spartacusmcfly

Was anxious to head to CPT in Q1 on the new UA route. Just read the NYT article below about the huge spike in gang violence and the military being called in to suppress. Is this just the NYT creating drama or is the city really dangerous? How dangerous relative to Chicago?

​​​​​https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2019/08/13/world/africa/cape-town-crime-military.amp.html

WineCountryUA

This seems like a better topic for the Africa Destination forum as it is not a direct UA issue.

WineCountryUA
UA coModerator

Ditto

As a tourist in Cape Town you will spend most of your time in the areas I circled in blue, the suburbs mentioned in the article are marked in red, so really nothing to worry about.

nancypants

Madone59

In my opinion Cape Town is not that dangerous.......because I've only been to the part of the city highlighted in Ditto's map. When I was there in 2017 I went with no plan, walked around places like green market square and used uber to get around.

T8191

Agree with Madone59 ... although admittedly we never walked out at night. In the main areas, apart from a few random beggars [usually easy to see and avoid], we found C.T. no worse than any other city. Just use common sense to get around.

That said, having done C.T. a couple of times, we now just head straight from CPT airport to the Winelands!

The_Bouncer

The area discussed in the article is not in the city itself. It is a township some distance away.

Having spent a fair bit of time in South Africa, I can confidently say that Cape Town is the safest of the major cities.

I don't know the statistics in relation to Chicago or other world cities, but my own experience is that incidents involving tourists are unlikely if you take the same sensible precautions as you would in Chicago, London or any other major cities.

My advice is:

1. Dress down. Try not to look wealthy. Casual clothes, little or no jewellery. Cheap rental car.

2. If (when) you are approached by beggars, plead poverty. Just tell them you don't have any money.

3. Don't worry too much. Things do happen in Cape Town, but the horror stories are, at least in my experience, isolated.

Cape Town has it issues and it certainly has its rough areas, but the vast majority of tourists are unlikely to encounter them.

spartacusmcfly

Very helpful feedback -- especially the map! Thx to all!

Looking forward to my trip.

skywardhunter

I live in CPT. Don't worry. And we're happy the national defense force is here to sort stuff out.

The map a previous poster shared is pretty helpful to highlight the concerned areas. I would like to point out though that the dangerous areas aren't necessarily townships (in the sense that they're unplanned, illegal or made up of shacks), but they are in the "Cape Flats" which is east of the city proper and most of the tourist stuff is along the Atlantic seaboard.

Don't he stupid and you'll be fine.

T8191

That would be East of the City, if in the Northern Hemisphere.

Madone59

Amazing advise a surprising amount of people don't think about.

johan rebel

.Your confidence in your own opinion is misplaced.

"Cape Town ''has the highest rates of murder, robbery and property-related crimes'' while Tshwane ''has the lowest rates of murder, assault and sexual offences'' of all the nine cities analysed in South African Cities Network's State of Urban Safety in South Africa Report 2018/19."

Source 1 , source 2

Of course the vast majority of violent crime in SA is black or colored on black or colored, so to some extent the stats are irrelevant to sensible tourists who avoid high-crime areas and take other reasonable precautions.

If visitors to SA want to worry (an activity I don't recommend), then it is the horrendous road traffic fatality numbers. DUI, unlicensed drivers, unroadworthy vehicles and road rage are widespread and common, not restricted to certain townships or extremely violent rural areas (The highest homicide rates in SA are not recorded in cities, but in the countryside. Richmond in KZN has a homicide rate of 192 and in Sundays River Valley (welcome to Addo Elephant NP!) in the Eastern Cape it is 177. Those figures are sky high, way above those of the most violent countries in Latin America).

Johan

simons1

I wouldn't over think it, but equally I wouldn't be complacent either.

Since the Mount Nelson robbery our company has rethought it's security model, I certainly wouldn't be walking around central CT in the evenings.

A good dose of common sense, and avoid standing out.

The_Bouncer

Many valid points here. The vast majority of the people affected by the rates of violence are South Africans themselves, living in the townships. The areas tourists tend to frequent are not affected to anywhere near the same degree.

Again, I'm not saying bad things don't happen - they do. But the areas of Cape Town where tourists are likely to be are definitely not no-go areas.

Driving in South Africa can be dangerous. Quite apart from the major issues you have mentioned (all of which are very major issues), there are issues with wildlife, the general condition of some roads (often potholed and unlit) and the behaviour of pedestrians (people often walk around on the freeway and it is not uncommon for your headlamps to suddenly pick up someone wandering across an unlit freeway in the dark).

Again, sensible precautions. Try to avoid driving at night in unlit areas and if you are a nervous and/or inexperienced driver, just don't bother. Also, do not blindly follow your sat-nav. Do your research and know which places to avoid. Lock your car doors while driving in any city or town.

Having said all of this, I have never been involved in any significant incident in several multi-week tours of South Africa, mainly travelling solo. The chances are you will be absolutely fine, as long as you employ some basic street smarts.

The_Bouncer

It really makes a difference. If you walk around in expensive gear, flashing the cash and flaunting the gold, you are just making yourself a target.

When I visit South Africa - and other places - for the winter, I take my oldest and crappiest clothes (and usually throw most of them away at the end of the trip). I don't even bother having a haircut or trimming my beard. I literally walk around looking like a bum - and it works.