Wine, Safari & City Itineraries
An hour from Cape Town, a valley of Huguenot farms, mountains on three sides and more good restaurants per capita than anywhere else in Africa. Come for two nights, stay for four, and let somebody else drive.
Wine, properly
Transfer from Cape Town, afternoon on the Wine Tram, dinner in the village.
Private guided estates – one big name, two small growers – and a long lunch.
Stellenbosch on the way back, or straight to the airport.
Wine & safari
Franschhoek – tram, estates, the restaurants you flew here for.
Sanbona in the Little Karoo – malaria-free Big Five, three hours away.
Route 62 via Robertson, tasting on the way home.
City, wine & whales
Cape Town – Table Mountain, the Peninsula, Boulders Beach.
Franschhoek and the Winelands.
Hermanus for the whales, July to October.
Is the Franschhoek Wine Tram worth it?
Yes – on your first day, and only then. It is a hop-on hop-off tram and bus loop around eight or so estates, it removes the driving question entirely, and it is genuinely good fun. It is also busy, fixed to a timetable and not the way to taste seriously.
So do the tram on day one for the fun of it, then take a private guided day for the estates that actually interest you – the small growers off the main road who pour their own wine and do not appear on the tram map.
Lines sell out in peak season. Pick the line, not just the day.
The good kitchens are full weeks ahead from November to March.
South Africa’s limit is low and enforcement is real. Take a guide.
Robertson is quieter, cheaper and pours some of the best Chardonnay in the country.
Cape Winelands Full Day Tour
Private guided day from Cape Town: Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and a lunch stop, back by early evening.
Robertson Wine Region Full Day Tour
Route 62 into the Breede River valley – quieter cellars, better prices, and a proper Karoo lunch.
“Wine tasting at the beautiful Boschendal Wine Estate in the Cape Winelands… an absolute pleasure planning and designing your tailor-made tour.”
When is the best time to visit the Cape Winelands?
February and March for harvest, when the valley smells of fermenting fruit and the estates are alive. October and November are quieter with the vines in leaf. Winter is green, wet and wonderfully cheap, with fires lit in the tasting rooms.
Franschhoek or Stellenbosch?
Franschhoek is smaller, prettier and food-led – one main street, mountains at the end of it. Stellenbosch is a university town with more variety, more history and better value. Stay in Franschhoek, taste in both.
Can I add a safari to a Winelands trip?
Yes, and it is the single best add-on we sell. Sanbona in the Little Karoo is a three-hour drive from Franschhoek, malaria-free, and gives you Big Five game viewing without a domestic flight. Four nights of wine and two of safari is our most-requested Cape shape.