has antique shops, the Kalk Bay Books shop and Olympia Cafe, where a breakfast is R110 and there is always a queue.

Muizenberg, five minutes further, is where Cape Town learns to surf. Board and wetsuit hire on Surfer's Corner runs about R150 for two hours, a group lesson R450, and the beach break is gentle and sand-bottomed. The row of pastel Victorian bathing boxes is the most photographed thing on the peninsula. Water here is the warmest in the metro. Shark spotters operate flag systems on both beaches; obey the flags, and get out when the siren goes.

Boats, hikes and Cape Point

From Simon's Town's Waterfront quay, boat trips run to Seal Island in False Bay, about R700 to R900 for two hours, where thousands of Cape fur seals haul out on a granite outcrop. Sunset cruises are around R500. Whale watching from the same quay operates in southern right season, June to November, at roughly R1,200. Kayak operators offer paddles along the Boulders coast for about R450 with a decent chance of penguins swimming past your hull.

For walking, the Boulders to Windmill Beach coastal path is short and free. More ambitious: the road up Red Hill from Glencairn gives access to Table Mountain National Park trails with False Bay views. If you have a car, Cape Point is 20km and 25 minutes south of Simon's Town; entry is about R400 for international adults, the Flying Dutchman funicular R110 return, and gates open 06:00 in summer. Combining Simon's Town and Cape Point is the classic full peninsula day.

Costs, timing and practicalities

A train-based day costs about R50 in fares, R200 at Boulders and R150 for fish and chips, so around R400 per person. Driving adds roughly R180 in fuel and R30 in parking but opens up Cape Point at R400 more. Guided peninsula day tours from Cape Town, which include Simon's Town, Boulders and Cape Point, run R1,200 to R1,600 including entry fees. Bring cash in small notes for car guards, who expect R10 to R20.

Weather on the False Bay side is often better than the Atlantic seaboard, since the mountain shelters it from the summer southeaster; if Camps Bay is being sandblasted, come here. Winter brings north-westerly storms that hit this coast directly. Baboon troops range from Simon's Town southwards and are a genuine nuisance: never leave food visible in a parked car, keep windows shut, and do not attempt to shoo one away. There are baboon monitors in the area, and they are the people to call.

Frequently asked questions

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