How to Get Around Cape Town With or Without a Car

The MyCiTi bus route A01 runs from the airport to the Civic Centre in 20 to 30 minutes for R110. That is cheaper than any rental car deposit and safer than any other public option. That single number is the starting point for every transport decision in Cape Town. The rest of the page explains when you pay more, when you rent a car, and what you skip entirely.

How the MyCiTi Bus Works

Start with the MyCiTi bus. It is the only public transport that serves tourists well. The A01 runs every 12 minutes in peak and every 20 to 30 minutes off peak. Buy a myconnect card for R35 once off, load at least R30, and tap on and off. The ride from the airport to the Civic Centre costs R110 under the 2025/26 tariff published by the City of Cape Town. That fare covers a single journey; the card balances carry over.

The trunk routes form a spine: Table View to Civic Centre to Gardens to the V&A Waterfront to Sea Point to Hout Bay. You can reach the Waterfront, Sea Point, and Camps Bay without a car. The last bus from the Waterfront toward Table View on route T01 departs around 21:30. Verify the exact time on the MyCiTi app on the day. Schedules shift.

Where the Bus Does Not Go

The MyCiTi system does not serve Constantia, Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Muizenberg, Kalk Bay, Simon's Town, Chapman's Peak Drive, Cape Point, Stellenbosch, or Franschhoek. That list includes nearly every major day trip outside the City Bowl and Atlantic Seaboard. For those places you need a rental car, a rideshare, or a paid tour.

Stay inside the bus zone for your whole trip and you save money and avoid parking. Plan even one day on the peninsula or in the winelands, and the bus alone will not work.

Rental Cars: When They Make Sense and When They Do Not

When to Rent

Rent a car for day trips you cannot reach by bus. A loop from Cape Town down Chapman's Peak Drive to Cape Point, stopping at Boulders Beach and Kalk Bay, requires a vehicle. The same goes for a morning at Kirstenbosch and an afternoon in Constantia wine farms. The bus serves none of those.

Do not rent a car if you stay in Sea Point, the Waterfront, or the City Bowl and only take trips the bus covers. Parking at the Waterfront costs R10 for the first hour and R20 each hour after that. On-street parking in the City Bowl runs R20.80 per hour under the 2025/26 tariff. Overnight with a car guard adds R5 to R20 in cash. The daily parking cost on its own can exceed a MyCiTi pass.

Rental Car Practicalities

Avis requires you to be 23 years old minimum and charges a young driver surcharge of R310 per day if you are 23 or 24. Europcar requires two years of driving experience. You need a credit card in the main driver's name for the deposit hold; debit cards are not accepted by most major agencies. The deposit hold at Avis for a standard vehicle runs R5,000 to R15,000 depending on the category. The law includes third-party liability cover in every rental rate. The CDW/Theft Waiver standard excess on a Group B car at Avis is approximately R15,000. Super Cover reduces that excess to roughly R0 to R3,000 and costs R250 to R400 per day. Tyre and windscreen cover is R55 to R85 per day. Every major agency at Cape Town International Airport uses a full-to-full fuel policy. A one-way drop from Cape Town to Gqeberha costs approximately R3,500 at Avis.

Rules of the Road

Drive on the left. The urban speed limit is 60 km/h, national roads outside built-up areas are 120 km/h, and secondary roads outside built-up areas are 100 km/h. You do not need an International Driving Permit if your licence is printed in English. If it is not, you need one. Planning to cross into Namibia or Botswana? Request written permission and pay R2,000 to R4,000 extra per rental.

During load shedding, traffic lights fail. Intersections become four-way stops by law. Download EskomSePush for real-time schedules of the 2-to-4-hour blocks.

Uber, Bolt, and the Safety Question

Uber and Bolt are both available city-wide including the airport, City Bowl, Atlantic Seaboard, Southern Suburbs, Northern Suburbs, Cape Flats, Helderberg, and Stellenbosch. An UberX ride from the airport to the City Bowl costs R150 to R220 off peak. A ride from the City Bowl to Camps Bay costs R80 to R120. From the City Bowl to Kalk Bay expect R200 to R280. Bolt is 5 to 15 percent cheaper than the equivalent UberX, but availability drops at 1am. Check both apps before you ride.

Neither app replaces a rental car for a full day trip. A return trip from the City Bowl to Cape Point by UberX runs roughly R400 each way, and the driver waits or you summon another car from a spot with patchy signal. For a full-day loop, a rental car is cheaper and faster.

What You Skip: Minibus Taxis and Metrorail

Minibus Taxis

Minibus taxis are not a tourist option. They serve commuter routes, do not post fares or schedules, and do not carry insurance for passengers. Local tourism authorities advise visitors against using them. Skip them.

Metrorail

Metrorail runs the Southern Line from Cape Town through Woodstock, Observatory, Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, Wynberg, Muizenberg, Kalk Bay, Fish Hoek, and on to Simon's Town. The fare from Cape Town to Simon's Town is R22.00 for a single MetroPlus ticket under the 2025/26 tariff published by PRASA. The journey takes about 1 hour 10 minutes. The Southern Line operates a reduced timetable with weekday peak-only service on some sections and weekend service suspended on multiple lines. Rolling stock shortages and cable theft cause frequent cancellations. PRASA does not advise tourists to use the service outside peak commuter hours. The Cape Flats Line and Central Line are not recommended for visitors by local tourism authorities. Do not rely on the train.

Walking Areas and Where Not to Walk

Where You Can Walk

You can walk safely in a few defined zones. The V&A Waterfront is under private security patrol 24 hours. Sea Point Promenade is busy, lit, and patrolled by the City improvement district from 05:00 to 22:00. Company's Garden and Government Avenue are safe during daylight, roughly 08:00 to 18:00. Bo Kaap is safe during daylight but avoid quiet side streets after dark. Camps Bay beachfront and strip is busy and lit until about 23:00. Kalk Bay main road and harbour is safe in daylight and early evening.

Where You Cannot Walk

Do not walk after dark in the CBD east of Adderley Street, including lower Long Street beyond the 200 block. Do not walk after dark in Woodstock and Salt River outside the Old Biscuit Mill precinct. Do not walk after dark on Observatory Lower Main Road south of the station. Do not walk at any time in Cape Flats townships without a registered guide. Do not walk on Table Mountain trails after dark. Do not walk on Signal Hill after dark. These are not opinions; they are the standing advice of local tourism authorities and the City of Cape Town.