Cape Town Day Tours

Hout Bay (Afrikaans: Houtbaai, meaning "Wood Bay") is a suburb of Cape Town, South Africa situated in a valley on the Atlantic seaboard of the Cape Peninsula, twenty kilometres south of the Central Business District of Cape Town. The name "Hout Bay" can refer to the town, the bay on which it is situated, or the entire valley.

History of Chapman's Peak Drive. Chapman's Peak is named after John Chapman, the Captain's mate of an English ship the Consent. The peak which looms overhead was not named after a governor or brave mountaineer, but a lowly ship's pilot.

It is known for its spectacular scenery. It was originally named the Cape of Storms by Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Dias in 1488. It was later renamed, by King John II of Portugal, the Cape of Good Hope because of the great optimism engendered by the opening of a sea route to India and the East.

The original lighthouse was built in 1859 on Da Gama Peak, the summit of Cape Point, 238m above sea level. This made it very ineffective in mist which mandated the establishment of the second lighthouse at 87 meters. The newer lighthouse, built in 1914, is the most powerful on the South African coast.

A visit to boulders beach will give a chance to have a close encounter with our own African penguins.