The 2025 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is a Candidate race for Abbotts World Major status in 2026, so not having visited the African continent before I decided to travel out and experience Cape Town and the surrounding area in advance of race day and hopefully run the marathon.

Monday 20 October – Victoria & Albert Waterfront

I switched hotels today from the Radisson Red to the Marriott Protea Breakwater Lodge which left me with some time on my hands to explore the waterfront area. A short stroll took me to the V&A Waterfront which I was pleasantly surprised to discover offered hundreds of shops, restaurants, coffee and entertainment opportunities, several hotels and the Cape Wheel, offering breath-taking views of Granger Bay, Robben Island, Table Mountain and, Signal Hill. Its a big area to cover and I spent a very pleasant few hours just wandering around people watching. The waterfront area of the whole city of Cape Town is simply spectacular whether you are a runner or simply on vacation.

Sunday 19 October – please see separate post – click here for my spin on the race day cancellation.

Saturday 18 October – Cape of Good Hope Tour

To take our minds off tomorrows marathon we headed out of town today to explore the breathtaking scenery of Chapman’s Peak and it didn’t disappoint. The landscape is vast and absolutely stunning as we drove to Cape Point famous for its rock cliffs and lighthouse.

Onward to the Cape of Good Hope where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean in one of the most treacherous stretches of water in the world.

From here we visited a Penguin sanctuary at Boulders Beach, these little guys are less than 1 foot tall and are known as Jackass Penguins and while very cute they would give a nasty bite.

All in all a stunning day, amazing scenery with lots of stops along the way for photos, exploring, shopping and lunch.

Friday 17 October – Cape Town City Tour & Marathon Expo

Cape Town really is a city of contrasts – a spectacular marina, a working port, historic buildings, mountains and amazing beaches all within the city limits. Wonderful restaurants, great coffee, fantastic coffee and of course all the history surrounding Nelson Mandela and Robben Island.

October is Spring in South Africa and today was 28 degrees but the normal temps this week have been a very pleasant 22 degrees.

The Marathon Expo is held within the Rugby Stadium and packet pick up on Friday afternoon at 1.30pm was fast and easy. I picked up for both the 10k Peace Run and the Marathon and both were completed within 10 minutes in 2 different areas.

Adidas are the official merchandise sponsor but there are enough vendors to make the Expo a different cultural experience than Boston or London with many local vendors. Visiting on Thursday or Friday is recommended as it was becoming very busy when I left around 3.30pm.

All in all a great day, while I had an escorted bus tour there are numerous Hop On, Hop Off buses and if possible I would book “Skip the Line” or “priority” tickets as we had a 90 minutes wait for Table Mountain Cable car and eventually abandoned.

Wednesday 15 October – Aquila Private Game Reserve

2hrs drive from Cape Town or roughly 160k is the Aquila Private Game Reserve. I was picked up from my hotel in a small minibus of roughly 10 seats and we were on our way with a short washroom break after an hours drive. Although we were on the highway for the drive the scenery is stunning, mountain ranges, tunnels and the flat lands featuring miles upon miles of vineyards.

On arrival at the Game Reserve we were treated to a cold drink and 1 hour to enjoy a buffet lunch and a wander around the beautiful gardens. Lunch was a buffet with plenty of options for all tastes with seating available inside or outside in the sun.

All too soon it was time for our safari and we jumped on board our vehicle for a 2hr 30min exploration of the reserve. Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable about the park and all the animals. If the Big5 are on your bucket list this is a wonderful opportunity to see them all within a 20,000 hectare reserve.

So what animals did we see, well the photos below show most but essentially, Hippos, Giraffe, Ostriches, Deer, White Rhinos, Elephants, Buffalo, lots of Zebra and the Lions. All in all a wonderful day out with memories that will last forever. The tour departed at 9.30am and I was back in my hotel for 6.00pm.

We can help book these excursions for you as part of your travel package with us.

Monday 13 October

Before moving into Cape Town on Thursday I decided to take a little side trip to Century City for a few days to unwind and relax before the big city experience. Century City is roughly 10k from Cape Town and 18k from the international airport and is pretty much a self-contained living, shopping, entertainment area with paths that wind their way through an internal waterway offering lots of possibilities for walking and running within the area. In fact, Century City offers a weekly Park Run.

Also located within Century City is the Intaka Island, a 16 hectare wetland and bird sanctuary within an easy walk from my hotel, the Marriott Century City. Its a little surreal to find this gem of a park within such a built up area but it does add to the charm and diversity of the area bearing in mind that there is a huge shopping mall only minutes walk away.

The mall itself has literally hundreds of stores including New Balance, Asics and Reebok (these are not discount stores), several supermarkets, pharmacies and a great Food Court plus independent restaurants.

I definitely recommend at least 2 nights in Century City, or at the very least a day trip to visit, before heading into Cape Town itself.

Cape Town Marriott Hotel Crystal Towers is my hotel for the first few nights of my stay and it exceeded my expectations with a terrific coffee shop, fabulous buffet breakfast and a lovely M Club for those with Marriott Status. While the hotel has a Spa and Pool you have to venture across the road to the Virgin Active facility to use the gym which is worth the short walk. The Virgin facility features a huge gym, spin bikes, weights and a fabulous 25m laned pool. This adds terrific value to any stay at the Marriott.