Hout Bay, Cape Town - Conference Venues Hout Bay Cape Town

Hout Bay - Cape Town Suburb

Cape Town Conferences > Cape Town > Hout Bay

Conference Venues in Hout Bay, Cape Town
Chapmans Peak Beach Hotel Conference Venue
Riverside Estates Conference Venue
Tarragona Lodge Conference Venue
Victoria Lodge Conference Venue

Hout Bay is a coastal suburb of Cape Town, with a mix of neighbourhoods from the very rich to the very poor. It lies in a valley on the Atlantic Seaboard of the Cape Peninsula and is twenty kilometres south of the Central Business District of Cape Town. The name Hout Bay can refer to the town, or the bay on which it is situated, or the whole valley.

Hout Bay is a popular tourist attraction among both local and international visitors. There are a variety of restaurants in the village as well as two hotels (the Hout Bay Manor and the Chapman's Peak Hotel), many bed and breakfasts and self-catering accommodation where visitors can stay.

Hout Bay was formerly a fishing village and has managed to maintain its unique combination of fishing harbour and country atmosphere, despite development. Its long, sandy beach faces a bay framed by mountains and is quite simply exceptionally beautiful. Capetonians throng here over weekends to partake of the local fish & chips and to catch a glimpse of the resident Cape seals that make the harbour their home.

The harbour is a worthwhile visit, as there are spectacular views of the bay and boat rides to Duiker Island and around the Sentinel. Chapman's Peak Drive is one of the world's most scenic mountain drives and has recently undergone renovations to ensure the safety of travellers using the route.

The East and West forts built by the Dutch in the 18th century can also be visited, with the original cannons and barracks still standing on the slopes of Chapman's Peak. The East fort is the oldest operating gun battery in the world. The mountains surrounding Hout Bay also make for good hiking trails. In the same area is the bronze statue of a leopard looking out over the ocean.

Getting into Cape Town from Hout Bay offers three distinct possibilities, all of which are scenic drives. Chapman’s Peak, although a toll road, remains one of the most beautiful and awesome routes with views to take your breath away, whilst the route over Suikerbossie Hill to Llandudno and other Atlantic beaches of Cape Town, in the shadow of the Twelve Apostles, is equally inspiring. The road that joins up with the Constantia Wine Route, over Constantia Nek, provides a bird’s eye view of False Bay and takes you into the beautiful Constantia Valley.

History of Hout Bay
When the Dutch established a colony in Table Bay in 1652, they required a great quantity of good timber for building and other purposes. There were no large forests in the immediate vicinity of the settlement, mainly because the rainfall was not high enough. It was soon apparent that the colonists would be able to get the wood they needed in the wetter valley that lay on the other side of a low pass (called Constantia Nek) between the southern end of Table Mountain and Constantiaberg. The area was originally made up of two farms, which were slowly subdivided to make way for urban expansion. While still maintaining its rural feel the area now has more than 12 000 residences inhabited by a population of about 42 000 people

Cape Town Suburbs
Bantry Bay, Bellville, Bloubergrant, Bloubergstrand, Brackenfell, Camps Bay, Cape Town Central/City Bowl, Claremont, Constantia, Durbanville, Fish Hoek, Fresnaye, Gordon's Bay, Green Point, Hout Bay, Kenilworth, Lakeside, Melkbosstrand, Milnerton, Muizenberg, Newlands, Noordhoek, Observatory, Parow, Pinelands, Rondebosch, Sea Point, Simon's Town, Sir Lowry's Pass, Somerset West, Strand, Table View, Tokai, Tygerberg.

Map of Hout Bay