South Africa Guide
Cape Town
False Bay Seaboard
In summer the waters of False Bay are several degrees warmer than those on the Atlantic seaboard, which is why Cape Town's oldest and most popular seaside development is along this flank of the peninsula. A series of village-like suburbs, backing onto the mountains, each served by a Metrorail station, is dotted all the way south from Muizenberg, through StJames, KalkBay, FishHoek and down to Simon'sTown. Each has its own character with restaurants, shops and places to stay, while Simon's Town, one of South Africa's oldest settlements, is worth taking in as a day-trip and makes a useful base for visiting the Cape of Good Hope section of the Table Mountain National Park and Cape Point.
Driving here from Cape Town, you can take the M3 south, or the M5 via the less salubrious Cape Flats. From Muizenberg, Main Road and the railway line spectacularly hug the shore all the way to Simon's Town; indeed, the train ride to Simon's Town, taking an hour from Cape Town, is reason enough to visit, and most stations are situated close to the surf.