Cape Town is still recovering from a drought. The dam levels are looking healthy and we hope that our continued water saving efforts will see a full recovery of the city’s water supply.

Level 5 Water Restrictions (From Level 6), effective from 1 October 2018 are in place until further notice.

By supporting essential water saving practices tourists and local visitors can enjoy our beautiful city and all that it has to offer, while helping save our precious resource.

What do Level 5 Water Restrictions mean?

• Municipal drinking-quality water may not be used for outside and non-essential purposes.
• A daily water usage limit of 70 litres per person per day.

Level 5 Water Restrictions explained by the City: (click here)

How does this affect Home Owners?

• Property owners can be fined if water usage limits as specified by the City (which is subject to change) are exceeded.
• Watering of gardens is only allowed using non-potable water and watering times have been restricted in order to preserve the groundwater resource.
• Municipal drinking water may not be used to top up or refill swimming pools.

How does this affect you?

• Cape Town’s water quality is monitored continuously and all water supplied to our taps is safe to drink.
• Expect gardens to be dryer than usual.
• Swimming pools will be clean and usable to the best of the owner’s ability; many have evaporation covers and their own water source.
• Jacuzzi’s may not be operational.
• Bath plugs may be removed from the property.
• Water meter readings may be monitored at check-in and check-out to determine usage during your stay.
• Should the City impose a fine on the owner for excessive use, you may be liable.
• Some properties have water monitoring devices in place to limit daily water usage.

It is important that we all work together to keep Cape Town’s taps running:

• Take a short 2 minute shower.
• Use a bucket to collect the water (cleaning the floor or watering the garden).
• Only flush when really necessary (and preferably with grey water).
• Don’t leave the tap running while brushing your teeth.
• Use hand sanitizer instead of water.
• Wait for a full load before running the dishwasher or washing machine
• Run a shallow sink; don’t wash dishes under a running tap.
• Consider hand washing clothing and less frequent washing.
• Keep evaporation covers on pools when not in use.

We’re still enjoying ourselves in Cape Town:

Thankfully we have some of the greatest beaches in the world, so please make the most of them this year!
Enjoy singing in the shower to the tunes of some of SA’s biggest artists: Click here for great 2 minute shower songs.

Thank you for your support. Every drop counts!

The best properties in the Cape book up very early in the year. Even with the water restrictions we’re seeing those in the know, our return guests, booking up December 2018 fast. We have some fantastic Cape Town options available with their own water sources and in areas less affected.

If you haven’t begun your own travel plans, it’s time to get started. Not convinced that the early bird catches the worm? Here are some very good reasons that getting in there a few months early will go a long way in scoring that fabulous villa overlooking the beach…

Planning the details around your trip are essential when finding your perfect holiday villa in Cape Town. If you’re feeling tired just thinking about all of that, I don’t blame you – it should be fun though – so have a look at these reasons to plan ahead this year…

1. All the best villas get taken early: Some visitors book their accommodation a full year in advance. Others begin to book now in the few months that lead up to the busy time of year. From December to February, the majority of establishments are booked up, leaving the most expensive along with the least lovely of options for the ‘late comers’.
2. You may have to stay in a different area. Camps Bay to Kommetjie are the most popular areas for accommodation, followed closely by Kalk Bay and the False Bay coastline. While it’s not such a bad thing to try another area (all of Cape Town has much to offer after all), booking earlier gives you dibs on the hottest suburbs of them all for your holiday.
3. Your stress levels will go into overdrive. You know what it’s like when last-minute plans arise and you need to find a suitable Plan B at short notice. This happens at work, home, in social lives and in many other instances too. Having this happen with your much-anticipated holiday however is not very good from a stress point of view though – unless you really can’t avoid leaving things late of course.
4. You can get on with the fun things. Once the final plans have been sorted, all you really need to do is the packing, saving and daydreaming. Have a look to see what sort of tours, adventures, activities and sights can be seen in Cape Town and surrounds, and you will begin to get even more excited for your trip ahead.
5. You can start your New Year’s resolutions early. Remember last year when you made that resolution about making this an organised year? This year, don’t wait for resolution time – get organised right now, and you will be way ahead of your fellow resolution-makers for a change.

Sometimes in life, things happen that we don’t expect. Even the best laid plans go awry, as the saying goes. If worse comes to worst, we are here to help you find your ideal Cape Town holiday villa whenever you book!