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Cape Town Sucks for The Average Person and I’m Sick of Everyone Pretending Otherwise
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Cape Town is one of the most frustrating, soulless, and unsustainable cities to live in unless you're in the 1%. Everyone raves about how beautiful it is, but let’s be real, you can’t live in a fucking view. The reality of this city is a housing crisis, a skyrocketing cost of living, and a social scene that feels about as deep as a puddle.
Let’s start with the rental market, where landlords seem to think they’re doing you a favour by charging R15k+ for a 0 bedroom shoebox with peeling paint and mouldy walls. Half the city is struggling to afford a basic place to live while the other half is renting out “luxury apartments” for short-term lets to tourists. And good luck dealing with a landlord when something breaks, they either disappear or act like fixing the plumbing is your personal burden.
And that’s just rent, everything here costs a fortune. Cape Town is marketed as some kind of laid-back paradise, but unless you’re swimming in money, it’s pure financial hell. A basic dinner out? You’re dropping R500 minimum. Groceries? Imported prices for local products. A drink with friends? Hope you enjoy spending a third of your salary on “just a quick catch-up.” It’s no wonder so many people here survive on side hustles or move back in with their parents.
And if you think you’ll find solace in friends, think again. Cape Town is full of superficial social circles,people who don’t want real friendships, just weekend drinking buddies for Instagram stories. It’s all about curating an aesthetic, not actually forming meaningful connections. People here flake, ghost, and move on the second you’re not convenient for them. If you want deep, loyal friendships? Wrong city.
Then there’s the driving. My god, the driving. It’s like half the city never learned basic road rules and the other half actively tries to kill you. Taxi drivers do whatever they want, normal drivers follow no logic, and indicators? Optional, apparently. Every time I get in my car, I accept that someone is going to either cut me off, ignore a red light, or drive like they’re playing GTA on hard mode.
And while all of this is happening, Cape Town is crumbling under its own weight. The amount of shacks and tents popping up in residential areas has exploded, and with that, so has crime and drug use. Entire neighbourhoods are now filled with makeshift shelters, and if you say anything about it, you’re labelled “heartless.” But ignoring the insane levels of poverty, addiction, and crime doesn’t make it go away.
Speaking of crime: I don’t care what the “Cape Town is so much safer than Joburg” crowd says. Crime here is out of control. I’ve had my house broken into three times, once when I was home. I’ve been the victim of an attempted kidnapping. The fact that everyone here just shrugs it off as “part of living in SA” is insane. Gangs run entire communities, police don’t care, and people just move along like this is normal.
And honestly? The extreme wealth inequality in this city makes it unbearable. You’ve got billionaires sipping cocktails in Clifton while families in the Cape Flats live in constant fear of gang violence. You see homeless people everywhere, starving, and struggling, while some tech bro in an R5-million apartment complains about load shedding. The contrast is disgusting.
And before anyone says, “Well, if you hate it, just leave,” I’m working on it. But for now, I just needed to let this out. Cape Town isn’t some utopia: it’s a broken city being held together by overpriced coffee, Instagram aesthetics, and willful ignorance. Anyone else feel this way, or am I just tired of pretending it’s something it’s not?
Top Comment: Hi, come to London. All of the above, magnified, minus the view.
Couples trip to Cape Town, SA. Is it safe?
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My partner (25, F) and I (25, M) are looking to go away winter 2026 to somewhere hot with good food, pretty landscapes/wildlife and vibrant culture.
South Africa came up as an option and it looks lovely, but I’ve seen many conflicting reports around safety for tourists out there. I understand SA has had a fair few issues recently but is somewhere like Cape Town still fine to visit?
Top Comment: I visit every year as it’s one of my favourite places in the world. It’s fine as long as you stick to tourist areas and do what the locals tell you. Stay somewhere in the V&A Waterfront - tourist area by the harbour, great views of table mountain and very beautiful. Lots of shops and bars and restaurants but it’s classy and there‘s a great atmosphere. Catch the hop-on-hop-off bus to get anywhere. There are several routes and you can get to all the major attractions on these buses. Marvellous. have lunch at Camps Bay Take tours to go to other places such as the Cape - a great full day tour. The wine tram around Franschhoek is fantastic and the tour leaves where you get the hop-on-hop-off bus. Also book a ferry and tour to Robben Island. It’s a half day. It can get busy so book ahead. Make sure you have a transfer from the airport to your hotel. You can get an authorised taxi and Ubers are reliable too, but it’s best to be organised when you arrive! Ubers are safe for travel around Cape Town too. Don’t walk around the downtown area by yourself. Take walking tours to see the buildings of this area and Bo Kaap too. They are free and leave from the hop-on-hop-off bus office in Long Street. Don’t hike Table Mountain on your own - take a tour. An earlier post says don’t go to Nyanga etc - well, they’re townships and not places you’d go on your own anyway. After thinking about it very very carefully, I did a tour of these townships with a local tour operator. It can be classed as poverty-porn but I hope it helped employment for some locals. It’s controversial. Go on a few safaris too - organise pick up and transfers though. South Africa is absolutely marvellous and unforgettable but make sure you have tours and transfers for everything when it’s your first trip. GO - you’ll adore it
Is Cape Town “worth it”?
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It’s a bit of a trek to get there. I’d be interested in staying at least a month if I go.
I’ve heard that it’s a very beautiful city and that it’s a little dangerous. I’d like to learn more about some other aspects of the city and country...is there a deep culture to dive into and learn about? Interesting foods to try? Interesting things to do in the surrounding area?
I often like to enroll in language classes in new places but believe English is the primary language there, so I wouldn’t be spending time on that.
I’m really just trying to get a sense of if I’ll primarily end up spending a bunch of time holed up in an apartment due to safety concerns and/or “nothing to do”.
Top Comment: Cape Town is definitely worth it, a unique city and one of the most scenic I've seen anywhere. You do need to mind yourself there though, as property and violent crime are both unfortunately issues. I took the train there from Johannesburg several years ago. I'm a huge fan of epic train voyages, and this was one of the best I've done. On arrival at Cape Town, I pushed through a scrum of people outside the station, and hopped into a taxi to go to my Airbnb in Woodstock. (I'd been out for beers with a Saffer friend in Johannesburg a couple of nights prior, and he had told me how Cape Town had a taxi mafia, so this was fresh in my mind.) Once we pulled away from the station, I realized that one of the zippers to my backpack was open, and that my burner phone was missing. I asked the taxi driver if he knew the pickpockets who worked the station, to which he responded "yah man." I offered him a 1000 rand bounty for my phone, he dropped me off, my hostess took me out for drinks in Woodstock and I forgot about it. The next morning, very hungover, I awoke to knocking on the window of the room where I was staying. It was the taxi driver with my phone, seeking his bounty. He had to take me to an ATM, but he got his bounty. Just a minor language correction: English will serve you just fine in Cape Town, but Afrikaans is the most commonly spoken language there. Afrikaans is mutually intelligible with Dutch, its parent language, although has diverged in various ways over the past few centuries.
Why Do So Many People Have a Problem with Cape Town? 🤔
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Hey fellow South Africans, I've noticed something lately and I'm genuinely curious about it. Whenever someone posts something positive about Cape Town—whether it’s a tourist sharing their experience or just a post highlighting the beauty of the city—the comments often get filled with people (usually from Joburg or Durban) talking about how their city is "so much better."
But here's the thing: I almost never see Capetonians jumping into posts about Joburg or Durban to say the opposite. (maybe I just miss these comments, but personally I've never seen it) It’s not like Cape Town is perfect (we definitely have our issues), but why the need to put it down every time it gets a bit of praise?
Is there something specific that Cape Town did to rub people the wrong way, or is it just a bit of friendly rivalry between cities? I’d love to hear everyone’s honest thoughts on this, but let’s keep it civil, please!
Edit: Just to be clear, this isn't about city bashing. I’m just curious about why the vibes get so negative whenever Cape Town gets a bit of love.
Top Comment: Have to say, whenever I run into and spend time with people from elsewhere in SA, which is often, I never hear these conversations. Everyone gets along just fine. Anonymous mumbling and ranting on social media is different from real life.
Safety in Cape Town with and without a local guide
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I'm (41, US) thinking of traveling to Cape Town to stay with an American (gay, 61) male friend of mine who lives over there. He recommends 10 days, but we both have said that's a little too much for our friendship and recommended I also do some solo stuff.
I haven't gotten to touch base with him about what that may look like but I don't know if he will really be tuned into what safety may look like for a 5'0" American woman over there, and frankly, I don't either.
I'd be staying with him and his boyfriend (a local) and will be doing whatever they recommend, but they won't want to travel to do a safari with me, and I'm not missing that. He said I'd have to fly and drive to do it from where he is (but I havne't don't my research there yet) and I want to make sure that's safe also.
Any tips and tricks other than the usual of keeping valuables near you, phone not out, etc.?
Top Comment: I imagine your friend will be able to prepare you for the basics, but here are my thoughts: There really are a crazy amount of pickpocketers, people who will subtely slash your bag while it’s on the floor by your table, and parking lot attendants who are paid more by local thieves to look away than they are to do their job. This means: don’t keep anything valuable visible in your car or rooms. Be aware at stop lights with your windows down, I’ve seen people just reach right in and snatch things off seats Restaurants wouldn’t let me leave at night to catch my Uber, they thought I was crazy to even think of waiting outside. Truly there are lots of thieves everywhere, but they will only target you if they see you holding a target. On the one hand, I want to say it’s overreacting and that I came out unharmed and un-robbed (despite one pickpocketing attempt at a bar); on the other hand, every single person I knew had a story, every month someone in my relatively small group of acquaintances had something happen. My SA friends just made a habit of never carrying anything on them. The safari will be the safest part by far. You will be 100% looked after. I recommend Londolozi, and you could ask the staff there what’s the safest way to get to them.
Cape Town? What’s the cons?
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This will be my first time working from another country, I’m a Brit living in London currently, and after looking at all the options, Cape Town is really standing out to me.
- Beautiful.
- Nice weather - for when I’m looking to go feb - Apr
- Lots to do, seemingly
- Great food and wine options
- Relatively cheap
- Golf
Just wondering, apart from the loadhedding and crime issue, are there any other negatives ? Or what’s any of your experiences with there?
Top Comment: 7. Powercuts for up to 8 hours a day 8. Constant fear of getting mugged while out walking 9. Constant fear of carjacking 10. Police corruption 11. Home invasion/burglary a huge problem 12. Country in rapid and terminal decline due to corruption, becoming an increasingly difficult and hostile place to live
Cape Town, South Africa (2023)
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Arrived in Cape Town recently for a solo trip. I’ve only been here for a few days but it has since become my favorite place that i’ve ever traveled to.
Top Comment: Cape Town is amazing. I'm originally from Joburg but CPT is just another world altogether. The wine tasting in Paarl and Stellenbosch area is just unrivaled. No beating it. The wine, the scenery... Just do it 💪