Although Cape Town's city centre is compact enough to get around on foot, many of the attractions are spread along the considerable length of the Peninsula. To make the most of your visit, you'll need to use taxis, rent transport , take a tour , or make do with the pretty skeletal public transport system. Inner-city areas west of the centre are better served by buses than other central suburbs, but transport north along the Atlantic coast is negligible. There is, however, a train service cutting through the southern suburbs and continuing all the way down to Simon's Town. It's fairly reliable and well-used, though the rolling stock is looking a little battered - vandals dismantle the train interiors to sell as scrap. A concerted programme is underway to upgrade and make the carriages vandal-proof.

Note that using public transport after dark is potentially risky. If in any doubt, make every effort to take metered taxis at night, and if you're forced to use public transport take sensible precautions, such as travelling in a group (especially women) and avoiding third-class carriages on trains.

Buses
The only frequent and reliable bus services are those from the centre to the Waterfront and Sea Point; infrequent buses also go down the Atlantic seaboard to Camps Bay and Hout Bay. Don't attempt to catch a bus to the southern suburbs: the...
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Taxis, minibus taxis, shuttle buses and Rikki's
The term " taxi " is no less ambiguous in Cape Town than elsewhere in South Africa: it's used to refer to conventional metered cars, jam-packed minibuses and their more upmarket cousins, Rikki's.
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Trains
Cape Town's train service (timetable information tel 0800 656 463), is a relatively reliable if slightly rundown urban line running from Cape Town station, through the southern suburbs and all the way down to Simon's Town. Highly recommended...
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Driving
Cape Town has good roads and several fast freeways that can whisk you across town in next to no time, except at peak hours (7-9am & 4-6.30pm). Take care approaching: the on-ramps frequently feed directly into the fast lane, and Capetonians...
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