Cape Town Facts & Figures

A summary of the remaining fixtures at Newlands Stadium for 2011/ 2012

• Newlands Fixtures

Names: Foreigners called it “Cape Town”, but the city is lovingly referred to by locals as the “Mother City”. The 11 official languages of South African mean there are lots of names for Cape Town, including iKapa (Xhosa) and Kaapstad (Afrikaans).

Languages: South Africa has 11 official languages, though most people can speak English. Afrikaans and Xhosa are also widely spoken in the Cape.

• Download a PDF of general facts about Cape Town here.

Cape Town has won numerous tourism awards during the past few years. In July 2010, Cape Town was named Africa’s leading destination by the World Travel Awards. The city has won this award six times.

In November 2009, the Mother City won the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category.

Despite 34 other nominees in the same category, it was Cape Town’s Deputy Mayor Alderman Ian Neilson who accepted the award in London on November 11.

Cape Town has consistently been awarded the title of Africa’s Leading Destination by the World Travel Awards for the years 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005 and as far back as 2003.

See an extensive list of Cape Town’s accolades and awards here.

Cape Town Tourism collates visitor and tourism industry statistics and surveys on a regular basis.

This information is used to assist the industry to plan and be informed about the ever-changing tourism market and global trends.

Download these statistics on the number of tourists coming to Cape Town, their mode of travel, purpose for travel, national and regional distribution and more below.

Download the Western Cape Tourism Barometer quarterly reports here.

• Download a PDF of tourism statistics from Statistics South Africa here.
• Download a PDF of South African Tourism statistics here.

Any Capetonian will tell you that you’ll never get lost in Cape Town because you have the beloved Table Mountain as a landmark to steer by, so to speak.

As this is debatable, here are some pointers to getting around the city – by car, shuttle, bus, taxi, rail and air.

• Download a PDF of useful facts about transport in and around Cape Town here.
• Download a map of Cape Town's public transport system here.

Cape Town is home to two of South Africa’s eight World Heritage Sites. Though there are many areas of interest in the Mother City and its surrounds, the World Heritage Sites are two of the most popular with tourists.

The Cape Floral Region, inscribed as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) World Heritage Site in 2004, is made up of eight areas totalling 553 000ha.

Robben Island was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1999 as an area of cultural interest.

• Download a PDF of facts about Cape Town's two World Heritage Sites here.

Cape Town is well known for its diverse and dramatic geographic settings. The city is located on the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which is made up of more than 70 mountains, and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Indian Ocean to the east.

The city lies at the base of the famous Table Mountain, so named because of its seemingly flat top. The mountain rises a spectacular 1 086m (3 563ft) above sea level and is visible from almost everywhere in the city. Table Mountain is flanked by Devil’s Peak to the east and Lion’s Head and Signal Hill to the west.

See the complete geographic listings of Cape Town here.

• Download a PDF of facts about Cape Town's geography here.

There are not many cities in the world that can boast a national park within city limits, two World Heritage Sites, stunning beaches, mountains and the all the excitement of big city life, to boot.

Cape Town has one of the widest ranges of attractions in the world. This includes a diverse mix of cultural and heritage sites, outdoor and adventure activities, health and wellness options, entertainment, nature and environment, and wining and dining.

• Download a PDF of Cape Town's top attractions here.