Muse

I have a choice to visit either city?

I heard that Cape Town is better in terms of safety and tourist attractions??

What would you guys recommend?? I am basically into staying in a vibrant area with shopping and nice hotels, food places, shows and things..beach is not important to me...

Thanks

ecaarch

These are two very diverse cities. Each has its own attributes. This is sorta like asking which is a better place to spend a vacation, Denver or Philadelphia. Ultimately, the answer depends on you and what you like and want from your trip.

Having said that, for a visitor, Capetown would def be my first choice. Relatively safe, compact, easy to navigate, lots of things to see and do, many decent restaurants and hotels, etc. Johannesburg is do-able with lots of things to experience, but I found it to be somewhat intimidating. I doubt I would feel the same way on a second visit, but Capetown is easy for a newbie.

thijsseh

Well, living in CPT I am obviously biased but this must be a no-brainer.
I can think of no reason to visit JNB, except that it is closer to the game reserves (Kruger park and the private parks around it). Closer means a 5 hour (or someting like that) drive, so not really close. There are game 'parks' closer, but not the "real thing".

Cape Town has beautiful scenery, the winelands, Table Mountain, Robben Island (where ex-president Mandela was incarcerated), Cape Point, good shopping (V&A Waterfront) and world class hotels (admittedly, JNB has good hotels too).
Also from a safety aspect CPT wins hands down (although it has its rough areas and is overall not as safe as most European ot I guess US Cities).
I have heard very few (if any) tourists who were unhappy with Cape Town!

EnvoyBoy

Cape Town!

Just spend a week in JNB and 10 days in CPT (with a safari in between). I'll never return to JNB while I can't wait to get back to CPT.

In JNB there was little that was centrally located and if you found a nice area, it was very small (couple blocks) and you'd certainly never walk beyond that area. I didn't realize it until I got to Cape Town and could get out and about and walk about, but I felt nearly captive in JNB.

JNB (and surrounding area) have some things to see but I did the whole thing with a hired car and driver, and even he (a native Afrikaan) would not get out in some areas--we just looked at things through the rolled up window. You could spend maybe 2-3 days in JNB if you had someone to get you around and advise you. You could spend a couple weeks in CPT.

CPT also has more immediate destinations outside the city and so serves as a nice homebase for other adventures (Cape Point, Winelands, Hermanus, etc.) but there's not a whole lot to go see from JNB.

IndyDavid

Yes, given the OP's stated pedestrian interests, Cape Town is the right choice. But in other ways, Johannesburg is a much more interesting city. The New York Times recently detailed why: http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/07/1...el/16next.html

David

Thunderroad

Oh, definitely Cape Town. I'm no expert--I've been to both a only couple of times--but it still seems clear to me. You still have to watch where you go, particularly at night, but not nearly as much as Joburg. And Cape Town's set in one of the most beautiful areas in the world--think of the San Francisco Bay area on steroids. Plus as the others have pointed out, lots more to see and do, not least the Cape itself, which makes for a beautiful day's drive. Finally, I believe the climate's better.

johan rebel

Especially if you enjoy howling winds, sleet and snow!


National Warning - Issued on Thursday, 20 July 2006 at 06.00

Advisory
Very cold, wet and windy conditions are expected over the western areas of the Western and Northern Cape Provinces on Friday with snowfalls likely on the high ground areas by evening spreading eastwards to the high ground of Eastern Cape, Lesotho and southern Drakensberg on Saturday and Sunday. Heavy falls of rain are likely in places near the mountains of the Western Cape Province by Friday evening, spreading to south coast on Saturday. Gale force W'ly winds will develop in places south of Cape Point on Friday with wave heights in excess of 5m south of Cape Columbine.


Johan

mojorisin'

Capetown without a doubt. It is more like San Francisco versus Houston.

I've been to Jo'burg twice already, and trust me, there is very little worthwhile seeing there. It is best as a transit point to get to the big game reserves.

If you're looking to visit more than one place, start at Captown and work your way up the coast to Durban. I'm a big fan of Durban.

SAtransplant

Oh, that's why we have been having such spectacularly nice weather!

One of the oddities of South Africa is that we get the warm foehn winds before the incoming storms not afterwards.

Yes, this incoming storm promises to be a doozy. I'd imagine the Holland Hottentots and the high ground in the Klein Karoo will receive a blanket of snow. Lekker!

Monday morning will be frosty even at sea level.

Johannesburg is strictly for business and in then carefully controlled doses.

Cape Town these days is on par with Mexico City, I'd say, for crime, minus the kidnappings.

Jaimito Cartero

I have a reward flight to JNB next week, and will be in South Africa for almost a week. For some reason, I haven't planned this section of my RTW trip, not even a hotel yet. I think I'm leaning towards flying to CPT.

Any suggestions on low cost airlines from JNB-CPT, and a reasonable ($40-$75) lodging in CPT? Thanks!

thijsseh

There are 5 airlines serving the JNB / CPT route:
SAA, British airways (a Comair franchise), Nationwide, 1 Time and Kulula.com.
The last three are supposedly LCC's. Usually they are cheaper than SAA or BA, but I have several times been able to book SAA for less than any of the LCC's, so it is worth shopping around on the internet. The lowest SAA fare is about R968 (about USD 135) return, taxes etc included. Had a quick look and still good availability on this fare next week. There are plenty of flights daily.

Lodging: Try the Breakwater lodge, about USD 70 for a single with bath in the V&A waterfront. Probably the best value for money if you are looking for budget accomodation.

Jaimito Cartero

That's great info! Thanks for the quick reply. Any tips for a one day stay in JNB?

zanzibar

I was in JNB and CPT recently. CPT is incredibly beautiful and also much safer than JNB. The weather is also better in Cape Town during winter.

Nice cheap place to lodge in CPT is Ashanti Lodge -- they got dorm type accomodation as well as basic rooms (around $15 - $45 options) as well as a seperate more expensive guest house where we stayed (around $70 per night).

Also, Comair/BA seems to now have joined Kulula.com so there are only 4 airlines serving the domestic market as far as I could tell. We got one way tickets from JNB to CPT using Nationwide Airlines and Kulula on the way back for around $150 total per person -- and we only booked these tickets a few days before departing. $100 round trip via Kulula.com is possible if booked well in advance!

Near Cape Town, Cape Point and Hermanus should not be missed. Numerous other beautiful beaches too.

I couldn't go to Durban, but some people find it even more beautiful than Cape Town while others hate Durban since it also not very safe (though still much safer than Johannesburg).

In JNB, the apartheid museum is worth a visit as is the Lion Sanctuary and Monte Casino if you gamble!

Jaimito Cartero

I'm in Capetown now. The Breakwater was booked for the first two nights, so I booked the President in Bantry Bay. Seemed pretty nice, about $80 a night including full breakfast.

I just switched over the Breakwater, and took their cheapest room (a single with a shared bath/shower) for about $45 a night. I don't think I get breakfast, but that's no biggie. I'm on vacation for a month, and I've been spending too much on lodging so far.

I saw some other moderately priced places on Orbitz and Expedia, but wasn't sure how nice the places would be.

Reindeerflame

I would say it's like San Francisco vs. Birmingham, AL.