About RSA and Cape Town

South Africa, land of rich diversity.

South Africa lies at the southern tip of the African continent and has a magnificently rich and diverse cultural and natural heritage. The country is home to a population of more than 45 million people. This population is made of many different ethnic groupings and forms the foundation of the beloved “Rainbow Nation” . There are 11 different official languages. These are made up of 9 indigenous black languages, Afrikaans, and English, which is the official language of record. South Africans are known world-wide for their friendliness and hospitality to all visitors who come to these shores. The countries natural wonders offer a remarkable diversity. There are 17 national parks and more than 1000 game reserves (government and privately owned) that are included within an amazing 12.5 million hectares of designated conservation areas. There are seven different vegetation biomes spread out through the nine provinces, and 15 protected wetland areas. There are world heritage sites at St Lucia Wetlands on the Kwa-Zulu Natal north coast, Robben Island off the coast of Cape Town, the Cradle of Mankind, close to Johannesburg, and the Drakensburg Mountain Range. Other highlights include the famous Kruger national Park, covering more than 20 000 kms², the Kgalagadi trans-frontier park of the Kalahari Desert, and many many more extraordinary landscapes.

The Western Cape – a home for all

The Western Cape is the most southern of the country’s nine provinces, located in the south western tip of the country. It covers an area of ------ kms² , and has the Atlantic Ocean on its West coast with the cold Benguela current coming up from the Antarctic and the Indian Ocean on the east coast with its warm Agulhas current coming down from Mozambique. In the Western Cape we have the magnificent Table Mountain overlooking the beautiful city of Cape Town. The province has 26 nature reserves and 6 National Parks within its border. These range from the Table Mountain National Park to the Cedarberg Wildnerness Area , to the Karoo National Park, to the Wildnerness Lakes area. The Cape Floral Kingdom is one of only six Floral Kingdoms proclaimed around the world, and although it is the smallest by far, it has an incredible 8500 different plant species in an area that is measured from Clanwilliam in the north to Humansdorp in the east. Table Mountain alone has more than 1800 plant species, which is more than the whole of the UK. Apart from the main regional centre of Cape Town there are a number of wonderful towns and villages that are located close to many of the nature areas throughout the Western Cape. These include Stellenbosch, a large University town and centre of the South Africa wine industry, Clanwilliam next to the Cedarberg Wilderness area, Langebaan next to the West Coast National Park, Beaufort West located next to the Karoo National Park, Swellendam next to the Bontebok National Park, Arniston close to De Hoop nature reserve, Knysna with its lagoon and marine reserve, Oudtshoorn next to the Swartberg Nature reserve and the dramatic Cango Caves, Prince Albert an old Victorian village in the Klein Karoo, and many more just waiting for you to discover.

Cape Town – the mother city of Africa

The beautiful city of Cape Town lies at Longitude E 18 28.8 and Latitude S 33 56.4, it has a temperate climate which is very similar to the Mediterranean. Cape Town is a modern, cosmopolitan and vibrant city where all the cultures throughout South Africa and Africa come to together in a unique mix. The main tourist attractions in Cape Town are the Table Mountain Cableway, the V & A Waterfront, Robben Island, Cape Point and Kirstenbosch National gardens, and many many more. The city is dominated by Table Mountain, which at 1 086 mts ( 3 563 ft) above sea level must be the largest city landmark in the world. Apart from the cableway the mountain has also has a large number of hiking trails which lead to the ‘table top’. The main business district, harbour area and tourism spots are within the front amphitheatre of the mountain which faces a NW direction. To the North lies the northern suburbs which include Bellville and Durbanville, on the south east side of the mountain are the “Southern” suburbs which include Newlands and ,Rondebsoch and beyond that the area known as the Cape Flats where the main residential areas of Cape Town lie. To the south is the peninsula where the Cape Of Good Hope stands. On the way to Cape Point along the Indian Ocean side are the towns of Muizenburg, Kalk Bay, Fish Hoek and the naval base of Simonstown. On the way back to Cape Town on the Atlantic side, there are the small towns of Scarborough, Hout Bay and Llandudno, then the seaboard suburbs of Camps Bay and Clifton. Just 11 kms off the coast lies Robben Island. The Island was the location of the prison where former President Nelson Mandela spent many years of his life. It is now a World Heritage Site and museum. The city has a large range of accommodation ranging from pack-packers right up to 5 star establishments. There is also a great number of very good restaurants, bars , cinemas, theatres & museums. On top of that there is quite a number of wine estates within the city boundaries.