If you’re spending a day at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, there are a few things you definitely don’t want to miss, a few things you can probably skip, and where to enjoy some delicious seafood by the water. And we’re planning on sharing all of that in this video, let’s get into it…
We usually just share our trips around Europe, but for those who don’t know, we’re actually South African. I was born in Cape Town, and my mom lived there for years, so Cape Town is a place that’s really special to us. I recently had the chance to come back to visit some family, so of course, I had to spend some time at one of our favourite places in the city: the V&A Waterfront.
It’s absolutely beautiful there, there’s so much to see and do, and you can easily spend a whole day exploring. So here is what a perfect day at the Waterfront looks like…
Add that they should try their best to plan it right that they get the experience the Waterfront
The Perfect Day at V&A Waterfront Cape Town
First, I got off at the big Cape Town sign next to the Victoria & Alfred Hotel, which is a great spot to take some pictures.
I came with an Uber, but there are also many parking lots close to the main area of the Waterfront.
From there, I walked towards the pier, and on the way I passed so many beautiful restaurants, street performers, another port with views of Table Mountain, and even the little tourist train.
The train is something you could do, especially if you have kids, because it’s a nice way to see more of the Waterfront while saving yourself some of the walking.
Buying a traditional souvenir
Then I went to a beautiful souvenir shop called African Trading Port, and it immediately caught my eye because of all the metal furniture and these huge handmade animal sculptures made from metal and stone.
And of course, there were even more street performers. You’ll see this throughout the whole Waterfront. There are lots of people playing musical instruments, singing traditional songs, and many times they’re accompanied by traditional dancing.
Inside African Trading Port, they have tons of typical souvenirs and South African products, like rooibos tea, as well as beautiful handmade pieces made from wire, colourful beads and even tin cans.
I had to get myself a handmade beaded ring, a magnet for my parents’ collection and a postcard. And although I’m not technically a tourist, we don’t get to come to South Africa that often, so I always like getting a few little things to remember the trip.
Lunch at Quay 4
Then I walked to the pier, which is honestly so stunning.
From there, I made my way to a restaurant called Quay 4 (pronounced Key 4). The walk there along the water is really beautiful, so we definitely recommend walking this side of the Waterfront.
There are restaurants right along the water, and K4 is no different. It’s a beautiful restaurant where you can sit downstairs right by the water, or inside.
The upstairs area is reserved for a different kind of experience, with more upscale, loungy dining. If you’re curious to see it, you can always ask if you can have a look upstairs. They’ll most probably have no problem with that.
But the restaurant itself is amazing. Just keep in mind that it gets very busy.
I went at around 1:00 or 1:30, which was a good time to go. It was already busy, but lunchtime in South Africa is usually around 12 to 1, maybe 1:30, so I think I just missed the busiest part.
What I ordered
I ordered a Long Island Iced Tea, and the other person I was with ordered a strawberry daiquiri.
We were lucky enough to get a table right by the water, so if that’s something you’d like, definitely ask if they have a table available outside by the water.
The inside is nice too, but obviously it’s not quite the same as sitting right on the water. They do, however, have live music at certain times of the day, including during lunch, so if you like that kind of atmosphere, you might actually prefer sitting inside.
For food, we ordered calamari strips with fries, which we call chips in South Africa, and tartar sauce.
And it was absolutely delicious. Cape Town has incredible seafood, and the calamari was so soft, the chips were cooked to perfection, and the sauce was so good that we just couldn’t get enough.
Shortly after we got our food, the live music started, and they were really good and super fun.
So we just sat there, enjoyed the views, listened to the music and took our time.
We decided not to have dessert here, though, because we wanted to find dessert somewhere else, which we’ll get to later.
Time Out Market Cape Town
After that, I really wanted to go and see the Time Out Market.
There are Time Out Markets in different cities around the world, and we try to go every time we’re somewhere that has one because we just love the vibe.
It’s basically a market with tons of different places serving different types of food and drinks. Here they had wine bars, seafood restaurants, Asian cuisine, cocktail bars and all sorts of different food.
It also has a really cool industrial aesthetic.
We didn’t get anything here because we had just eaten, and we didn’t really see anything we wanted for dessert. But this is definitely a great place to come for a meal or a drink, especially if you want to have something a little later in the day.
Victoria Wharf Mall
From there, we made our way to the Victoria Wharf Mall.
Definitely go inside because the architecture is really beautiful, and there are plenty of great stores.
I was actually very excited to see that they had Ladurée, which is the famous French macaron shop from Paris.
It’s extremely beautiful inside, with the most gorgeous vintage, pastel décor.
We just got one macaron each to taste. I got the rose and the pistachio, and they were both absolutely delicious.
Dessert at Gelato Mania
Then we walked around the mall a little more, and we came across an ice cream shop called Gelato Mania.
We’d recommend going here. The price was good, and they were really generous with the ice cream.
We both got Turkish delight flavour, and mine had these massive chunks of Turkish delight in it. I also got chocolate, and it was really good.
Turkish delight is actually my favourite sweet treat, so I really enjoyed this ice cream.
We then sat outside with a view of Table Mountain, the pier and the water, and just sat on a bench for a while.
And honestly, it was really lovely just to sit there and enjoy the view.
Is the Ferris Wheel worth it?
After that, we went to see the ocean views and passed the famous Ferris wheel, called the Cape Wheel, that’s here at the Waterfront.
You can go up, and the views are really good. Although I will say, I’m not sure it’s really worth going out of your way to do.
A standard ticket costs R180, which is around €9, so you can definitely do it if it’s something you really want to experience, but personally, we don’t think it’s a must-do.
Where to grab food in the evening
By this point, that was enough for us for the day. We got more than enough sun, and we’d already seen and done quite a lot.
We did walk around a little more just to see the different restaurants and what else was around.
There are also lots of great fast food options if you need a quick pick-me-up or you have kids who need a snack.
We definitely recommend trying some of the South African fast-food places you can’t find anywhere else.
Steers is a classic, similar in concept to Burger King or McDonald’s, and Spur, family-style restaurant, is also a great option if you have kids. We love their ribs and their prices are super affordable. And of course, there’s Nando’s, a fast-casual restaurant which was actually born in South Africa and became hugely popular in the UK, mainly focusing on chicken with Afro-Portuguese cuisine.
Final tips to enjoy the day
One thing we would definitely recommend is coming on a sunny day. The experience, and especially the views, just won’t be the same if it’s cloudy or rainy, so if you have some flexibility with your itinerary, definitely try to plan your Waterfront day for when the weather is good.
And keep in mind that you’re going to be walking quite a lot, so wear something comfortable. You can still look nice, but comfortable shoes are definitely a good idea.
And honestly, there is so much to see and do here that you could easily spend more than one day at the Waterfront.
There’s a Contemporary African Art museum, loads of incredible restaurants, shops and plenty of other things to explore. You can visit the aquarium, and a 20 min drive away is also the entrance to the cableway that takes you up to the top of Table Mountain.
But of course, it’s impossible to fit all of that into one day, which is why we wanted to show you what we did and what we think is actually worth adding to your day at the V&A Waterfront.
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