Table Mountain National Park

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#Marine Protected Areas

There is one large marine protected area which extends a few kilometers offshore from Mouille Point all around the coast of the peninsula to Muizenberg. The MPA is mostly a controlled zone, where limited extractive activities may be conducted with a permit, and some restricted zones where no extractive activities are allowed.

• Karbonkelberg restricted zone around Llandudno on the west side of the peninsula
• Cape of Good Hope restricted zone on the south-western side of the peninsula
• Paulsberg restricted zone south of Smitswinkel Bay
• Castle Rock restricted zone south of Miller's Point
• The Boulders restricted zone east of Simon's Bay, with some shore areas for the protection of penguins
• Kalk Bay restricted zone, north of the harbour

Cape Point, in the southern part of the park is the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula, it is not the Cape of Good Hope, which is slightly to the west, and not the southern tip of Africa, The most southernly point of the continent is at Cape Agulhas in the Overberg.

The Khoekhoe people were the inhabitents of the Western Cape before the arrival of European explorers. In 1488 the Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias was the first European to round the Cape of Good Hope, so named because it offered a route to India. In 1652 the Dutch established a settlement at Cape Town that served as a refreshment station for their ships plying between Europe and the Far East.

The first lighthouse, at 238 m above sea level, was built at Cape Point in 1859.

Even though the southern part of the peninsula had been a game park for may years, Table Mountain itself was first declared a national park in the 1960's under the care of the Table Mountain Preservation Board. Over the years other parts of the peninsula were added to the national park and today it incorporates a large part of the peninsula. Since 2004, the property has been included as part of the UNESCO Cape Floristic Region World Heritage Site.

Were it not for the Cape Flats, a "beach" of aeolian sand between the Cape Peninisula , Tygerberg, and the Hottentots Holland Mountains, the Cape Peninsula would be a rocky island with Table Mountain, close to its northern limit reaching an altitude of 1084 m above sea level, 50 km from north to south and up to 10 km located some 30 to 40 km off the African coast. Geologically, the peninsula consists of a sandstone cap above a substrata of Cape Granite and Tygerberg sedimentary rocks. The initial European settlement was in a hollow between Table Mountain and Table Bay. Further settlements rapidly developed along the lower east-facing slopes of Table Mountain. Development also spread westward and south along the coastline from Central Cape Town but not to the same degree. There are a few fishing villages on the peninsula coast.

The Cape Peninsula offers some typical fynbos vegetation. In the reserve are also a number of ostriches and antelopes. The baboons are used to people and often steal objects from tourists. Do not feed them! If a baboon approaches you, keep all food well hidden, and walk away facing the baboon but do not make eye contact. As long as they are not attacking you, leave them alone in their natural habitat (photos are allowed).

The peninsula has a warn Mediterranean climate with mild, wet winters and dry, warm summers. Average January maximum and minimum temperatures are 26° and 10°C respectively and average July maximum and minimum temperatures are 17° and 7°C respectively. Temperatures seldom drop below zero. Due to the mountain, the is considerable variation in rainfall with an annual average of 1500 mm in the Cape Town suburb of Newlands, but only 500 mm in Camps Bay (9 km away). The bulk of teh rain falls during the winter months (April to September).

The easiest way to see the park is by car. Most major international car hire companies have offices in Cape Town. Traffic drives on the left, distances are given in kilometres and road signs are generally compatible with European road signs. Roads are sealed and are usually well sign-posted.

The principal railway line in the area is the suburban that links 🌍 Cape Town and 🌍 Simonstown. This line is designed to handle commuter traffic, but does provide a link to Hout Bay and Simonstown. Trains may not be running all the way to Simon's Town

There are also two cable-hauled transport systems within the region, both of which are oriented towards the tourist traffic:

• The 🌍 Table Mountain Cableway provides an easy way to the top of Table Mountain. Advanced bookings are advised, but users should note that it is often closed due to high winds. The base station can be accessed by car or by bus, alternatively one can walk following a 1.5 km footpath from the Cape Town suburb of Oranjezicht (2.5 km from the city centre).
• The 🌍 Cape Point Funicular railway provides an easy route from the Cape Point car park to the Cape Point lighthouse.