Table Mountain

Table Mountain is the most recognisable natural landmark in Africa — a 1,085-metre flat-topped sandstone massif that rises vertically from the city below and provides a panoramic view of Cape Town, the Atlantic and Indian Ocean coastlines, and the Cape Peninsula stretching south toward the Cape of Good Hope. The mountain is one of the oldest mountains on Earth — the sandstone was deposited 600 million years ago, and the flat summit plateau has been eroding at its current elevation for over 6 million years.

The Aerial Cableway, operating since 1929, carries visitors to the summit in rotating cable cars that give a 360-degree view during the five-minute ascent. The summit plateau is surprisingly large — about 3 kilometres from end to end — and the walks across the top pass through fynbos vegetation (the Cape's unique shrubland, with more plant species per square metre than any other ecosystem on Earth) with views that shift from the city bowl on the north face to the Twelve Apostles and Atlantic seaboard on the west.

Hiking up Table Mountain is the alternative — Platteklip Gorge, the most direct route, takes about 2 hours and involves steep stone steps carved into the cliff face. The mountain's famous 'tablecloth' — the cloud that rolls over the summit when the southeaster wind blows — can engulf the top within minutes, dropping visibility to zero and temperature by 10 degrees, which makes carrying warm layers essential regardless of the weather at sea level. The mountain is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature, and no visit to Cape Town is complete without seeing the city from above.