Sun, sea and a sore wallet: What a Cape Town family day out really costs

A family of four would pay R2,530 just for admission to the Two Oceans Aquarium, the Table Mountain Cableway and Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, excluding transport and food. Statistics South Africa’s 2025 survey, published on 27 October 2026, recorded a 13.1% drop in domestic day trips and a 6.5% decline in overnight trips compared with 2024. Despite fewer trips, domestic tourism spending rose from R60.6 billion to about R63.2 billion. Financial constraints were the leading reason people gave for not travelling, although the national figures do not show that attraction prices caused the decline in trips.