Why False Bay?
Cape Town’s beach scene tends to be thought of in terms of its western coast. The likes of Camps Bay and Clifton are seriously monied, distinctly white and rather showy. But these aren’t the city’s only beaches – and the seaside suburbs that line up along False Bay to the south of the city have a very different feel.
Muizenberg has a strong surf culture, Kalk Bay is cutesy, independent and creative, while Simon’s Town has naval heritage and a smattering of small museums. What unites them all is a generally relaxed vibe and a stronger feeling of the Rainbow Nation properly mixing.
A comfortable bed
The St James Homestead (www.stjamesguesthouses.com) offers a series of sprawling, impeccably-designed suites with parquet flooring, twin showers, a roll-top bath and all manner of intriguing ornamentation on the shelves behind the bed. The help-yourself system for drinks and snacks from the central kitchen is superb. Suites cost from 3,290 South African rand (Dh880) per night.
The Chartfield Guesthouse (www.chartfield.co.za) is on a hill in Kalk Bay. The sloping grass lawn, with sunbeds round a small pool, is a major bonus. Balconies, super-soft linen and large walk-in showers make the rooms appealing, although Wi-Fi is charged by the megabyte. Rooms cost from 850 rand (Dh227) per night.
Boulders Beach Lodge (www.bouldersbeachlodge.com) is fairly basic – and fan-cooled rather than air-conditioned – but you get the novelty of penguins scuttling up to the car park. Double rooms cost from 500 rand (Dh134) per night.
Find your feet
It's possible to make a day of it walking from Muizenberg to Kalk Bay. Start with a two-hour surf lesson at the wild, dune-backed Muizenberg Beach. Gary's Surf School (www.garysurf.co.za) offers individual tuition for 380 rand (Dh102).
From there, head along Main Road to the Casa Labia Cultural Centre (www.casalabia.co.za), which has an excellent collection of South African art, and stop off at the Rhodes Cottage Museum. This was where highly controversial diamond magnate and arch-colonialist Cecil Rhodes lived and died. Inside, the displays go into his life, from coming over to the Cape as sickly youngster to his legacy, which includes the Rhodes scholarship at Oxford University.
Keep on going past the colourful beach huts at St James and you eventually end up at Kalk Bay’s photogenic harbour, where fishing boats huddle up after a hard day’s work.
Meet the locals
The cutest locals hang out around Boulders, a couple of kilometres around the bay from Simon’s Town. Thousands of African penguins spend the day mooching around on the beach, clambering on the rocks and going for dips in the water. Viewing is done from the boardwalk, but the secret for getting up close is to head a couple of kilometres farther to the small, cove-like Boulders Beach. There, you can sit on the sand without the crowds as the penguins waddle around you.
Book a table
Seafood is the strength in these parts, and Harbour House (www.harbourhouse.co.za) by Kalk Bay's harbour does it exquisitely. The restaurant feels like it's hanging over the water, and dishes include sushi, hake with wilted spinach and Mozambique-style pan-fried prawns. Mains cost from about 185 rand (Dh49.50).
Tiger's Milk (www.tigersmilk.co.za) in Muizenberg unashamedly goes for dude food, with towering burgers, roast-lamb pizzas, grilled meats and peri-peri half chickens. There's an impressive barn-like look to the place, and plenty of buzz to boot.
Shopper’s paradise
Kalk Bay has the most interesting shopping, with no chains present and plenty of indie stores and boutiques doing their own thing along Main Road. There's a strong bohemian bent to most of them, epitomised at Casa Boho (www.casaboho.co.za). Among mohair blankets and colourful block-print cloths are geranium-smelling soaps and wooden stamps with intricate carvings.
The Kalk Bay Co-Op sees a collection of local artists and designers band together in the same spot, selling some beautiful shoes, jewellery, dresses, handbags and whimsical cushion covers decorated by stylised pictures of animals.
What to avoid
Baboons are prominent in the area (particularly towards Cape Point). They seem cute and hilarious until the point they attack you while trying to steal something. Feeding them is illegal and incurs a fine – so keep your distance and don’t fling food their way.
Don’t miss
Follow the bay along from Boulders and the wild national parkland of the Cape Peninsula takes over from the beaches. There are plenty of hiking trails through the fynbos bushland, and spectacular views of the mountains and headlands that dot the coast. It all ends at Cape Point, which is essentially the end of Africa, too. A funicular railway takes you up pretty much to the end, from where it’s next stop Antarctica.
Getting there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies direct from Dubai to Cape Town from Dh4,445. The flight time is 9 hours.
