Table Mountain Guide: Cableway, Hiking and Weather

Table Mountain is not a backdrop on the horizon; it sits right in the middle of Cape Town, rising to 1,085 metres at Maclear's Beacon. The flat summit plateau is roughly three kilometres from end to end, crisscrossed by boardwalks and rocky paths looking straight down to the City Bowl, Table Bay and the Atlantic Seaboard.

Watch the tablecloth and the wind

When a strong south-easterly wind blows moist air up the slopes, it condenses into the thick white cloud known locally as the "tablecloth", which pours over the northern edge like dry ice. High winds also force the cable car to suspend service for safety. Check the live weather and operational status on the official Table Mountain Aerial Cableway website before leaving your hotel, and go on the first clear day of your trip.

Riding the Aerial Cableway

The Lower Cable Station sits on Tafelberg Road, reachable by Uber or the MyCiTi bus via Kloof Nek. The circular Swiss-built cabins take about five minutes to reach the top, and their floors rotate slowly during the ride so everyone gets a clear view without jostling for a window.

• Tickets: buy online on the official site rather than queuing at the ticket office. Standard online tickets remain valid for seven days from your chosen date in case wind closes the line. Afternoon return tickets are slightly cheaper, and Fast Track tickets let you skip the boarding queue on busy summer mornings.
• Annual maintenance: the cableway shuts completely for one to two weeks every winter (usually late July to early August) for scheduled engineering work.

Hiking up (or down)

If you are reasonably fit, hiking up and taking the cable car down is a great half-day outing, saving your knees from the steep descent.

• Platteklip Gorge: the most direct and straightforward route up the front face. It is essentially a giant, steep stone staircase through a cleft in the cliffs, taking two to three hours with no scrambling required. Start early before the sun hits the gorge.
• Kasteelspoort: a quieter, scenic trail climbing from the Camps Bay side up the Twelve Apostles, passing the jutting Diving Board rock overhang.
• Skeleton Gorge: a shaded, forested climb starting inside Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden, involving ladders and boulders, best done with a guide.

Carry at least two litres of water per person, a warm windproof layer, a fully charged phone and never hike alone. Weather on the plateau turns in minutes.