Cape Winelands Tours & Safari Packages

Why Travel To Cape Winelands?

Cape Town is synonymous not only with Table Mountain and beautiful beaches but with good wine too. Just a day trip to the Cape Winelands will make the reason for this clear as day. For trips that include a visit to the Cape Winelands, speak to one of our expert travel consultants.

What to Expect

• Spectacular scenery with vineyards set below towering mountains
• Award-winning wines to taste
• Exploring the winemaking cultures on a cellar tour
• Tasting culinary delights which have become part and parcel of the Cape Winelands: cheeses, chocolates, charcuterie and olives, to name but a few
• Beautifully restored Cape Dutch architecture at the older farms and modern, environmentally-sensitive architecture at the newer farms
• Friendly people, interesting wine facts, fascinating history, dating back over 300 years
• Did we mention the spectacular scenery?

Wine Routes

The Cape Winelands stretches over an enormous region, right the way into the Eastern Cape, over 400 km from Cape Town. There is, however, no need to travel very far from Cape Town’s city center to sample some of the best wines that the Cape has to offer.

Constantia Wine Route

Just under half an hour from the city center, this lush valley contains some of the oldest wine farms in the Cape, and some of the newest. With sweeping views across to False Bay in one direction, and up the eastern slopes of Table Mountain (the back of it), in the other.

This is the wine route with the smallest number of wine farms – nine – but don’t let that put you off. They’re a high-quality nine, with an astounding number of wine (and foodie) awards to their names!

Paarl Wine Route

Set beneath the pearl-shaped mountain for which it is named, Paarl lies under an hour from Cape Town on the N2. It is literally surrounded by wine farms, including one of our favorites – Fairview, with its goats and cheeses.

Franschhoek Wine Route

Originally settled by the French in 1688, their influence is still clearly evident in this picturesque valley, just over an hour out of Cape Town. Franschhoek is known as the Culinary Capital of South Africa and is home to a number of internationally-acclaimed restaurants and chefs.

Take a trip on the Franschhoek Tram, which will let you hop on and hop off at your leisure at seven wine farms in the area.

Stellenbosch and Helderberg Wine Route

This is the most well-known wine route, with some of the oldest, most gracious farms. Stellenbosch town is lovely, with oak-lined streets and beautifully restored Cape Dutch buildings. Surrounding it, in all the spectacular valleys and on the slopes are vineyards and farms with breath-taking scenery and delicious wines.

Add to the wines, various other specialties at different farms, such as olives, chocolate, and even grappa, and you could easily spend a month visiting all the farms, meeting the people, and tasting the wines!

Tips for a Good Cape Winetasting Experience

• Have a designated driver, or take an organized tour, with a driver
• Plan your route beforehand. The number of wine farms is staggering, so do a little research and decide which ones you want to go to. Remember that many of the farms specialize in other delights too – olives, cheeses, charcuterie, and chocolate, to name a few
• Allow at least an hour per farm (and tasting) and two hours for lunch
• Summer temperatures reach up into the high 30s (Celcius), so take a hat, slather on the sunscreen, and drink plenty of water between the wines
• Go on a cellar tour on at least one of the farms. The cool, calm interiors are lovely and the wine-making process is fascinating
• If you’re visiting a number of wine farms and want to remember and savor all the wines, use the spittoons
• Most importantly: Don’t rush! Take a walk through the vineyards, breathe in the grape-flavored country air, and appreciate the spectacular beauty of this area

The Cape Winelands combines well with the Cape Whale Coast and Cape Town Safaris to Big 5 game reserves near the city.