Go out in Cape Town

Cape Town's vibrant and varied nightlife scene is buzzing almost every day - the city attracts many internationals over the summer season who flock down to escape the cold of European winter, and gets calmer in winter with locals taking over. From live music at cocktail bars to raving on techno until the early morning - there's always something happening, regardless day of the week in summer, yet the best nights to go out in Capetown are Thursday, Friday and Saturday. A night out usually starts with dinner and drinks at around 8pm, hitting the town afterwards for a bar crawl. Anywhere along Bree Street, Kloof Street or around Loop Street is where you find most bars and clubs - city center at your full party disposal. Depending on the day, bars and clubs usually close around 2am. Not to worry though for the real nightowls - there is this one techno club in town that is pretty much open 24/7. The bigger parties in Cape Town happen at beach clubs such as Cabo and The Grand. On the weekends and during the holidays they will have some of the big (inter)national DJ’s playing. You can buy (VIP) tickets, book tables, and bottle service for these events, but it's important to keep in mind that it's getting fully booked fast. Cape Town is big on outdoor festivals, during summer there is at least one every weekend. There is something for everyone with all the daytime events and weekend festivals that are organized at some of the most breathtaking places. One day you have to go out in Cape Town is on the 1st Thursday of the month. It’s called First Thursdays and it’s the best night to go out in the city center. Starting 5pm up untill 2am along Bree Street and surroundings all art galleries and bars open for this special kick off of the new month. You can hop in galleries, drink wine, see live music, go to the next bar, hit a club and so on. Will it be packed? Yes, it feels like almost everybody in Cape Town is out on this night, so be ready for crowded bars and clubs.A lot of people are out on the street on this night and walk from bar to bar, however, still be aware of pickpockets and be safe!

There’s something for everybody in Cape Town. Most of the nightlife happens in the city center with all sorts of bars and venues spread out over the town. Loop Street and Long Street have a lot of bars and clubs and it is mainly tourists who go here. You can find beer bars to watch live sports to cocktail bars for a night out with the girls and/or boys. Bree Street and Kloof Street are a little more sophisticated and not as crowded. Great cocktail bars, bars with live music, excellent restaurants and cool event venues are found in this part of town. The beach clubs are in and around the Waterfront, right by the ocean. On the main strip of Camps Bay there are also lots of restaurants and bars and in Sea Point more and more bars and cool venues start to pop up. De Waterkant is popular in the gay scene as it is known for having some of the nicest gay bars and clubs.

Going out in Cape Town is considered cheap if you come from Europe or America and have an international income. If you compare prices to some of the big cities in the Western world, prices in Cape Town are a joke. A general rule of thumb is that prices in Cape Town are about one-third up to half of what you would typically pay for those items in Europe. A beer at a nice bar will cost you about R30, a nice cocktail at a high-end place will cost you about R100 and a bottle of water costs R20 at most. If you spend €100,- on a night out somewhere in Europe, you can easily do three nights in Cape Town on that budget. Always wanted to go fine dining but it felt out of reach? In Cape Town you can have dining experiences at some of the best restaurants in the region for the price of what a nice dinner out in Europe costs.

In winter you’ll need a jacket for sure but let’s just talk about summer for now, cause that’s when all the fun happens. In Cape Town it gets hot during peak summer and even hotter in the clubs and on festivals. The dress code varies between events and venues, but generally, people dress up when they go out - many places will not let you in if you rock up in shorts and on flip-flops. At festivals, people go all out and wear their sexiest, funkiest or happiest outfits. You’ll easily be underdressed than overdressed so wear your best!