Forget Bali and Byron: What to do with a few days in Cape Town, South Africa

Get away from the same old tourist haunts. This is the place to visit — and it offers everything Australians love.

It’s official — there’s a new destination taking on Byron Bay and Bali, and it's a world away from all the regular Aussie tourist hot spots.

Byron might have several Hemsworths and the odd Damon sighting, but South Africa’s Cape Town has long been a royal playground with wineries, five-star restaurants and a coffee culture that rivals our own.

The coastal paradise is a favourite of Prince Harry’s and he revisited the town last month with his wife Meghan Markle when they set off on their first official tour of South Africa together.

With a strong undercurrent of culture and history, the buzzing city stretches along a pristine coastline while its iconic Table Mountain overlooks the magic.

Want beaches? Take your pick. Clifton — a collection of three bays that arch into each other — is the perfect place to spend the afternoon. About a $12 Uber from the city centre, the beaches are bustling with locals. Guys selling beers and groups of little kids singing add to the experience. Or you can head down to Camps Bay to watch the sun set before heading out for drinks at The Bicycle Club in the city.

Relax on Clifton Beach as the sun sets.

The city feels like a world away — and that’s because it’s not the usual tourist haunt Aussies like to visit. Cathay Pacific flies to Johannesburg via Hong Kong daily, and an easy two hour flight on a local budget airline like FlySafair will get you across to the cape.

Stylishly laid-back, a strong European streak runs through the city that’s obvious in the Victorian terraces that line the streets in “the bowl” — what locals call the main city hub — and the restaurants. For a small town, the neighbourhoods are extremely different and if you really want to get a taste for everything on offer, you can book a few nights at different hotels.

The Grand Daddy is a boutique hotel right in the centre of the bowl. With a rooftop bar and a ground floor restaurant, the rooms are hip and cool and places you right in the middle of the action. Packed with bars, cafes, restaurants and shopping boutiques — offering locally made designer fashion — it feels like not even one day is enough time to see everything in the area while wandering around.

If you love coffee, you’ll be stopping every few blocks to try a brew. Kamili Coffee, Haas Coffee, Motherland, Origin and Bean There are all premium offerings. But Truth Coffee Roasting is the ultimate coffee stop in town — a favourite local spot with a sci-fi vibe where staff wear steampunk goggles.

A mission to Truth Coffee is a must.

Take your pick for lunch spots. If you’re down near St George’s mall to see the piece of the Berlin Wall that was given to Nelson Mandela when he became the president of South Africa, you can stop by Free From Eatery — a sustainable and ethical eatery offering fresh, flavourful food.

The big misconception about Cape Town is about it’s water. Rest assured — there’s plenty of it and it’s absolutely safe to drink.

A short stroll away is the District Six Museum — a memorial celebrating the multicultural community that was destroyed during apartheid in the 1960s and 1970s. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stopped by the museum on their first day of their tour and is an emotional stop to understand the city’s complicated history.

Another short walk away from The Grand Daddy Hotel is the cultural hub of Bo-Kaap. The mixture of cultures has heavily influenced the sights and tastes found in the area and the old terraces are painted bright pastel colours. A favourite stop for many is the Atlas spice store.

Explore the vibrant streets of Cape Town.

The mountains always watching over the city bowl.

For a completely different experience of the city, a few nights at the luxury The Table Bay down on The Waterfront will help you unwind and shrug off any overhanging jet lag. It’s the place to stay for any high profile people who come to town — Kylie Minogue and Robbie Williams have both been guests. Even Barack and Michelle Obama checked-in and enjoyed the water views — where the famous Cape Town seals are often seen playing.

The Table Bay offers a luxury touch to your stay — and a gym and spa means you don’t fall into bad holiday habits. It also has easy access into The V & A Waterfront shopping complexes. Hotel staff know the city well and happily recommend the best wine tours and restaurants to explore so you know you’re not wasting any time. Asian-inspired Stellenbosch, Gate (at the Quoin Rock Wine Estate on the Simonsberg Mountains), and The Dining Room (at Leeu Estates on the slopes of the Dassenberg mountains) are just a few of the try-before-you-die food and wine stops.

Along the waterfront, you can stroll down to The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa which recently opened in the Silo District — an up-and-coming area that boasts many cool cafes and bars. The museum’s housed in the old grain silos built in 1921 and the structure has been transformed into its own work of art.

Travelling around Cape Town is cheap and safe with Uber. Ten bucks will get you down to the cool and evolving Woodstock district where hip cafes, galleries and boutiques are taking over old factories. Grabbing lunch at The Kitchen is a must — Michelle Obama made it her mission to go there after reading about it in The New York Times.

A hike up Lions Head is a bucket list item.

For a slower pace, a few nights at More Quarters boutique hotel will make you feel at home. The collection of terrace houses that stack across several little laneways in the Gardens area is quaint and trendy. Asoka bar and restaurant sits right next door and is a local favourite for perfect cocktails. A short walk away is The Stack — a French-inspired restaurant nestled in a big old white mansion. Settle in for steak frites before heading out onto the lively streets.

During the day you can explore the area on foot — and a stop at Jason Bakery is necessary. Why? Four words: Bacon, peanut butter croissants. Walk it off down to Maria’s Greek Cafe for lunch.

More Quarters is tucked away over several streets of the Gardens.

If bucket list adventures are more your thing, you can hike Table Mountain and Lions Head or do the cable car at sunset. But be prepared for many others hoping to do the same at the end of the day.

If you’re lucky, you might score a date with a cute local who’ll take you up to Signal Hill at night to look out over the city while fire flies light up the dark.

That’s the unpredictable magic of Cape Town.

The journalist was a guest of South African Tourism and Cathay Pacific.

A visit to Signal Hill at night is a regular trip for locals.