Cape Town

Four days from the cableway to Cape Point

Four days cover Cape Town well. Use them for Table Mountain and the City Bowl, then Robben Island and the Waterfront, then a drive round the peninsula to Boulders Beach and Cape Point, and finally Kirstenbosch with an afternoon of wine tastings in Stellenbosch or Constantia.

Day one. Ride the Table Mountain cableway early, as the wind and cloud often arrive by midday, and walk the paths along the summit plateau. In the afternoon go down into the City Bowl for the Company's Garden, the South African Museum and Greenmarket Square, then climb the colourful streets of the Bo-Kaap and visit its small museum. Eat on Kloof Street in the evening.

Day two. Take the morning ferry from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A Waterfront to Robben Island, where former political prisoners guide the tour of the prison that held Nelson Mandela; book well ahead. Spend the afternoon at the Waterfront and the Zeitz MOCAA gallery in the old grain silo, and watch the sunset from the Sea Point promenade.

Day three. Drive south around the peninsula: Muizenberg's beach huts, the harbour at Kalk Bay, the penguins of Boulders Beach and the cliffs of Cape Point, returning by Chapman's Peak Drive and Hout Bay.

Day four. Kirstenbosch in the morning, then a slow afternoon of tastings around Stellenbosch or Constantia, the oldest wine-producing area in the country.

Bobotie, Snoek and Bo-Kaap spice shops

The city's most distinctive food comes from its Cape Malay community. Bobotie, spiced minced meat baked under an egg custard and served with yellow rice and chutney, is the dish most people try first, and a mild Cape Malay curry or denningvleis, a sweet-sour lamb stew, follows close behind. In the Bo-Kaap, small family restaurants serve these alongside koeksisters, spiced and syrupy doughnuts. Spice shops in the quarter will mix blends to take home.

Seafood is the other draw. Ask for local linefish such as kingklip or yellowtail, or snoek grilled on the braai with apricot glaze. The fish-and-chip shops at Kalk Bay and Hout Bay harbours are the casual way to eat it, and oysters from the Knysna lagoon appear on many menus in season.

For a broader picture, Kloof Street and Bree Street have the densest run of restaurants and wine bars in the centre, while the Waterfront is convenient but often crowded. Weekend food markets, such as the Neighbourgoods Market at the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock, gather bakers, braai stalls and local producers. Pair it all with wine from Stellenbosch, Franschhoek or Constantia; chenin blanc and pinotage are the local signatures.

Carnival night on the fan walk and the whale months

Come between November and March for dry, warm weather, with highs of 26 to 27C in January and February and less than 15mm of rain a month, or between June and November to see whales from the shore at Hermanus. Christmas and New Year are the busiest weeks, when South Africans head to the coast. The Cape Town Carnival brings floats, music and dancers down the Green Point Fan Walk on an evening in March, usually around the Human Rights Day holiday. Arrive early to find space along the route, and plan transport home in advance.

Autumn is short. April still reaches 24C, but rain starts to pick up, from 40mm in April to 61mm in May. June to August is the wet season, with 70 to 90mm of rain a month and highs around 18C. It is cooler and greener, and hotel prices fall. This is also when southern right whales come into False Bay and Walker Bay. Hermanus, about two hours east by road, is the best known shore-based whale-watching spot, with the season typically running from about June to November.

Spring arrives in September and October with highs of 20 to 22C. Wild flowers bloom at Kirstenbosch and, further north along the West Coast, in the Namaqualand region.