Introduction
So we have just returned from our family holiday to the Western Cape in South Africa. Myself, Yolandi and Connor had a great time flying in from Johannesburg, visiting Gansbaai for a whale watching experience, staying in Blouberg visiting some friends, and just taking in all that the area had to offer over a weekend. We will elaborate further what it was like to travel with a toddler/family and what we suggest for anyone trying a weekend getaway. So what is a Cape town Family Holiday like?
Departure From Johannesburg
So we took the early morning flight to Cape town from OR Tambo International Airport, flying with Lift Airlines at 6.30am. We woke up at 4.00am to leave early enough to get into the fnb easy lounge. As we had purchased our tickets through them, we got free access to the lounge as well. Turns out we did not wake up early enough though as after arriving at 5am, going through the baggage process, the gate check etc, we had 15 minutes left before boarding was about to begin. So we quickly got some food, fed Connor some oats, had some juice/coffee and went to the boarding gate at 6.10am. Lift were very helpful throughout the whole boarding process, although there appears to be general confusion about what kind of car seat is allowed on a plane. We got sent a list of requirements, which ours met without a problem, but then we got there and were told it is flagged by the security staff and had to go into the luggage compartment. Apparently there are also dimensions that come into play, which was not on the list we got sent as a requirement. But we got to keep the middle seat for Connor anyway, and they said we would get a refund for it. Waiting to see if that actually happens. You can see our entire journey, including the plane flight, on our YouTube video below:
Gansbaai
Once we landed in Cape Town, it was off to collect our rental car. We booked this through the ebucks platform as we got a discount after booking our flight through them, which was also discounted as we are level 5 ebucks. If you want to know how to make this happen, I can give a few tips as well on that.
We ended up getting a Renault Triber, but we had actually booked a Toyota corolla Quest, so I would consider that to be an upgrade, as it was a 7 seater vehicle. The space in the car was adequate, as we had gotten in Connors pram, two travel bags, two hand luggage, and then a few other accessories we carry as a family, such as Connor's bed rail. This would be used to stop him falling off the bunk bed we were supposed to have at our accommodation. More on that later.
When we left Cape Town International Airport, it was around 9.30. We arrived in Gansbaai around 12:15. Yes it took nearly 3 hours to do a distance of around 120km. The road has a lot of speed limits which rarely exceed 80km a hour, and with road construction happening, this slowed down the journey. But we were not in a rush, and could take things slowly, and Connor loves road trips, he stares out the window most of the time except for when asking for food. He also slept a fair portion of the way, and we did make a quick stop in hermanus at a petrol station. The car held up well, but as the engine is a 0.9 liter, it does rev a bit higher than I am used to, and you wont get the quick speed you are used to with a larger engine, so don't try to overtake anyone without making sure you have the distance for it. We did think we should have taken out the last row of seats, as this was the 7 seater version, and that could have given us the extra space we would have preferred at the time, but we still managed to make it work. We also did not see the spots for the cupholders till the end of the trip, as the center console is built so differently than we are used to, with our cupholders being behind the gear shift, and not between the two chairs. But it did have a cooling compartment as well with it, which was rather handy for keeping things cool if you need it. If you require more space in the boot though, upgrade to a Renault Duster.
Once we arrived in Gansbaai, there was a little introductory video explaining safety and a few aspects of the Marine Dynamics company.
Then it was time to board the boat and head out to sea. But not before Connor had his muffin and got to play on the jungle gym they had setup.
The boat itself was actually pulled to shore by a John Deer tractor, so its not a small vessel. It had about 40 people on it when we were taking our expedition.
During our trip, we were lucky enough to see Southern Right whales, But unfortunately no great white sharks were around at that point. From what I remember, they had not been seen for three weeks in the area. So we had to settle with the Copper Sharks that were around. But that is how nature goes.
Then naturally there is always the seals on Dyer Island. This tour does require a very long lens to be able to get closer to the seals for any decent photography. We used the Fujifilm XS-10 for our trip, as we wanted a lighter smaller body than a DSLR, but with the same image quality. Pair it with a long lens like the Tamron 150-500 to get the zoom you need. There were a few times we were up close to the animals, such as when viewing the sharks. This is best for a standard lens like the one that comes with this kit when buying the Fujifilm XS-10. We had the Tamron 11-20 F2.8 and we are very happy with the quality it is producing, and having the F2.8 allows for better low light photography. You can see some of the results here on the below video:
or one of our Zazzle Products such as this one:
If you are not planning or doing anything more than a few prints and saving the photos on your computer, consider a bridge camera such as the Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 While the Panasonic does have a smaller sensor and a lower pixel count, this camera is not aimed at the semi professional. It is for the everyday user who wants more zoom, less hassle, but with some features if they want to experiment. It will allow for things like long exposure photography, raw capture, 4K Video and more. But that smaller sensor will impact low light photography, and it will give lower image quality. So keep in mind what kind of traveller/photographer you are when deciding what you want to achieve. To put it simply, After Connor went to bed one night, I said goodbye to the wife, took my camera and went down to the beach at sunset and scoped out the area for some shots. and spent about an hour doing this to get some photos. If you are not this kind of person, get the Panasonic.
Blouberg
We finished our tour and then started heading home around 4pm. They did offer soup and bread but we had a three hour journey back home and had to get Connor fed, in bed and we needed rest ourselves. So off we went.
We got dinner at Trecastelli that evening. I had a pizza and my wife had a pasta as we know our son will eat pasta, and so they shared. We got into the apartment at around 7pm that night. We were staying at the Infinity Apartments in Blouberg, Apartment G01. This is a ground floor apartment, but still had sea views, and views of the mountain. Yes you will hear more traffic, but it was limited, and you will hear if anyone is at the pool. but we wanted it as it had a solid wall on the balcony, safety for Connor, and was supposed to have a double bunk bed. We could put blankets and pillows on the wall sides to stop Connor hurting himself against them, and then the bed guard rail we purchased on the exposed side.It was simply to carry and the most convenient solution for us. But when we got there, there was no double bunk bed, but rather a double bed. I checked the website and booking.com to ensure we were not wrong. But everything said a double bunk bed. So we had to make a plan. out came every pillow and spare blanket we could find, and we made a fort around the edges of the bed to prevent Connor falling off. It worked for the three nights thankfully. The rest of the trip was spent visiting friends, eating out at restaurants such as Doodles which makes excellent food and has great views and was a few hundred meters from the apartment. Sunday we went to church with our friends, it was a pleasant church called common ground. Spent the day on the beach with some more friends who stay near Fishhoek, said goodbye to them at 4pm, and then packed up everything we could that night, put Connor back into his routine of bath, story, bedtime. We are currently reading The Gruffalo and Monkey Puzzle. He likes pointing to the different animals and waiting for me to say the name, and then goes to the next one, and repeat. He even takes one to bed with him these days. Either to cuddle or just look through on his own, we are not certain at the moment.
Flying Back to Joburg
Flying back to Joburg, we learnt from our first flight and still left at 4:45 or so, as our flight this time left at 8am. So we arrived at the airport at 5.30, handed in the car, handed over our luggage, still a lot of uncertainty about the car chair at that point, so we just took it with us up to the plane. We got into the lounge at around 6am, giving us a full hour to eat, change Connor, and just relax for the flight, it was fairly full, and we were the only parents in their with a toddler. Makes you initially self conscious a little, as everyone else appears to be business people, but we are allowed in, so let them think what they will. I had to sit on the floor to feed Connor his oats that time, as he decided that was his spot and wanted his shoes off as well. And the rest is history, we got on the plane, they took the car seat and the pram into the luggage compartment from us. we boarded, Connor was a lot more comfortable this time with the restraint for the takeoff and landing, and generally had a good time throughout the trip. All in all, A successful family vacation for everyone.
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