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Inside-park stays and nearby lodges, sorted by distance.
Inside parkOlifantsbos Guest House sits on a wild, windswept stretch of coast in the Cape of Good Hope section of Table Mountain National Park, looking out over the cold Atlantic at the south-western tip of the peninsula. The shoreline is rocky and kelp-strewn, backed by fynbos-covered hills, and it makes a fine base for walking the coast in search of shipwrecks, tidal pools and seabirds. The house is self-catering and sleeps a large group, with the ocean almost at the doorstep. Eland, bontebok, ostrich and troops of baboon are often seen in the surrounding reserve, and the beaches nearby hold the wrecks of the Thomas T Tucker and the Nolloth. It is an easy drive from the Cape Point gate, yet feels a world away from the city.
Inside parkOverseers Mountain Cottage stands high on Table Mountain National Park, a self-catering retreat for those who want the mountain largely to themselves. It looks out over the peaks and valleys of the range, with fynbos slopes, sandstone crags and sweeping views toward the city and the sea. The cottage is a roomy base suited to larger groups, families or hiking parties, and lies along the route of the Hoerikwaggo trail. Days are spent on the contour paths, watching for sunbirds and sugarbirds among the proteas and taking in some of the finest mountain scenery in the Cape. Simple and peaceful, it trades convenience for solitude and a genuine sense of wilderness on the doorstep of Cape Town.
Inside parkSlangkop Tented Camp lies on the Atlantic seaboard near Kommetjie, below the tall cast-iron Slangkop Lighthouse on the western edge of the Cape Peninsula. The permanent tents sit among coastal fynbos with the sea close by, a quiet and elemental place to stay within Table Mountain National Park. Each unit is a simple two-bed tent, part of the Hoerikwaggo hiking route and suited to walkers who want a no-frills coastal base. The long beaches at Kommetjie and Noordhoek, good surf and rich birdlife are all close at hand. Days end with Atlantic sunsets and the steady sweep of the lighthouse beam after dark.
Inside parkSmitswinkel Tented Camp is tucked into the fynbos above Smitswinkel Bay, near the southern end of the peninsula on the False Bay side of Table Mountain National Park. The setting is wild and secluded, with views down to a small, sheltered cove and the mountains of the Cape of Good Hope beyond. The permanent two-bed tents are simple and comfortable, a quiet base on the Hoerikwaggo trail for hikers and travellers drawn to the peninsula's emptier corners. The Cape Point gate, with its lighthouse, dramatic cliffs and abundant game, is only a short drive away. It is a back-to-nature stay within easy reach of both Cape Point and Simon's Town.
Manyoni Private Game Reserve is one of the largest privately-owned reserves in Kwazulu-Natal. This 23,000-hectare reserve is the product of 17 dedicated landowners who dropped their fences in 2004 to create one contiguous protected area for our wildlife. The selection of the area as a potential release site for the WWF Black Rhino Range Expansion Project was a major driving factor in the establishment of Manyoni. In 2005, the newly established reserve was confirmed as a release site by the WWF and a founder population of black rhino were released into their new home.