City Slicker’s Guide to Oudekraal Beach
For a very long time Oudekraal seemed to a be secret, mystical place tucked away inside the Table Mountain National Park. Until, one day, I grabbed my braai grid and cozzie and headed out towards the 12 Apostles Hotel and Spa.
While Oudekraal does form part of the Table Mountain National Park, it has its own parking and entrance area just past the hotel. The elusive picnic spot is one of my favourite places in Cape Town and somewhere we visit annually for our annual Drum & Bass braai – a day where DJ’s and promoters can gather to talk shop.
The bay covets perfect paddling pools while large boulders block the most (mostly), providing shallow swimming areas with exquisite views towards the Atlantic and 12 Apostles crops of Table Mountain. It’s an absolute must do for anyone who has a few days available to spare in the Mother City. Here’s our local guide to visiting Oudekraal:
What To Bring to Oudekraal
Because Oudekraal is within the Table Mountain National Park facilities are basic. There are built in braais (BBQs), dustbins and ablution blocks. You will, however, need to bring the following:
For Cooking
- Braai grids are not provided, please bring your own along.
- Blitz, kindle, matches or a lighter.
- Medium cooler box. We’ve lugged a giant box up and down the steps, don’t do it!
- Dustbins are available, but not black bags. Please bring your own along.
- Black bag or plastic to wrap your dirty grid in so your car doesn’t get dirty.
- There is no shop, so be sure to bring enough wood/charcoal with you.
- Drinks, snacks, seasonings, condiments.
- Paper plates, cups, cutlery and tongs.
- Tubs to pack your braai’d food in (if you don’t eat it all there!).
For Swimming
- “Plukkies” or sandals – there’s quite a lot of broken glass (sadly) so sandals will protect your feet. In recent years we’ve even had oil stuck to our feet from oil spills in the ocean 🙁
- Hat and towel – maybe even two – 1 for swimming, 1 for drying your hands or for sitting on.
- Sunblock!!! It’s VERY bright at Oudekraal, both from the sky and water reflection.
- Wet wipes to clean off your hands if you don’t want to keep going to the ablution blocks.
- A hoodie – the wind can pick up in the late afternoon.
Oudekraal Accessibility
- Parking on-site is limited (about a dozen) so you may need to park over the highway and cross the road.
- The walkway down has a fair amount of stairs and no wheelchair access. So if you’re unable to walk independently, please keep this in mind.
- There is NO lifeguard at this beach, so please be prepared to watch your children should they swim.
- Please note – this is a NO DRONE zone. Many tourists fly drones all over Table Mountain National Park (which includes 3 kms offshore) and think to themselves, “I’ll be gone next week they’ll never catch me.” This is a very selfish and disrespectful perspective. You may be gone, but us – and our flora and fauna – will be here and we’d really appreciated it if you respected our boundaries.
Oudekraal Entry Fees (2024 Day Rates)
As of 2023 Oudekraal is officially CASHLESS! Previously, staff didn’t have change so you’d lose out if you didn’t have the exact amount. We visited in 2023 and can confirm it is indeed cashless.
If you have a SanParks card, entry is also free. 2023 Day Rates as follows:
- SA ID: R40 for adults with SA IDs, R20 for children.
- SADC: R80 for adults with passports proof, R40 for children.
- International Visitors: R160 for adults, R80 for child.
Oudekraal Opening Times 2024
- 1st Nov to 31st May – open every day including weekends and public holidays.
- 1 June to 31st Oct – only open weekend and public holidays.
Game rangers can be seen monitoring the location as it’s part of the San Parks range. The physical address for Oudekraal is: Oudekraal, Picnic Resort, Post Restante, Camps Bay, 8040.
Corporate Functions
PS Please don’t contact me requesting information to host your company event there! I have received several of these since publishing this post, but I don’t work for Oudekraal. Please contact SanParks directly for any further info. Thank you!
