Hout Bay Harbour, Cape Town
Coastal cruises
Three to eight hour cruises along the Atlantic Seaboard, anchored in a quiet bay for a braai on board.
Private cruises along the Atlantic Seaboard with a braai at anchor, stand-up paddleboards and unmatched views of Table Mountain.
What does a coastal cruise involve?
Cruising the Atlantic Seaboard for unmatched views of Table Mountain and/or Robben Island, then anchoring in a quiet bay for a traditional South African braai on board. Stand-up paddleboards are included for use while at anchor.
It is a popular choice for a private boat charter with family or friends, and the coastal cruise can also include light game fishing, bottom fishing or crayfish harvesting on request. Three, six or eight-hour packages available. Braai and watersports are not included in 3 hour cruises.
Is the sunset cruise a separate trip?
It is the three-hour package, and it only runs at sunset. The six and eight-hour cruises run during the day. Booking one of those means the boat is not doing anything else that day, which is why they are priced as a day on the water rather than as an evening out.
Do you take bachelor parties and stag groups?
Yes, and any package is open to a stag group — some groups genuinely want the offshore tuna day, and if that is the group you have, book it.
For most, the eight-hour coastal cruise is the better shape: a full day on the water with a braai at anchor, then back to the harbour and on to the nearest bar. It gives everyone the day without asking them to fight a hundred-kilogram fish at four in the afternoon.
How is this different to a scheduled harbour cruise?
The whole boat is yours — coastal cruises are private only, never shared — and the day is shaped around the people aboard rather than around a timetable. Three lengths: a three-hour sunset cruise, or six and eight hours during the day.
The trade-off is honest: a private charter gets moved when the weather says so, and a scheduled harbour cruise mostly does not.
At a glance
- Duration
- 3, 6 or 8 hours
- Guests
- Up to 10
- Route
- Atlantic Seaboard, Table Mountain and Robben Island
- On board
- Braai at anchor, stand-up paddleboards included
- On request
- Light game fishing, bottom fishing, crayfish
What it costs
- Sunset cruise, 3 hoursR 12 000
per boat · up to 10 guests
- Coastal cruise, 6 hoursR 16 000
per boat · up to 10 guests
- Coastal cruise, 8 hoursR 20 000
per boat · up to 10 guests
If you fish, each angler needs a fishing permit: R100 a month per person, arranged for you when you book. About permits
Month by month
When to book the coastal cruises
Conditions, species and daylight change materially through the year on this coast. Each month has its own page.
Questions
Can you have a braai on the boat?
Yes. The cruise anchors in a quiet bay for a traditional South African braai on board. Stand-up paddleboards are included.
How long is a coastal cruise in Cape Town?
Three lengths for up to ten guests, along the Atlantic Seaboard with views of Table Mountain and Robben Island: a three-hour sunset cruise, or six and eight hours during the day. Private charter only.
Can you book a boat for a bachelor party in Cape Town?
Yes. All packages are open to stag groups, and the eight-hour coastal cruise is the usual recommendation — a full day on the water for up to ten guests, with a braai at anchor, before being dropped back at Hout Bay Harbour.
Can a coastal cruise include fishing?
On request. Light game fishing, bottom fishing and — in season — crayfish harvesting can all be added to the day.
Read next
- experienceInshore light tackle & bottom fishingYellowtail on light tackle at Cape Point or Robben Island, with bottom fishing when the gamefish are quiet. The trip that runs when the offshore grounds will not.
- experienceOffshore tuna fishingFull-day offshore charters for yellowfin, bigeye, bluefin and longfin tuna, on the grounds south-west of Cape Point.
- guideBooking your first offshore charterYou arrive at Hout Bay Harbour before first light, run one to two and a half hours offshore, fish through the middle of the day and are back on the mooring in the afternoon. The crew rigs everything and talks you through the fight.
- guideWhat happens if the weather cancels your charterThe skipper makes the call and you are offered the next available date, or you owe nothing. No deposit is taken and you are never charged for a trip the boat does not run.
- guideWhat a Cape Town fishing charter actually costsRates are published in full on this site rather than held behind an enquiry form: every trip is priced as a private charter for the whole boat, with what each includes, and shared charters on the fishing trips can be arranged on request. Most operators in this market will not show a number until you ask.
- guideCorporate and incentive chartersYes. The boat is chartered privately for the day with the schedule, route and format set around the group rather than around a fishing plan.