A Visit to Simon’s Town and the Boulders Beach Penguin Colony
Boulders Beach is a small, sheltered spot with inlets between big granite boulders, which is where it gets its name.
It’s a really popular place because there’s a colony of African penguins living there. They’re native to the area and unfortunately critically endangered, so it’s pretty special to see them up close.
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Penguins enjoying the sunshine on the boulders at the beach.
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Viewing the penguins from one of the lookout points
The beach is part of Table Mountain National Park and is located on the Cape Peninsula, in Simon’s Town, about a 45-minute drive from Cape Town. It’s kind of in between Cape Town and the Cape of Good Hope, so we decided to visit both on the same day.
Apparently, the best time to see more penguins is between March and May, but we went in late August and still saw a few.
If you are not driving, this is not an issue, as most tours to Cape of Good Hope take you to Simon’s Town penguin colony. Just be sure to confirm this in advance.
There were two main viewpoints to see the penguins, both offering great visibility. The beach itself, the boardwalks, and the viewing areas were all really well maintained. We spent about an hour just watching the penguins waddling around, making noise, fighting over who gets the best rock, and jumping into the water.
It was a nice, laid-back stop before heading down to Cape of Good Hope and not to be missed.
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Penguins relaxing on the shore.
The tickets to Penguin Colony at Boulders beach can be bought at South Africa National Parks official website or can be bought in person at the entrance. The tickets for international travellers cost about R255 per adult and they do accept credit cards.
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