Bo-Kaap: The Village in the City

(152 reviews)

Cape Town audio tour: Bo-Kaap: The Village in the City

This is a 0.8mi walking tour

It takes an average of 60 mins to complete.

Cape Town

South Africa

$4.99

Access all 28 locations offline with the VoiceMap app

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About the Tour

Shereen Habib has been a tour guide in the Bo-Kaap for over twenty years, and her family has lived here for almost a century. She’ll take you on a deeply personal loop through the historical heart of this area. Rather than painting a picture of cobblestones, carnivals and colourful houses, she’ll take you right into the very core of the place, and help you understand why the village in the city is so close to the hearts of thousands of people across the world.

Tour Producer

Shereen Habib

Acclaimed Publisher

2 tours

Shereen has been a tour guide in the Bo-Kaap, Cape Town, for over 20 years, since just before the end of Apartheid. Her family has lived in the area for the better part of the last two centuries. She is interested in the history of a place as told by it's people, and she believes that the history of Cape Town needs some serious re-writing. She's made a good start.

Preview Location

Location 9

Malay Murals

Stop when you enter the archway, and have a look at the murals.

[PAUSE IN AUDIO]

This is one of our projects. It’s called the Bo-Kaap Heritage Mural. We hosted a family who came here from Iran. They used to have an art school in Australia. The artist told us, "Oh, I'm a... Read More

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Major Landmarks

Iziko Bo-Kaap Museum
Auwal Masjid
Mosque Shafee
Tana Baru Cemetery
Masjid Boorhaanol Islam
Atlas Trading Company

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Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
61-69 Wale St, Cape Town City Centre, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa
Total distance

1km
Final location
104 Wale St, Schotsche Kloof, Cape Town, 8001, South Africa
Distance back to start location

37.95m

Directions to Starting Point

Bo-Kaap Museum, 71 Wale St, Schotsche Kloof, Cape Town, 8001

It's a bit of a far walk from the Cape Town Train Station, but there are MyCiti bus stops nearby.

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Bo-Kaap museum, Oldest Mosque, Tana Baru Cemetery, Bo-Kaap Kombuis

Best time of day

One of the locations on this tour, Tana Baru, is only open on Saturdays and Sundays between 10am and 2pm. To reach it in time, you'll need to start the tour before 1:30pm, but like many neighbourhoods at the edge of a city centre, Bo-Kaap is safest during daylight. People stop in at the neighbourhood's many mosques between 12pm and 2pm, and you'll get a better sense of the role Islam plays in people's lives here.

Precautions

If you're a woman, bring a headscarf and be sure to dress appropriately if you'd like to enter holy spaces. Make sure your chest, shoulders and legs are covered up. Avoid the area after dark, and it's always safer to walk with a friend or group.

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“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”