Spend an Exciting, Affordable Holiday in Cape Town!

Most newcomers to the city of Cape Town don't know where to begin. The fact that the city's size is restricted by being between the mountain and the sea has only made the locals cram more into the space available. The city is by no means crowded however, and extends far beyond the confines of the city bowl. There are a lot of attractions to be found outside of the confines of the city, but for those seeking luxury, excitement and the finer things in life, the best of these can be found within Cape Town itself.

If you want a little more than what the St. James - Kalk Bay - Fish Hoek coastline has to offer, there are plenty of fine restaurants and curio shops in and around the center of town to keep you interested. Long Street has developed as the center of town, and a walk along this aptly named street will take you from one end of the city bowl to the other in around 30 minutes. Along the way you will find many different distractions, depending on the time of day.

During the daytime you will find clothing retailers, cafes, a few pubs and some excellent restaurants. By night Long Street is the center of Cape Town night life, and there are over twenty nightclubs to choose from which range from bohemian Rastafarian restaurants to the trendiest clubs. Long street is the playground of Cape Town's well-heeled partiers, and you will find the best entertainment the city has to offer along this road at night.

The obvious attraction in Cape Town is the V & A Waterfront, where you can find craft markets, a mall, ocean-going and Robben Island trips and much more. At the Cape Town International Conference Center which is just next door you can catch trade shows, new vehicle releases, art displays and presentations from local and international speakers on any topic under the sun. Finding anything in Cape Town takes a little getting used to, but once you find that all the streets run in a grid pattern it is easy to count blocks to get to your destination.

Accommodation options within Cape Town are abundant, but none are inexpensive. Small guest houses and self-catering apartments are available, but if you are in the market for this type of accommodation you could find much better for the same price outside of town. There are a number of hotels dotted around town, including the famous Mount Nelson, the Cape Grace, the Sheraton, the Holiday Inn and the hotels in the V & A Waterfront: The Victoria and Alfred Hotel, the Radisson and the Table Bay Hotel. Accommodation at all of these venues is the finest in Cape Town, but comes at a premium. If you are touring Cape Town on a budget, your best bet would be to find accommodation outside of the city center.