Explore Cape Town on foot: Two FREE walking tours
One of the best ways to experience any city is on foot. Explore Cape Town on foot by joining one of these free city walking tours.
One of the best ways to experience any city is on foot. Cape Town offers a variety of walking tours to explore the city, and the best part is that they are free of charge.
1. Explore Cape Town’s colourful Bo-Kaap
The Bo-Kaap, formerly known as the Cape Malay Quarter, is an iconic area in Cape Town on the fringe of the city centre. It is markedly recognisable by its colourful houses and dates back to the 1760s. During this time, Dutch colonists built numerous rental houses and leased them to slaves, according to South African History Online. These slaves came from Malaysia, Indonesia and also the rest of Africa to work in the Cape. The Dutch called them Cape Malays.
Many families in the Bo-Kaap have been living there for generations.
The free walking tour of the Bo-Kaap takes place twice a day, every day, at 14:00 and also at 16:20.
Visitors joining the tour can look forward to visiting the oldest mosque in South Africa, The Auwal Mosque, and the Atlas Trading Company, established in 1946, for a huge variety of spices from the East and other products.
What is the story behind the colourful houses?
While the slaves rented the houses, all the houses had to be white. After this rule was lifted, and slaves could buy the properties, most of them decided to paint their houses in bright colours. This was an expression of their freedom.
2. Historic city tour
The historic city tour introduces visitors to the different eras of Cape Town and South Africa’s history and some of the people who shaped it. The walking tour includes a visit to the Company’s Garden, Parliament, Greenmarket Square, the Castle of Good Hope, and the Iziko Slave Lodge.
Built between 1666 and 1679, the Castle is known as the oldest surviving building in South Africa.
Greenmarket Square was established in 1696 when the first market house was built. At that time, people used it as a trading post for slaves and also livestock. In the 18th century, the square became a centre of trade for textiles and other goods. It continued to be an important commercial hub well into the 19th century, according to Cape Tourism.
Have you been on one of these walking tours?
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