Winelands - the winelands almost need a section to themselves. Each has plenty of wine tasting, old Cape Dutch style mansion houses, and rolling vineyards. The Constantia Wine Route is closest to Cape Town, being in the leafy suburb of Constantia. Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franshoek are all slightly further afield (about an hour or so out of Cape Town on the N1). Maps can be obtained through any travel agent and many hotels offer wine route tours.
Constantia is the oldest wine growing area in South Africa. The wine farms making up the Constantia Wine Route are Groot Constantia, Klein Constantia, Buitenverwachting, Constantia Uitsig, Steenberg, Constantia Glen, Eagles Nest and High Constantia. All offer benchmark wines and have won many significan awards. Idea for afternoon tasting tours from Cape Town as Constantia is only a 20 min drive from the City Centre. For more information on the Constantia Wine Route, visit their website - www.constantiavalley.com or for directions on how to get to Constantia download a map of the valley in pdf format.
Paarl is an hours drive from Cape Town on the N1. It has many natural attractions and artistic relevance as well as some of the best wine producing estates in South Africa. Backsberg, Vendome, KWV, Fairview, Rhebokskloof, Nederburg and Simonsvlei or some of the better known wine estates. For more information visit the Paarl Wine Farms website - winecountry.co.za and for directions to Paarl, download the pdf map.
Franschhoek Valley offers some of the finest South African wines in one of the most beautiful settings. Franschhoek also boasts award winning restaurants with a wonderful assortment of dishes and expertise. There are 42 active wine producing estates in the Franschhoek valley, with innovation a key factor in Franschhoek wine production. For more information visit the Franschhoek Valley official website - www.franschhoek.org.za/
Representing more than 200 wine producers in the Stellenbosch region, it offers daily tasting, cellar tours & sales as well as restaurant and picnic facilities. Some of the wine estates you have to pay a visit too are Simonsig, Lanzerac, Alto Estate, Longridge Estate and Rust en Vrede Estate. For more information on the Stellenbosch Wine Route, see the official website - www.wineroute.co.za
Popular Day Trips around Cape Town:
Beaches
Wine Route
Southern Peninsular
V&A Waterfront
Cultural Cape
West Coast
Sundowners
Feeling Sporty?
The Wild Side