Cape Point vs the Cape of Good Hope
Cape Point against the Cape of Good Hope from the lighthouse end: what is at each, the funicular or the walk up, the hike between them, and how long each tour gives you at each point.
You do not have to choose: every tour on this site stops at both. Cape Point is the high cliff at the tip of the peninsula, with two lighthouses and a funicular, while the low rocky headland to its west, where the name board stands, is the Cape of Good Hope. They are about 2.4 km apart as the crow flies, inside one fenced part of the national park, and the Cape Point gate fee covers both: R592 for a non-South African adult (SANParks, 1 November 2026 - 31 October 2027). The question worth asking is how long you get at each, and that depends on the tour.
Cape Point: the lighthouse end
Most of what people picture as “Cape Point” is up here. SANParks says there are two lighthouses at the point and only one of them still works. From the car park you reach the old lighthouse on foot or on the Flying Dutchman funicular, and on the Kenzi day the walk is 15 minutes up, past a viewpoint.
Funicular tickets are sold by Cape Point itself (capepoint.co.za), never by the tours:
| Funicular | Price or time |
|---|---|
| Return ticket, adult | R125 |
| Return ticket, child aged 6 to 16 or South African pensioner | R65 (under 6 free) |
| Hours, October to March | 9:00am - 5:30pm |
| Hours, April to September | 9:00am - 5:00pm |
Rates valid 1 November 2026 - 31 October 2027 (capepoint.co.za, checked 14 November 2026). South African pensioners buy theirs at the Cape Point ticket office only.
Cape Point’s site says a car leaves the lower station every three minutes and carries 40 passengers, about 450 people an hour. The same site sells funicular tickets online and lists the Two Oceans Restaurant (11:00am to 5:30pm from October to March) and a food shop. Its visitor page adds that a walk all the way out to the rocky tip takes you to the spot where the ghost ship the Flying Dutchman has been sighted over the years.
The Cape of Good Hope: photos and history
The Cape of Good Hope is where the photos with the wooden name board are taken. SANParks gives the history in three names: in 1488 Bartolomeu Dias called it the Cape of Storms, Portugal’s King John II renamed it, and in 1580 Sir Francis Drake wrote of “The Fairest Cape in all the World”. SANParks also bans swimming at Diaz Beach, citing strong rip currents, and notes there are no lifeguards on any Cape Point beach.
On the drive between the two you are in the only fenced section of the national park, where SANParks lists eland, red hartebeest, bontebok and zebra. On the False Bay side, Cape Point’s site tells the legend behind Buffels Bay’s name, a ship of buffalo wrecked in the 1700s whose animals swam ashore; the bay and the Bordjiesrif tidal pool beside it are on the map above.
Walking from one to the other
Two of the days give you the choice to walk between the points instead of riding the bus:
- City Sightseeing South Africa’s Cape Point and Boulder's Penguins Full Day Tour on Viator has a guided walk across to the Cape of Good Hope if you want it: about 40 minutes, for medium fitness and good walking shoes. The same tour on GetYourGuide is From Cape Town: Cape Point and Boulders Beach Full-Day Tour, US$35.05 per adult (checked November 2026).
- Kenzi Travel and Tours’ Peninsula, Penguins & Cape of Good Hope Day Tour lists an optional hike from the Cape of Good Hope to Cape Point, at US$42 per adult (checked November 2026).
The Kenzi full day in the calendar lists no hike between the two.
Check dates for both points in a day
Minutes at each cape, tour by tour
| Operator, day | Per adult | At the lighthouse end | At the Cape of Good Hope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenzi Travel and Tours, the full day | US$44 | 45 min | 30 min |
| Kenzi Travel and Tours, the peninsula loop | US$42 | 45 min | 40 min, with an optional hike to the point |
| Kenzi Travel and Tours, the half day | US$40 | 45 min | 20 min |
| City Sightseeing South Africa: on GetYourGuide or on Viator | US$35.05 on GetYourGuide, from US$36.18 on Viator | 2 h | 30 min |
| Baz Bus, the nine-hour peninsula day on Viator | US$49 | 1 h | 1 h, reached by a 45-minute hike |
| Beyond Africa Safaris - Gray Line South Africa, the day with Table Mountain | US$56.14 | 1 h | 1 h |
Stop times and prices (GetYourGuide checked November 2026; Viator checked November 2026). One adult can book each. Park entry is not in any of these prices. The figures are not a quote.
From Cape Town: Cape Point & Boulders Beach Full-Day Tour
Kenzi Travel and Tours' ten-hour day: the Cape of Good Hope for 30 minutes and the lighthouse for 45, then Boulders and Simon's Town.
Check dates →Cape Point and Boulder's Penguins Full Day Tour
City Sightseeing South Africa on Viator: two hours at Cape Point and the guided hike to the Cape of Good Hope if you want it. Set pickup stops near hotels.
See it on Viator →Figures from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026; Viator checked November 2026). The price for your date shows before you pay: these figures are not a quote.
Both Points in One Day
Kenzi Travel and Tours' full day stops at the Cape of Good Hope for 30 minutes and the New Cape Point Lighthouse for 45, with hotel pickup in Cape Town. One adult can book; park entry is paid at the gate.
Check dates