Cape Town in August, The West Coast’s floral splendour

Cape Town in August – A gateway to the West Coast’s unique floral splendour

For a few weeks each year, from mid-August to end-September, the Cape West Coast features a riot of colourful wildflowers. Farmland, open tracts of land, wetlands and dunes are covered with a glorious tablecloth of blooms. Whether you fancy a short outing or would like to spend a whole-day out Hout Bay Manor is perfectly located so you can venture forth to enjoy this short-lived natural splendour.

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden

Situated less than 10km away from Hout Bay Manor, Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is set on the majestic eastern slopes of Table Mountain. The garden is unique, being found within the rich Cape Floral Region and it is the only botanical garden in the world to be part of a proclaimed UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is no wonder that SANBI-Kirstenbosch is a 37-time gold medal winner at Britain’s Chelsea Flower Show.

Kirstenbosch is a fantastic place for visitors to enjoy spending time relaxing and contemplating the magnificence of nature in a beautifully laid out garden setting that features manicured lawns and child-friendly expanses, along with sloping pathways and trails that are good for a stroll or an invigorating walk.

There are always flowers and interesting plants to be seen at Kirstenbosch. However, to see fynbos at its best with the greatest number of plants in flower, the best time to visit Kirstenbosch is towards the end of winter, in spring or early summer – from August to November.

Cape West Coast

Every year, in springtime, the Cape West Coast plays host to what some say is the ‘greatest naturally occurring flower show on earth’. For a great day out while on holiday; and ranging in distance from less than 40km away from Hout Bay Manor to as much as 175km, here are three of the best places to view this spectacular floral display, at its best in August and September:

Blaauwberg Nature Reserve marks the official start point of Cape West Coast flowers. The Blaauwberg Nature Reserve has a spectacular view from Blaauwberg Hill, down fynbos-clad slopes and across a cityscape, to seven kilometres of coastline and the ocean beyond. Blaauwberg Hill is one of the few viewpoints in the world from where you can see two proclaimed World Heritage Sites – Table Mountain and Robben Island.
In spring, the coastal West Coast National Park bursts into a beautiful carpet of colour as an array of wildflowers blankets entire landscapes. Official flower season is from 1 August until 30 September, when the protected area of Postberg Flower Reserve within the park is open to the public.
Cape Columbine Nature Reserve is about five minutes from the quaint seaside town of Paternoster is and home to an abundance of spring flowers as well as being home t o the last manned lighthouse in South Africa which was built on Castle Rock in 1936

Treat yourself, and your family, to a spring holiday and the unmatchable beauty that Cape Town in August has to offer. Hout Bay Manor is located in an incredibly beautiful part of greater Cape Town. Sandwiched as it is between mountains and the sea, Hout Bay is a spectacular place to take a relaxing holiday; and yet it is only 20kms from Cape Town city centre, making it perfectly placed for visitors to venture forth and experience everything the Cape has to offer. It is in striking distance from most of greater Cape Town’s iconic tourist attractions, West Coast wild flowers included.

Cape Town in August – A gateway to the West Coast’s unique floral splendour

Cape Town in August – A gateway to the West Coast’s unique floral splendour

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden

Cape West Coast

Our Address