A view of Table Mountain from the deck of the MSC Opera

Geography of Cape Town

The ocean forms a natural boundary on Cape Town's western and southern ends. The city centre is rather small - squeezed in between Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean - but the metropolitan area is huge. Cape Town's city forms the northern section of the Cape Peninsula - a 50km long finger sticking out in a southernly direction into the ocean, extending to Cape Point (the most south-western point of Africa).

Maclear's Beacon on Table Mountain is the highest point within Cape Town's metropolitan area - it is 1 087m above sea level.

Distances from Cape Town

Durban

1 753km

Port Elizabeth

769km

Johannesburg

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