Cape Town in November: 5 Things I Wish I Knew

Many people will tell you that November is the best time to visit Cape Town and indeed in a few weeks time at the beginning of November, I'm heading out there for seven weeks now, after us going to Cape Town for 11 years, anytime from October to February, I can tell you that it's not as simple as that. So in today's video, I'm going to Share with you 5 reasons why November might be a brilliant time for you to go, but also a few cautionary tales as well. And by the end of the video, you'll know if November fits your trip and exactly what you can expect. Now, I'm British and you know, we love to talk about the weather, so that seems like a really good place to start. Now, November is springtime in South Africa, so the weather is going to be beautiful. It's going to be sort of between 22 and 24 degree F. That's about 72 to 74 centigrade and absolutely beautiful during the day. But drive 15 minutes towards Camps Bay and suddenly that 24 degrees drops down to sort of 17 or 18 because of the southeasterly wind. And now you really wish you'd bought that jacket with you. So for my UK viewers, think of Cape Town in November feeling like the UK in early September. And for my American viewers, think San Diego rather than Florida, think exploring rather than lying on a beach. Now, evening temperatures drop really quickly, so the sun sets around about 7:30 in November, which is fantastic. But the temperature will drop dramatically down to about 15 degrees. So you absolutely need to make sure that you layer up. That's the name of the game for visiting Cape Town in November. So bring jumpers and jackets with you because like I said, beautiful summer's day can drop dramatically down to feeling like an early winter's day in the evening. And you'll definitely need to layer up. But if the weather was a surprise, well, it's got nothing compared to the next one. And this mistake that we made on our very first trip back in 2014 cost us a whole day. So the second reason is that the Cape Doctor will really dictate your plans. And if the Cape Doctor sounds like some friendly chat, well, in fact it's not. It's the southeasterly wind that really defines the early summer in Cape Town. And here's what we've Learned from spending 11 years in Cape Town, and that is that the south easterly wind blows for about half the week during November and it can really derail your plans. It turns beach days into getting sandblasted, blowing your Umbrellas away. And it will definitely put paid for that last minute trip up to the top of Table Mountain. So talking of Table Mountain, the cable car will close when the wind reaches 60 kilometers an hour. And in November that is going to be about half the time. So my advice, which I've shared with you before is always book your cable car trip to Table Mountain early in your visit because then that allows some room for when 50% chance of it being cancelled because of the wind or because of the tablecloth mist that can often cover Table Mountain. That again will cancel your trip. So we always use the wind finder app to check the weather before we start our day. And if the wind is under 25 km an hour, it means it can be a beach day. It means you'll be able to go up Table Mountain. It means you go and do things like wine tasting. However, when the winds hit more than 30 miles an hour, you're gonna not be able to go to Cannes Bay for the day unless you want to get blown away. So you probably would want to head down to full speed in the Muzenberg area, which is a little bit more protected, or choose to do stuff in the city or go shopping at the VA or Century City. Now the wind can definitely ruin your plans for a beach day, but the next one can have a really big impact on your wallet. So the third reason why Cape Town may or may not be for you in November is because prices start to rise really quickly as we approach the peak season of December and January, which remember is the South African summer holidays. Now of course, one of the attractions of going to Cape Town in November is that you are beating the crowds and you are beating the prices, but only if you book in advance. And my advice to you is to book your hotel, your flights and your car hire as soon as possible. Because 99% of the time as demand goes up, so do the prices. And you need to think about November in sort of three phases. So early November you're going to be paying around about €1200 for a two bed apartment in the Sea Point, for example, whereas in December you're going to pay more like €1800. And car hire is going to cost you around about €250 for that time. And it will go up dramatically as you hit the peak season. Then from mid November onwards, prices start to jump up by 15 to 20%. And then as we hit the end of November and the holidays start to begin, then prices start to hit December. So if you are planning on going in November and One of your attractions is because things are generally cheaper, which they absolutely are, then plan it and book it in advance. Or obviously, the other thing about accommodation is that as things get busier, there's less ideal accommodation. So you may not end up staying in the location you want or in the type of accommodation you want because it just isn't available once things get busy. Now, I think our biggest surprise when we first went to Cape Town in November in 2014 wasn't the wind or the prices, it was the bloody freezing ocean, because quite frankly, the ocean is brutal. So think of this. It's beautiful Sunny Blue sky, 24 degrees, you've got your T shirt on, your sunscreen on, and then you go down to the beach. It's one of those 50% chances where it's a not too windy a day and you put your feet in the Atlantic Ocean and unless you're really, really hardy, you're going to find it freezing. It's going to be around about sort of 13, 14, 15 degree. And you won't see a lot of people swimming in the Atlantic Ocean in Cape Town any time of the year, but especially early on in November without a wetsuit. Now, yeah, of course you do see people swimming, so I understand that. But if you're sort of a wimp like me, then I've never swum in the ocean because it's too cold. If you do want to swim, like I said, go down to Forsbay, to the Muizenberg area, or even better, if you're planning a trip over to sort of Durban, then a lot of South Africans go there in the summer because it's the Indian Ocean there, so it is a lot warmer. And the next reason really, really surprised us and it is the beautiful spring flowers. One of the reasons people will go to Cape Town in November is they want to see the amazing spring flowers, the finboss, the jacarandas that are stunning. The daisies and the king proteas are absolutely amazing. And if you are going in early in November, make sure you go and see them. And make sure you make a plan to go to Kirschneboss Gardens, because they absolutely are stunning and they really surprised us. I think a lot of people don't even expect that in Africa. They think it's more deserty and arid, but it isn't in November. It's one of the big reasons why you would go there. But be really mindful that they, especially the jacarandas, they have a short period of time flowering and of course if one of these Cape doctor winds strike up, then it can blow all of the flowers off anyway. So if your reason for going to Cape Town is to see the spring flowers, and it should be, then make sure you time it right because if you go in late November, you've got a good chance of missing what you would see in early November. So there you have it, a really quick video today of 5 reasons why you would choose to go to Cape Town in November. To avoid the crowds, to take advantage of the great deals and prices and you know, enjoying the restaurants that you can get into because you know they have availability, which they may not have come December and January. You may well want to go because you want to see the spring flowers, but just make sure that you get your timing right and you book things in advance. So I hope that was useful. I was inspired to record this video because as I said, I'm going to Cape Town in November in a couple of weeks time. And I thought for anyone that is planning a trip then there are lots of positive reasons why you would go in November and it's definitely going to be way quieter and cheaper than when, if you go in December and January over Christmas, where it's the middle of the South African summer holidays and everyone is flocking to Cape Town to enjoy their holidays with family and friends. So I'd love to hear from you. Are you planning a trip in November? Did any of these tips surprise you? Or if you've got any other tips that you can share, then do leave a comment and let us know. And if you found it useful, give us a thumbs up and make sure you've hit the subscribe button so that you're alerted when a new video goes live. It doesn't cost you anything, but it really helps. Helps the algorithm show our videos to more people just like you. And if you are serious about Cape Town, then make sure you check out our Cape Town playlist that covers everything from when to go, where to stay, what the cost will be, and of course answering that big question about safety as well that I know a lot of people are concerned about. So do go check that out. But other than that, this is James, who as ever is working upstairs and me, Rob, and we will see you next time.