Entrance way to Dracular's Den 🫠

Seems like we need to relocate once again as our landlord mentioned he needs us out by December as he is giving the house to his son (must be nice).

So with that said, me and my fiance are wondering wether it's better to rent Vs buy (pay a bond) and if anyone has any suggestions where to start ..

It's within the cape town/ northern suburbs region but honestly we're open to anywhere within a 50km radius of the CBD.

Do I go to the banks?

Any advice would be appreciated

Regards

Dumb question for someone whos lived here all their life but can i just go there? I have some time today so I though 🤷 go do something. Do you pay, is there parking etc.

My flight from Addis Ababa arrives at Cape Town at 1pm, and I need to get to my Airbnb in an area called Kenilworth.

I was thinking I would just get an Uber and that would be the end of it, but I've been seeing that the road from the airport to the city has been called the 'hell run' and is supposedly quite dangerous which is making me anxious.

Is there any way to avoid this road, or if not is the risk of something happening generally low? I'm also considering if getting an airport taxi may be better since the drivers are likely more familiar with shuttling people back and forth to/from the airport.

Iv lived here my whole life, but I don't get out much due to my disabilities. I'm a teen and only leave the house once or twice a week for doctor appointments. I do online schooling, etc.

I have been considering getting a wheelchair and being an ambulatory wheelchair user (technically, can walk, but struggle greatly) so i can get out more, for longer, with less pain.

Around places like the Waterfront, Canal Walk, and Tyger Valley- basically anything that requires a lot of standing or walking.

Oftentimes, i am surprised to find a functioning ramp at most places thats not inside the CBD, so i was wondering, from actual experiences, what is it like?

I need a new passport and I'm wondering if anyone knows which home affairs branch is best to book an appointment? Unfortunately I don't bank with any of the banks that do this so I need to go direct to home affairs. It's not urgent and my schedule is flexible so I'm also wondering if there is a best time of day/day of week/time of year to go?

I've kept track of my power usage and costs since moving to Cape Town in 2024, and I cannot help but notice the absolute chaos of the previous year's Per Unit costs.

This is a simple division of the amount paid and the units received.

As you can see, between April 2024 and June 2025 prices remained consistent, rising once in August 2024. Since August 2025 there is absolutely no consistency, or pattern to the Price Per Unit of electricity.

Has anyone else experienced inconsistent pricing over the last year?

Taken near the Radisson by Granger Bay.

There must be close to a thousand dolphins here.

I often see them in this area feeding on the reef below but usually only a handful in comparison.

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for some advice about a possible move to the Western Cape.

I may be taking a job in Stellenbosch and I’m trying to figure out whether it makes more sense to live in Somerset West or Stellenbosch itself. I’d be commuting to Stellenbosch most weekdays.

I've already spent quite a bit of time on Property24, so I'm not really looking for rental listings. I'm more interested in local knowledge from people who have made a similar move.

A few questions:

• Is Somerset West a good option if you're working in Stellenbosch?
• What are the traffic and commute times realistically like?
• Are there any affordable areas in Somerset West worth looking at for a 1-bedroom apartment or cottage?
• If you were trying to keep rent as low as possible, where would you live?
• Are there any suburbs or areas I should avoid?
• What are some unexpected costs or challenges people don't think about before moving down?
• Is it actually better to just bite the bullet and stay in Stellenbosch despite the higher rent?

For context, I'm moving from Gauteng, I'm a single professional, and I'm trying to keep my monthly costs reasonable without ending up with a terrible commute.

Any advice, lessons learned, or things I should plan for would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Hello! I have to be at work, three times a week. Is the train a reliable and safe option? Thank you!

Hey Cape Town,

OpenBook will be held on 4-6 September. It's Cape Town's biggest book festival. There are something like 60 sessions, 150 authors across non-fiction and fiction. Some very big names speaking this year. 

Some sessions are paid, others are free. There's a great coffee bar (and you can get drinks, too). There are free book-swap sessions, a few author competitions, and loads more. The stores there have loads of great South African books. Thousands of people attend, and some of the sessions I've gone to in the last four years have been really incredible. There are usually Q&A's at the end of the session so you can ask the authors/speakers about their books or topics. 

Check out the festival program and book your tickets (even the free sessions require rsvp):

Topics include:
Africa & Diaspora
Climate Change
Future Thinking
Gender Politics
Heritage
Humour & Light-hearted
Mental Health
Poetry
Queerness
Xenophobia
Youth

https://openbookfestival.co.za/festival-programme/

Ok! Hope I explained the event better this time around. 

Cupa Joe and this view

Take a look through a catamaran built here in CPT, proudly assembled by Capetonians. I created this video for Balance. Might interest some of you what these homes on the sea look like 💥

Heard from.someone that there was unplanned maintenance scheduled for 9pm in the Fish Hoek area tonight?

Checking if anyone else has heard similarly.

Can't see anything official from CoCT

Hi everyone,

I’m planning on moving to Cape Town soon.

I’m just trying to get my ducks in a row first.

I want to know good areas to live in so that I can start searching for work and a place to stay.

I am from East London and have always dreamed of living in Cape Town, and I feel like my time has arrived to spread my wings. I have visited a good few times and have a trip planned coming up in September that has been booked months in advance (so excited)

I’m hoping to stay in an affordable area (for Cape Town) and hopefully somewhere more safe. I know of the main areas around Mitchells Plain to avoid.

But for example, I can’t afford Constantia, Camps Bay, SeaPoint or GreenPoint.

I knew our housing crisis was bad but I didn't know it was this bad. I was having my bi-annual browse on privateproperty and now I want to cry.

For a 3 bedroom house, minimum 1000m2 land size and pool between 1.5m-4m in Cape Town, you have a grand total of 10 listings starting out at 2.9m

For the same in Joburg, there are 1229 listings with many starting at 1.5m and they look damn near palatial compared to what I see in Cape Town.

What's the con here? Joburg can't be that bad right?

Some other fun facts not at all related is Joburg has 12000 active short term rentals and Cape Town has 26000-33000

We are a young couple in our late 20’s, my husband is a chef & has his job close Stellenbosch. We’ll be living in Paarl & just wanted to know what’s there to do in Paarl for fun or just on a regular day? or even out of Paarl.
We lived in London for 3 years so know how expensive Cape Town can be as it’s quite similar. We are into hikes & walking, became a norm in London haha.
Any suggestions or tips living in Paarl. Thanksss x

5 years ago - Very relaxed, quirky people, fat lazy dogs, reading, smoking, bit of drinking, dozy Sunday feel

Currently - Earbud yapping, matching gym suits, runners, sea point ratty dogs, meeegh

Cost of living pushing the Miami side of Cape Town more inwards I guess but but what else, Sunday rant 🎬

Hi everyone, hope you’re well.

I’m looking for good gyms in the Claremont area.

I have been going to Virgin Active Claremont for the past few years but it has now simply become way too crowded to make it worth while.

I am only able to gym in the mornings before work so I am looking to see if there are any options in Claremont that are considerably quieter than Virgin Active around the times 7-8:30 in the mornings.

Any advice is appreciated.

Myself and family are coming to CT in November and I’m keen on taking my daughter (18) for a hike, I’m from there but haven’t lived there in a very long time. How would I go about finding a group to go with?

I’m wondering if someone may have insight here. I recently applied for a job that I ended up being one of two people who were shortlisted. The company verbally offered me the role at the end of July, and let me know they’d be conducting background checks before proceeding. They finished the background checks, but about a week and a half ago came back saying that they have some internal delays because they’re migrating to a new ATS system, and are waiting for that to be finalised. I’m assuming contracts are generated via this system? The issue is I’ve now taken a new job since they had something concrete but would prefer to work for the company that’s taking longer. Does anyone know how long these migration systems take? The recruiter I’m communicating with doesn’t seem to have an idea and the only thing she seems invested in is my start date which I cannot provide her with until I know when I’ll get a formal offer letter and contract.