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JANA FERREIRA / SOUTH AFRICA

Exploring the Outskirts of Cape Town Through the Eyes of a Local Good-Timer

Jana Ferreira, copywriter

I’m Jana, a Copywriter at Ekster and a born and bred Capetonian living in Somerset West—a not-so-small town about 30 minutes from Cape Town’s city center. I love nothing more than having a good time with great friends— usually accompanied by a bottle of wine, frothing cold beers, or local craft gin, and of course, delicious food. Throw in a great view and I’m in heaven! In this guide, I’ll show you some of my favorite places outside the city of Cape Town.

Family playing in the yard of a modern house.

The Best Little Winery in Somerset West: Yonder hill

First on my list has to be my favorite winery (spoiler: pretty much every Capetonian is somewhat wine-obsessed). Yonder Hill is a quaint winery situated on the cusp of Somerset West and its neighboring town, Stellenboch.

When you drive up the meandering road to Yonder Hill, you’ll be greeted by the magnificent Ankole cattle grazing along the way. Stop and take a pic. You won’t see majestic horns like that again anytime soon!

Yonder Hill is not just the creator of my favorite Sauvignon Blanc, called Benjamin, but they have a terrific craft beer on tap and their pizzas are scrumptious too.

A large bull with long horns stands on a grassy field against a cloudy sky.

Spoiler: pretty much every Capetonian is somewhat wine-obsessed

Person pouring red wine from a barrel into a glass.

Paint and Sip at Lourensford Wine Estate

Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West has tonnes to offer! From their epic weekend markets with live music, incredible foods, and a wide variety of drinks to their variety of restaurants, wine tasting room, on-site coffee roastery, art gallery, activities for the whole family, and gorgeous gardens—there’s no shortage of good times here.

Monochrome image of a winery building with mountains in the background.

One of my favorite activities at Lourensford is the paint and sip workshop hosted by Artjamming™. Sitting outside with a glass of wine in one hand and a paintbrush in the other is unbelievably fun. Don’t worry, you don’t need to be particularly good at painting to enjoy it! My friends and I like to wing it, but Artjamming™ offers guided workshops too if you’d like to take it a little more seriously.

Person painting a landscape with a tree, smiling at the camera.

Olive Oil Tasting at Morgenster Estate

Yes, Cape Town is renowned for its bountiful vineyards. But did you know we produce some of the finest olive oil too? The founder of Morgenster Estate, Giulio Bertrand, is considered the “Father of Olive Oil” in South Africa, having planted 42 hectares of premium Italian olive trees on our rocky soils.

When I first went for an olive oil tasting at the Morgenster family estate, I didn’t really know what to expect. I mean, how tasty can olive oil

be? Needless to say, I wouldn’t add this stop to my list if it didn’t leave a lasting impression.

Not only is it a unique (you must try the olive oil ice cream!) and utterly informative experience, but the estate itself is stunning too. I highly recommend paying them a visit. If not for the olive oil, for their world-class Bordeaux-style wines.

Table setting with tasting glasses, olives, dip, and bread on a textured surface.

Treat Your Senses at Spice Route

If you’re a more-is-more kind of traveler who wants to squeeze every bit of experience out of every day, then there’s one destination that ticks all the boxes: Spice Route. It’s about an hour’s drive from Cape Town and situated on a historic wine farm in the heart of the Cape Winelands, just outside a small town called Paarl.

The big drawing card for me is that there are four different tasting venues where you can try locally made Spice Route wines, Jewell’s charcuterie, CBC premium craft beer, Wilderer spirits, and chocolate and confections by Beyers. After you’ve had your fun and tasted one too many alcoholic beverages, there are fantastic restaurants to choose from where you can unwind and enjoy the view of the vineyards. 

Charcuterie board with wine on table, scenic mountain view in background.

A Few Tips for Your Trip

Getting Around

Your best bet for getting around easily and safely is to use Uber or to rent a car and drive yourself. We have taxi services in Cape Town’s city center, but they tend to be expensive and hard to come by. They’re not the “flagging down” type of cabs you might be used to. When renting a car, just remember to stick to the left-hand side of the road.

Local Lingo

Everyone in and around Cape Town speaks English, so you won’t run into any trouble communicating with locals. However, if you really want to impress them, throw in an Afrikaans phrase or two. 

Good morning: Goeie môre or just “môre”

Good afternoon: Goeie middag

Good evening: Naand

Please: Asseblief

Thank you: Dankie

Nice/good/fun: Lekker

How are you: Howzit? (not Afrikaans, but our shortened spin

on the English phrase, “How is it going?”)

I’m good/okay/yes: Shap or “shap-shap” pronounced

“shup-shup”(technically not Afrikaans, but widely used and usually accompanied with a thumbs-up)

Tipping Staff

It is a common courtesy to add at least a 10% tip to your bill at restaurants and bars. Some places will add a service charge to your bill’s total when you’re a party of six or more. 

If you’re renting a car, you’ll find car guards wearing high-vis vests

in almost every parking area. It’s customary to give your car guard between R5 and R15 upon returning to your car (depending on how long you were parked) as a “thank you” for keeping an eye on your vehicle. We also tip our petrol attendants in South Africa.

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