106 Best Sights in The Western Cape and Winelands, South Africa

Also known as the Ou Tronk Museum, this small collection is based in the former town jail (ou tronk means "old jail"). The display is old-fashioned and not particularly well curated, but still gives a sense of remarkable native son Dr. Christiaan Louis Leipoldt and early settler life in the mountains. The wagons, carts, and rudimentary household equipment speak of much harder times, when pioneers headed into the high country wanting to farm or escape colonial control in the cities.

About 17 km (11 miles) up Hemel-en-Aarde Road, Creation Wines is a little off the beaten track but well worth the drive. Like other wineries in this region, it is best known for its excellent Pinot Noir. Try the Art of Pinot Noir, with flavors of cherry and plum and a background earthiness. Open for lunch, the restaurant focuses on seasonal local produce and carefully thought-out wine pairings.

Launched in 2010, Darling Brew has become one of the Western Cape's most-loved craft beer brands, and its walls are now lined with awards. The beers can be found at many local restaurants and bars, but it's more fun to visit the microbrewery. You can sample craft beers in the tasting room, which also serves typically South African snacks and meals. Some of the favorites include the Slow Beer, a refreshing, golden lager, and the Bone Crusher, a Belgian-style witbier. There's a kids' tasting option and a great play area for little ones.

This large producer makes wines under a number of labels. Look out for the Premium range as well as the award-winning Darling Cellars Blanc de Blanc sparkling wine. Other suggestions include the Reserve Bush Vine Sauvignon Blanc, with notes of cut grass, passion fruit, green figs, traces of guava on the nose, and a zingy aftertaste. Don't miss out on the Sweet Darling range, a selection of white, red, and rosé wines made from local grapes. It's all good, drinkable stuff at very affordable prices. In addition to standard tastings, there are two food and wine pairing options and a kids' juice pairing—book ahead for these experiences.

About 4 km (2½ miles) out of town, set on high ground commensurate with its status, is the majestic De Oude Drostdy Museum. Built by architect Louis Thibault in 1804, the structure was badly damaged by fire in 1934 and later by the 1969 earthquake, but it has been carefully restored and is a fine example of neoclassical architecture. The building now houses an impressive collection of antique furniture and artifacts. Look for the gramophone collection and the Dutch grandfather clock that has a painting of Amsterdam harbor painted on its face. There's a small coffee shop inside where you can grab a quick bite.

Some of Stellenbosch's most historic buildings face the Braak, the grassy town square. St. Mary's Church stands at the north end of the Braak. Built in 1852 as an Anglican church, it reflects the growing influence of the English in Stellenbosch. Across Bloem Street from St. Mary's is the Burgher House, built in 1797. Today it houses the offices of Historical Homes in South Africa but you can view the main rooms during office hours. Just across the road is the V.O.C. Kruithuis ("powder house"), the town's former arsenal dating back to 1777. There's a small fee to go inside and view the collection of guns, gunpowder holders, and cannons. At the southern end of the Braak is the Rhenish Mission Church, erected by the Missionary Society of Stellenbosch in 1823.

Diemersfontein is best-known for originating what has become one of the most successful styles South Africa has yet created: coffee Pinotage. Pinotage, a South African grape that is a cross between Pinot Noir and Hermitage, can be bitter and is sometimes described as rubbery. Through careful yeast selection and the addition of toasted oak staves during aging, Diemersfontein's Bertus Fourie brought out prominent coffee and chocolate notes in the wine, creating a new and hugely popular style. The estate's other brand, Thokozani, is a Black empowerment project, partly owned by the winery staff. It's a beautiful setting for a tasting, or try the pairing of three wines with three sweet treats.

Stellenbosch's most historic avenue is oak-lined Dorp Street. Almost the entire street is a national monument, flanked by lovely restored homes from every period of the town's history. Look out for Voorgelegen at No. 116, a perfectly preserved Georgian home from the 19th century. Perhaps most interesting is La Gratitude at No. 95. This early 18th-century home was built in traditional Cape Dutch town-house style. The all-seeing eye of God molded on its gable was designed as a talisman to watch over the owner's property and keep him and his family safe from harm.

The Drostdy was built in 1747 by the Dutch East India Company to serve as the residence of the landdrost, the magistrate who presided over the district. The building is furnished in a style that dates back to the late 1700s and early 1800s. A path leads through the Drostdy herb gardens to Mayville, an 1855 middle-class home that blends elements of Cape Dutch and Cape Georgian architecture. Across Swellengrebel Street stand the old jail and an outdoor exhibit of tools used by the town's blacksmiths, wainwrights, coopers, and tanners.

Also known as the Strooidakkerk, the old Dutch Reformed Church is a thatched building dating from 1805. The cemetery contains the tombstones of the Malherbe family, who were instrumental in the campaign to gain official recognition for Afrikaans. The church is still active, and you can peek inside.

Swellendam's Dutch Reformed Church is an imposing white edifice built in 1911 in an eclectic style. The gables are baroque, the windows Gothic, and the steeple a replica of one in Belgium. Surprisingly, all the elements work together wonderfully. Inside is an interesting tiered amphitheater with banks of curving wood pews facing the pulpit and organ.

Little has changed in the last 200 years in the Moravian mission village of Elim, founded in 1824. Simple whitewashed cottages line the few streets. All the residents belong to the Moravian Church. You're welcome to attend services, when just about the whole town turns out in their Sunday best. Elim is the only town in the country that has a monument dedicated to the freeing of the slaves in 1838. It's also home to the country's oldest working clock and biggest wooden waterwheel. There's a tourism office near the waterwheel with a small museum detailing the history of the village. Grab a bite in the tearoom next to the waterwheel. Elim is 36 km (22 miles) west of Bredasdorp.

On the road into McGregor, Eseltjiesrus Donkey Sanctuary provides a safe space for neglected and abused donkeys. Kids can meet Alice, KitKat, and the other four-footed residents while you relax at the restaurant, which serves light lunches.

Tastings here take place in a wonderful little wooden chalet overhanging the dam. You can also partake in a fun blending experience, in which you sample three red wines and then play around until you've found your perfect blend. You then get a bottle to take home, with a custom label you make on-site. The Graze Deli is known for its vetkoek, deep-fried doughy parcels stuffed with a sweet or savory filling. You can also book ahead for the Wine Walk, a three-day, 35-km (22-mile) walk among the region's vineyards. Each day you return to the estate's cottages to spend the night.

A visit to Fairview is a treat for the whole family, including kids and adults who aren't fans of wine. Children get a kick out of seeing peacocks roaming the grounds and goats clambering up a spiral staircase into a goat tower. And those goats aren't just for decoration—Fairview produces a superb line of goat cheeses which come with the wines when you order a tasting. The estate's wines are top-drawer and often surprising. The Fairview Eenzaamheid Shiraz is excellent, as is the La Beryl Blanc. The winery also makes creative use of the farm's many Rhône varieties. Perhaps it's just because the pun was irresistible, but (as claimed by the label) goats are sent into the vineyard to personally select grapes for the Goats-do-Roam, which is indeed like a young Côtes du Rhône (infuriating French winemakers). If you care to linger, you can have a light meal and freshly baked bread at the Goatshed Restaurant.

As you're heading inland to explore the Overberg or the Garden Route, be sure to stop at the impressive Gabriëlskloof, 29 km (18 miles) northeast of Kleinmond. Try the award-winning Shiraz in the garden or in front of a log fire in the tasting room. You can also sample the estate's extra-virgin olive oil, and perhaps purchase some from the deli. The Gabriëlskloof restaurant is a great place to stop for lunch. The menu changes regularly, but the food is always wholesome fare made with fresh local produce.

The neighboring village to Greyton is Genadendal, a Moravian mission founded in 1737. The first school in the interior opened its doors here in 1738. In 1838, the first Teachers Training College in South Africa was established. Seeing this impoverished hamlet today, it's difficult to comprehend the major role the mission played in the early history of South Africa. Some of the first written works in Afrikaans were printed here, and the Black community greatly influenced the development of the language as it is spoken today. None of this went down well with the white government of the time. By 1909 new legislation prohibited Black ownership of land, and in 1926 the Department of Public Education closed the settlement's teachers' training college, arguing that Black people were better employed on neighboring farms.

In 1980 all the buildings on Church Square were declared national monuments, but despite a number of community-based projects, Genadendal has endured a long slide into obscurity. You can walk the streets and tour the historic buildings facing Church Square. Ask at the Genadendal Mission Museum for somebody to show you around.

On the site of the original mission station, the Genadendal Mission Museum is spread through 15 rooms in three buildings. The collection includes items from early in the settlement's history, including the country's oldest pipe organ, brought in 1832. Wall displays examine mission life in the Cape in the 18th and 19th centuries, focusing on the early missionaries' work.

What comes out of Glen Carlou is rather special. The Quartz Stone Chardonnay is exceptional, and The Collection Red Blend is also remarkable. There's a small art gallery here with rotating exhibitions, as well as an excellent restaurant open for lunch. The menu changes seasonally, but you can look forward to dishes like springbok loin with red wine jus, and chocolate croquettes with tonka bean mousse. There's also a children's menu.

Former dairy farmer Peter Pentz had enough of getting up at 4 am to milk his cows, so together with his son, Nick, he turned instead to grapes at Groote Post Vineyard. The large, environmentally sensitive winery got off to a fantastic start when its maiden 1999 Sauvignon Blanc was judged one of the best in the Cape, and Groote Post has been winning awards ever since. Try the Groote Post Kapokberg Chardonnay and the Inheritance Pinot Noir with notes of cherry and raspberry. The restaurant, Hilda's Kitchen, is an excellent choice for lunch and makes scrumptious picnic baskets filled with local cheeses and cured meats, quiches, and chocolate brownies (order these in advance). Game drives through the unique renosterveld ("rhino vegetation" in Afrikaans) are offered during the summer; expect to see wildebeest, giraffes, and a range of antelope. Advanced bookings are essential.

In a thatch building overlooking a small dam, Hamilton Russell Vineyards produces only two varietals: Chardonnay and the temperamental Pinot Noir. Their wines are regarded as some of the best in the world, regularly winning all manner of accolades and awards.

Built in 1994 on the lower slopes of the Franschhoek Mountains, Haute Cabrière was the brainchild of Achim von Arnim, one of the Cape's most colorful winemakers. To avoid scarring the mountain, the complex, which includes the fine Haute Cabrière restaurant and terrace, hunkers into the hillside. Von Arnim's son, Takuan, has taken over as cellarmaster and continues to produce excellent wines. The Cap Classique sparkling wines (under the Pierre Jordan label) are renowned locally. The fruity, mouth-filling unwooded Pinot Noir is consistently one of the best. Also delicious is the Chardonnay–Pinot Noir blend, an ideal, extremely quaffable wine to enjoy at lunchtime. Cellar tours depart at noon every day.

To trace the history of the Huguenot community here, visit the Huguenot Memorial Museum. Its main building is modeled after the Saasveld house, built in 1791 by renowned Cape architect Louis Thibault in Cape Town. Wall displays profile some of the early families. Exhibits also focus on other aspects of the region's history, such as the development of Cape Dutch architecture and the relationship of the Huguenots with the Dutch East India Company. Displays in the annex cover the culture and life of the Khoekhoen, or Khoikhoi, once derogatorily known as Hottentots, as well as the role of slaves and local laborers in the development of the Franschhoek Valley. Bring a picnic basket and take advantage of the lovely garden. Be sure to visit the adjacent Huguenot Memorial.

At the end of the main road through Franschhoek is the Huguenot Monument, built in 1948 to commemorate the local contribution of the Huguenots. The three arches symbolize the Holy Trinity, the sun and cross reference the Huguenots' emblem, and the female figure in front represents Freedom of Conscience. The nearby graveyard date back 300 years. Most graves are marked with rectangular headstones or obelisks, rather than the symbol associated with the church the Huguenots were so desperate to escape.

Halfway down the hill from the Afrikaans Language Monument is a turnoff onto a dirt road and a sign for the Paarl Mountain Nature Reserve. The dirt road is Jan Phillips Mountain Drive, which runs 11 km (7 miles) along the mountainside, offering tremendous views over the valley. Along the way it passes the Mill Water Wildflower Garden and the starting points for several trails, including hikes up to the great granite domes of Paarl Mountain. The dirt road rejoins Main Street at the far end of Paarl.

In the days when the Dutch East India Company stopped in Cape Town en route to the East, a ship would fire a cannon as it entered the harbor to let farmers know provisions were needed. A set of relay cannons on the hilltops would carry the message inland. One such cannon was on this farm, which was then called Kanonkop, Afrikaans for Cannon Hill. The beauty of Kanonkop today is not in its history or its buildings, but in its wine. Paul Sauer, a blend of about 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, and 15% Cabernet Franc, rakes in awards both in South Africa and internationally year after year. The Kanonkop Black Label Pinotage is an iconic wine produced in small quantities and sold only from the farm. There are no guided tours, but during harvest you can do a walkabout in the cellar to see the action. An added attraction is the art gallery featuring works from 50 leading South African artists. It's a wonderful selection of the totally traditional to the strikingly modern.

With several hundred species of indigenous flora, including succulents, bulbs, aloes, and trees, the Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden has been billed as one of the most important such collections in the world. If you phone ahead, you can arrange a guided tour through the gardens and the collection houses for around R80 per person. The garden lies on the opposite side of the N1 highway from the town of Worcester, but is easy to find if you follow the signs eastward from the last set of traffic lights on High Street. Follow the road from the entrance to the garden to the main parking area, the starting point of three clearly marked walks. There is also a Braille Garden geared toward the visually impaired.

This family-run farm has many awards under its belt and is probably best known for its excellent Shiraz, a ruby red wine with smoky flavors and a chocolaty aftertaste. Also worth taking home is the Merlot, with sweet berry and oak flavors and excellent aging potential. The Eight Feet is a fun but very drinkable testimony to the generations of du Toits who have worked the land: it alludes to the eight grape-stomping feet of the owners' four sons. Don't miss out on Annalene du Toit's olive products. Kloovenburg olive oils are exceptional, and they manufacture olive oil beauty products, too. The wine and olive pairing is a lovely way to spend an hour, either in front of the fire in the cozy tasting room or on warm summer days outside on the rambling terrace.

Midway between Betty's Bay and Kleinmond is Kogelberg Nature Reserve, a 66,000-acre area of fynbos that extends from the mountains almost to the sea and includes most of the course of the Palmiet River. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in the 1990s, it has fauna and flora found nowhere else in the world. Take one of the well-marked nature walks through the reserve and you are sure to see some of the area's magnificent birds, including the Hottentot buttonquail, the orange-breasted sunbird, and the African purple swamphen. There are also mountain biking trails to explore, and you can go rafting on the river. One of the reserve's best-kept secrets is its eco-friendly cabins that can sleep up to four people.

Short for Ko-operatieve Wijnbouwers Vereniging (Cooperative Winegrowers' Association), KWV regulated and controlled the local wine industry for decades. This is no longer the case, and KWV is seeking to redefine itself as a top wine and spirit producer. KWV produces an enormous selection of excellent wines, and its cellars are some of the largest in the world, covering around 55 acres. Cellar tours here are very popular; among the highlights is the famous Cathedral Cellar, with a barrel-vaulted ceiling and giant vats carved with scenes from wine-making history. The tour ends with a tasting of two white wines, two red wines, a fortified wine, and a brandy. There is a range of fun pairing experiences on offer, too, including bubbly and nougat or brandy and chocolate. As well as award-winning wines, KWV produces some of the finest brandies, with the KWV 12-year-old regularly raking in the accolades.