October 12, 2012
Cape Town official King of the Castle with eight Blue Flag beaches
Christine Marot
Although KwaZulu-Natal-based, Christine Marot never passes up an opportunity to head south and sample the many delights of the Mother City.
Despite having visited many of the world’s continents, she believes there’s no place like home, and enjoys promoting Cape Town’s mix of cultural, historical, natural and adventure tourism opportunities.
She believes current tourism trends reflect a greater reliance on bloggers’ first-hand experiences, which more often than not contain nuggets of useful information.
With a love of the outdoors, Christine is happiest visiting the penguins at Boulders Beach, catching waves at Kommetjie, hiking up Table Mountain or sipping a chardonnay under massive oak trees in the winelands.
Llandudno Beach features large granite boulders and a mountainous backdrop. Photo by Charlie Dave.
The Mother City officially boasts the highest number of Blue Flag beaches in South Africa, with all of the city’s eight submissions having received the coveted international accolade.
This summer, international and local beach-goers spending their holidays in Cape Town can relax in the knowledge that the most exacting international environmental management, environmental education, safety and security, and water-quality standards have been met.
Welcoming the announcement by National Minister of Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk at the National Blue Flag launch at Grotto Beach in Hermanus on October 11, 2012, the city’s mayoral committee member for community services, Councillor Tandeka Gqada, said the city was pleased that its commitment to maintaining world-class beaches had been acknowledged.
The shoreline from Camps Bay to Clifton. Photo by GOC53.
“The beaches that have attained Blue Flag status are important to residents and tourists alike, and this status is especially encouraging going into the festive season,” she said.
The sought-after Blue Flag eco-award is contested seasonally, with the latest status period coinciding with South Africa’s premier holiday season from December 1 to March 31.
Cape Town’s new Blue Flag status beaches are:
- Bikini Beach
- Mnandi Beach
- Strandfontein
- Muizenberg
- Llandudno
- Camps Bay
- 4th Beach Clifton
- Silwerstroomstrand.
Blue Flag status is conferred annually on more than 3 500 beaches and marinas in 44 countries, from Europe to Africa and Australasia to the Americas. Two of Cape Town’s marinas, Granger Bay Water Club and the False Bay Yacht Club, also received full Blue Flag status.
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