Why Cape Town is the best city in the world
First of all, this ^^^.
In case you don’t follow me or have muted me on Instagram (in which case, I completely understand and do not blame you), I am currently in Cape Town, South Africa, and loving every fricken second of it. I’ve been to over 40 countries and truly believe that this is the best city in the world.
There are so many things that make this a desirable destination, but if I had to narrow down exactly what makes Cape Town my #1, it’d be a combination of the views, the vibe, the bouj and the grit, the adventures, and the people.
Other than that, there’s the weather, eco-consciousness, sunrise/sunset culture, never-ending things to do, WINE, beaches, affordability, proximity to safaris, hostel life (shout out Atlantic Point Backpackers!), food, shopping, music scene, markets, etc etc. I could go on. It is just perfect here okay.
But here’s the breakdown of the main things that make Cape Town my spirit city.
The views
Cape Town’s city backdrop is one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature — Table Mountain — flanked by Devil’s Peak and Lion’s Head on either side, and Signal Hill to boot. Every time I walk outside I see one of these iconic mountains and my heart honestly flutters. Besides that, there’s the jagged Twelve Apostles lining the white-sand beaches and bright blue waters of Clifton and Camps Bay beaches, and moving down the Cape Peninsula is just more rugged cliffsides and crashing waves.
It is just freaking stunning. Mother Nature put a little extra touch into creating Cape Town.
The vibe
TIA: This is Africa. This continent is buzzing, it’s alive, it’s real. It’s not curated or restrictive or trying to be too cool. It has its issues, YES. DUH. But there’s a reason why it has kept me coming back three times over the past two years, and it’s an energy that I thrive off of. There’s live music in the streets, Afro house beats bumping in the bars and cars, and it feels a little extra reckless and adventurous and, to me, inspiring.
Cape Town, specifically, has a laid-back beachy vibe that feels like LA without the pretentiousness, mixed with a sultry vibe of Rio de Janeiro, mixed with the pulsating beats of South Africa. I can’t fully describe cause it’s a VIBE. It’s a vibe, people. Just come and feel the vibe.
The bouj & the grit
Cape Town has a bit of edge to it. It is not the safest place I’ve been, nope definitely not. I wouldn’t walk alone here at night. There are plenty of areas I wouldn’t walk alone during the day. My purse stays in front of me when I venture out and my hand stays hovering over my purse. I honestly do have a base level of anxiety in my stomach all the time when I’m walking alone here. That’s tough for me because I LOVE to stroll around. This is due to a mix of all the stories I’ve heard, and some sketchy characters and areas. It is gritty, it is edgy, it will push you out of your comfort zone. But once you know how to navigate that to the best of your control, I can’t imagine anyone not loving Cape Town.
Combined with this, you will find extreme opulence. I have yet to see a house in Bantry Bay without an infinity pool or some crazy futuristic architecture. The houses along Clifton or Camps Bay are absolutely stunning — this is goals and if anyone’s lookin’ for a roomie, I’m their girl. These parts feel like Beverly Hills. You can put on your frilly hat and go to the horse races or cricket, or throw on some glitzy heels and dine at a fancy rooftop bar.
This combo caters to my tastes perfectly because I’m a lil boujee and wild myself, and I think is the main reason this city resonates with me so much.
The adventures
Oh my god the active, outdoorsy lifestyle here is next level. Cape Town is a city where you can go to your 9-5, hike a mountain, and be home for dinner. It’s not uncommon to take on two mountains in one day. There’s trail running, mountain biking, abseiling, paragliding, surfing, outdoor yoga, shark diving, kayaking with dolphins, snorkelling with seals … the activities are actually endless. There are world class wineries within an hour’s drive, African penguins, and a beautiful promenade to stroll and take in the city. I can’t imagine running out of things to do here. Epic is an understatement.
The people
South Africa has been through, and continues to go through, some extremely tumultuous times and I hear stories about these hardships on the daily. I’m not going to attempt to generalize or comment here but what I can say is I have been welcomed SO warmly by the people I’ve met. From my hostel owner to my paraglide pilot to my shark dive master to my yoga instructor, everyone has been so nice, fun, generous, funny, and hospitable. Aside from locals, I find Cape Town attracts the best type of travellers — everyone is fun, adventurous, and has each other’s back.
My best recent example is this: I mentioned on my layover in Paris before this, it was pretty… solo. I was happy/needed to explore the city alone, but to be honest it was a BIT lonely and I was also just very surprised I didn’t meet anyone really. But the travellers/hostel peeps in Paris are a bit different — more tourists than travellers, I like to say. :)
So I flew to Cape Town on my own as usual, and was like ugh I just hope I meet some friends. It can be the luck of the draw in hostels.
I walked in at about 9:30pm, there was a group of 5ish people from Johannesburg who immediately welcomed me, gave me their wine, and we stayed up drinking, chatting, laughing. From there we spent about 5 days and nights together, going on adventures, partying (probably too much — my liver was relieved when they left), going seal snorkelling, to a cricket match, having braai (South African bbq). I couldn’t remember what it was like to be alone.
I have met incredible people on each of my visits here and as we know, no matter how amazing a place is (and Cape Town IS the most of all), your travel experience is about the people.
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Any questions about Cape Town? I’M YOUR GIRL! Hope every person reading this (aka my mom and maybe my hostel owner, hi Tim!) can make it here at least once in your life!!
