City Sightseeing Cape Town Trumps Holiday Fun for Kids
By: Kerryn-Leigh Anderson
Special Double Decker Deals keep families entertained during the July holidays
Thumbs up! Cameron, aged 9, aboard City Sightseeing Cape Town's double decker open top bus!
Cape Town, South Africa, July 2009 – Contrary to the belief that the City Sightseeing Cape Town bus is for tourists only, it was only after a chance encounter and a bored 9 year old during the July holidays that I succumbed and decided on a local city trip on the big red double decker bus. And what started out as a fun idea turned into ‘one of the best days of my life’ and those were the words of my wise Grade 4, 9 year old. It did make me wonder why I ever thought high price tickets to far away places would be valued more.
Cameron can't wait to get onto City Sightseeing Cape Town's double decker open top bus for a day tour!
The build up to our Sunday outing was met with great anticipation and eagerness. We planned our trip using the City Sightseeing website and settled on the Red route that goes through the city. The blue route takes longer and is more scenic stopping off at Kirstenbosch, World of Birds, Imizamo Yethu (you can take a township walk tour and Mariner’s Wharf to name a few) and a bus arrives at each stop every 60 minutes.
Cape Town's City Sightseeing bus goes to the coolest places: Here is Cameron at STOP 13: the Cableway on Table Mountain!
It was a beautiful Cape Town winters day with no rain and we were able to ride on the open top bus and feel the wind blowing on our faces as we experienced a completely different perspective of our home city. The sights, the smells, the sounds – you have to experience it to really understand the sensory experience.
WOW! Check out all those teeth... Cameron with some massive shark teeth at City Sightseeing Cape Town's STOP 6: The South African Museum & Planetarium!
The bus links all the major sights and activities throughout Cape Town. It works on a hop off, hop on basis where you can get off at any stop and explore the area or activity and a bus will be back to pick you up and take you to your next stop every 45 minutes. We stopped off at the Planetarium and Museum enjoying a kids show on Michael Lion and a quick walk through the museum that’s undergoing major and exciting renovations, next stop was the Castle and then on to Table Mountain. Our ride through Camps Bay ended at the V&A Waterfront just outside the Two Oceans Aquarium. Table Mountain and the Aquarium are both running kids specials during the holidays. City Sightseeing has a special that runs everyday throughout the July school holidays and then every weekend and public holiday thereafter until 14 September 2009. Although my son had been to the Castle before on school outings he felt it was his duty to educate me on everything that they’d learnt – very empowering for our kids to feel they know more than we do.
Can it get any better than this? Cameron is amazed at a real old cannon at City Sightseeing's STOP 10: The Castle!
The bus was clean, safe (you ride with seatbelts) and they have a sophisticated audio tour system. You’re given your ear phones when you buy your tickets (either at the V&A Waterfront kiosk, on the website or on the bus at any of the stops) and it’s a multi-lingual system with an extra channel designed specifically for children. Their home grown characters Salty the Seagull, Mandise the Mongoose, Blatjan the Baboon and Albie keep children entertained and informed throughout the route highlighting sights remarkably accurately along the route – did you ever notice the cat tree at the vet in Camps Bay?
A happy Cameron on the open top bus in Cape Town!
City Sightseeing and all the stops are definitely geared towards kids, the staff are friendly and engaging, the bus is easy to get on and off for kids of all ages, they’re given special pricing and lots of activity sheets and books to complete along with a treasure hunt to keep them busy for days afterwards.
We were exhausted by the end of the day but when my son woke up the next morning, before wiping the sleep out of his eyes, he wanted to know when we could take the Blue route and he wants to take his grandparents on the Red route again. It’s a must for any family looking for cost-effective fun during the holidays … and the bonus is it’s educational too.
For more information click on these links:
Cape Town Red Route Planetarium & South African Museum The Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town Table Mountain
Camps Bay Two Oceans Aquarium V&A Waterfront
Visit our website: www.citysightseeing.co.za
Experience Cape Town and the Castle of Good Hope. City Sightseeing Cape Town’s blog tells you the stories behind the best attractions and events in Cape Town, South Africa.
Get your tickets at www.citysightseeing.co.za/castle-of-good-hope
I really enjoyed this article, because so many of us who live in Cape Town have not discovered the wonderful experience of touring the city in the open topped red bus. The Waterfont is just as popular with locals as it is with international tourists, and needs no introduction to the people of our city. Cape Town has something that other major cities in southern Africa do not have- which is that people get out on weekends and enjoy every aspect of the city. We seem to wait, however, for visitors before we make use of the really great attractions such as the Red Bus tour.