Table Mountain, Cape Town

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I guess there's 2 ways of doing it ---Hike up or ride the cable car. Since I am an old old man, I chose the latter. But either way, you have to go up this magnificent mountain!


The cable car I took to go up Table Mountain is called The Table Mountain Cableway. When you first get in, you think of where to stand so that you can get the best views.

BUT, DON'T WORRY! Just stand anywhere because the amazing thing is that this is a ROTATING cablecar --- it rotates through 360 degrees during the ascent or descent, giving a panoramic view over the city. So, no matter you stand, you get your fair share of the view!

The cablecar was built starting 1926 (opened 1929) and currently takes passengers from the lower cable station on Tafelberg Road, about 302 m above sea level, to the plateau at the top of the mountain. The unique features added in 1997 were the new capacity of 65 passengers (instead of the original of only 25) and the ability to rotate (as mentioned).

But if you want to hike up, you will need about 2-3 hours of strenuous walking through the Platteklip Gorge. The walk up starts just east of the lower cable station.

BUT REMEMBER THAT MUGGINGS/RAPE have been reported in going up Table Mountain --- and unless you are a Kung Fu Black Belt, you might have to reconsider walking...

Another route is more scenic but steeper through the Skeleton Gorge which starts at Kirstenboasch Botanical Gardens...Then when going down, take the Nursery Ravine. Be sure you bring WATER!!! And maybe a cellphone...

It seems to be too much trouble to hike, so just enjoy the cablecar -- it was fast and gives you more time to see other great places in Cape Town!

BRING LOADS OF WATER. Whether you are an avid climber or just hiking the platterklip (Which I believe is the easiest route).. you are going to be so thirsty. Its quite hard work. We actually ended up drinking from a stream dripping from a rock... hygienic i know.

We were a tad afraid to climb the mountain as there was alot of talk of muggings through the trails.. but we had no trouble at all. Try and go early in the day.. and remember that the weather on the mountain can change very quickly. One minute u will be roasting to death and the next you are freezing. Bring a layer or two of clothing.

I'm pretty sure this has already been mentioned.. but make sure you check the upcoming weather conditions as the cable car may not run during nasty conditions. You don't want to get stuck up there.

You will be surprised how un-flat the top of table mountain actually is! The scenary is beautiful... Try and catch a sunset if you can! Unfortunatly i never got to, but i hear its unreal.

Do NOT hike down Table Mountain. It is very dangerous. Yes, you dont need a whole day fr the mountain, as long as you come down on the cable car. You will nee a full day for the wine farms. It is beautiful and scenic.

make sure you phone the table mountain weather line on the morning you want to visit (google table mountain for number) as they stop running in high winds and you may turn up and be disappointed. So don't think of doing that trip on your last day

The cable cars not operate when dangerous wind blowing. Weather conditions permitting, operates every 10 minutes in high season and every 20 minutes in low season. Last car down at 10pm. Best you go in morning on good day

I found out about cycling along Table Mountain from some random surfing on the Web, so a mate & I signed up for this when we visited Cape Town in Dec 2005.

The outfit that does this is called "Downhill Adventures" & their office is located at the top of Kloof Street. They bring you in a van, with the mountain bikes, to the base station at Table Mountain, & then the guide & participants are given mountain bikes.

After a briefing, we cycle & follow the guide along the biking trails along Table Mountain; this is very exhilirating & you can get some really good views of Cape Town from some of the ledges & ridges you cycle along.

Along the way, we stop at a small mountainside pool for a refreshing dip in some really cold water, then we move on to where the trails lead to the start of all the residential areas midway along Table Mountain.

The trails are mostly downhill & this portion is no exception. You get to some really cool & beautiful parts of Cape Town & some superbly-built houses while cycling down.

Eventually we end up at the offices & bike storage area at the company's offices in Kloof Street, rather tired but also having thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Its a good way to spend a morning till mid-afternoon, ending off with some refreshing cold beers at some of the pubs along Kloof Street.

Highly recommended, happy cycling everybody !!

As far as Table Mountain, I went there first as part of a tour. We had to wait in line for an hour (in the sunshine) to get tickets and then felt very rushed up on the mountain because of getting back to the tour bus to continue the tour. I went back a few days later after Sunday lunch with a couple friends and it was great because we didn't have to wait in line at all to get tickets and then we were able to stay as long as we wanted to enjoy the views and ambience on top! I highly recommend not going with a tour, but try to plan to go when it might not be too crowded.

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No visit to Cape Town is complete without being on Table Mountian. However, getting there is not that easy. You’ll need a car to drive up to the cableway station. And the cableway is not always operating. That happens when the fog is very dense which makes the cableway unsafe to operate and also your view from Table Mountain equal to zero. This thick fog is called the “table cloth” and is one of the nature phenomenons you won’t like to see when it’s the day planned for Table Mountain…
Once on top of Table Mountain, you are able to enjoy the view on the city as well as on the Table Mountain National Park with its rock formations and peaks. The notable ones are called the “Twelve Apostles” to the south, “Lion’s Head” to the west and “Devil’s Peak” to the east. From the cableway station, there are several paths which you can use to explore the flora and fauna on Table Mountain. You can see some of the usual species from therre, like dassies, birds and lizards. For people interested in more animals, a guided tour thrugh the park may be considered.

For most tourists, like me, a 30-minute-stay on top of Table Mountain is chance enough to enjoy the view and see the landscape. Such stays are part of many tours, including the one with Hylton Ross we did. However, the price (130.00 Rand as of 2007) for the cableway is usually not included in such a tour.