Relax at Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden in Cape Town

Experience the beauty of the Cape against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain

Capetonians know there’s nothing quite like a sunny day spent lazing on the lawns of Kirstenbosch Gardens. Take along the right ingredients and you’ve got a definite winner of a day that is sure to please anyone.

For a lazy hazy summer day take along a picnic lunch, picnic blanket, and few good friends and spend hours chatting under the shade of the many indigenous trees. The garden is also perfect for a family outing. Families will love the duck pond and sprawling lawns at Kirstenbosch as little ones can spend hours chasing the ducks and playing hide-and-go-seek in amongst the many trees and bushes.

If you’re a little more on the adventurous side, put on your walking shoes and strap on your back pack to take a stroll around the gardens. From Colonel Bird's Bath to Van Riebeeck's hedge, there’s plenty to see in the gardens. If you’re feeling extra adventurous; the gardens also lead up into the rest of the Table Mountain Reserve and is the perfect starting point for a cool summers day hike up the mountain face.

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is world renowned for the beauty and diversity of the Cape flora it displays and for the magnificence of its setting against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain.

Kirstenbosch grows only indigenous South African plants and The Kirstenbosch estate covers 528 hectares and supports a diverse fynbos flora and natural forest. The 36 hectare of cultivated garden displays collections of South African plants, particularly those from the winter rainfall region of the country.

Volunteer guides conduct tours of the Garden on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 11h00. Group bookings and special interest tours can be arranged with the Information Office on +27 (0)21 761 4916.

On Sundays during the summer months from December to March, musical sunset concerts are held on the lawns at Kirstenbosch.

Read: Summer Sunset Concerts at Kirstenbosch.

Getting to Kirstenbosch:

There is a bus service to Kirstenbosch from Cape Town and Mowbray Station. The latest operation times can be sourced from the Information Office on +27 (0)21 761 4916.

If you are travelling by car, Kirstenbosch lies 13 km from Cape Town city centre. From the city, take De Waal Drive (M3) in the direction of Muizenberg and at the first traffic light intersection, turn right (southwards) into Rhodes Drive (M63) and follow the signs to Kirstenbosch.

The Garden is open 365 days a year from 08h00 to 19h00 in Summer (September to March) and from 08h00 to 18h00 in Winter (April to August).

Don't know how to get to the Kirstenbosch Gardens? Read our Directions Guide for a helping hand.

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