Table Mountain is among the oldest exposed rock formations on earth, its flat summit formed from sandstone deposited more than 500 million years ago. It is part of the Cape Floristic Region, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the world’s six recognised floral kingdoms, home to more than 8,500 plant species, nearly 70 percent of which are found nowhere else on earth. The upper cable car station, reached in under five minutes, places you simultaneously above the city and the Atlantic, with views across to Robben Island and the length of the Cape Peninsula.

The Cape Winelands begin less than an hour from the city centre, in the valleys around Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl, producing wines that compete seriously on the global stage across chenin blanc, pinotage and Bordeaux-style blends in particular. Cape Town’s restaurant scene has developed in parallel, drawing on exceptional local ingredients: West Coast seafood, Karoo lamb, and a culinary tradition shaped by Dutch, Cape Malay, French Huguenot and Khoisan influences over four centuries.

Cape Town contains several centuries of South African history, and understanding the city means engaging with all of it. The District Six Museum documents the forced removals that displaced 60,000 people between 1968 and 1982. Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela served 18 of his 27 years of imprisonment, is visited on tours led partly by former political prisoners. The Bo-Kaap neighbourhood, with its painted houses and Cape Malay cooking, represents one of the oldest continuous urban communities in the country. No other city in southern Africa compresses this much layered history into such a walkable space.