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Old Town Tulbagh
Old Town Tulbagh
4.5
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles184 reviews
Excellent
90
Very good
79
Average
13
Poor
2
Terrible
0

nickytravels
East London, South Africa485 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2021
Buy tickets for the 4 museums at the Earthquake Museum at the start of the road.
They happily took our cash to wonder the street and visit the 4 museums. Only 2 were actually open (Earthquake Museum and the church).
Info boards along the route were very helpful.
Happily wondered up enjoying the well restored architecture.
Everything seemed a little tired and in need of a bit of TLC though.
Written 7 April 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

BrendaWilliams_12
Cape Town Central, South Africa3,873 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2015 • Solo
When you enter Tulbagh you drive down Van der Stel where you will find many Restaurants, some offering entertainment and the necessary convenience stores and banks. When you walk down Church Street you have to pop into the museums and remind yourself of the devastating earthquake of 1969 and the many people it affected. There is also a lovely little succulent nursery, precious stones and crafts place in Buitenkant Street not too far from Van der Stel Street. When you have done all that get into your car and drive out of town and see how Tulbagh is one of the last country towns that is just that. Where country folk wave as you drive past. Farms and guest houses that have beautiful little chapels and dams(some with birds). See the fruit orchards in season and how peaches are dried for the market.
I visited Tulbagh for the third time during the Christmas in Winter festival. I thought Church Street was just a big craft market, because when I greeted the stall holders or shop assistants with Merry Christmas (in Winter right) they looked at me with surprise.
However the countryside in it's different shades never cease to amaze me.
I visit many small towns in our country but I enjoy the different wine routes (only for the scenery) of Tulbagh the most.
With regard to the Christmas in Winter festival one little stall stood out the most for me because it actually had the Merry Christmas trimmings.
I want to also wish the Community Gardens all the best for this initiative. I believe the big dam in the garden has not been filled in 30 years
Written 8 July 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

richard c
Newark-on-Trent, UK466 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2018 • Friends
This is a wonderful place to visit, walking along a whole street of restored Cape Dutch houses, now shops cafe's and guest houses as well as residential and not forgetting the museum, which is well worth going into and shows the history of the village house by house detail on pre and post the earthquake which virtually destroyed the whole village. the day we were there was very hot and the places to sit and drink were very welcoming. we spent about 4 hrs there and the time flew by. As a UK visitor I really enjoyed seeing the history of the Cape Dutch homes as did my wife who is from Cape Town.it is a hidden gem.
Written 21 September 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Gilly-bean0779
Gingindlovu, South Africa193 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2017 • Friends
The old Cape Dutch architecture is so appealing and the coffe shops and restaurants are quaint and unique. This is such a beautiful example of an old town that is well maintained and welcoming to its visitors. Even if you are not able to stop in here for a long, it is certainly recommended for a fleeting visit. Clean streets, shady parking and beautiful buildings
Written 8 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Julian H
113 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2014 • Solo
Tulbagh is one of those old settler 'towns' that lies at the head of a valley - there is one road in, and the sale road out! At first sight when you drive in you are confronted with modern buildings with no real historical links. But that all changes when you start to dig a little deeper. I drove down the main drag and my first thoughts were what a shame that the town was more of ugly brick shop fronts!

Then as I turned at the end into Church Street, you start to see the Tulbagh of the 18th & 19th Century. There is this road crammed on either side with beautiful restored buildings that house museums, craft shops, B&B's and restaurants. The real delight is that it is not crowded, so parking is easy and free, you can walk the whole area over a day if you really want to, and food is plentiful and varied with some many outlets to choose from.
A real pleasure was to see no fast food outlets here - well I did not see them, so they may exist in another area! Food is locally sourced, cooked to order and cover a wide range of prices for the single travelling to the family of 4 with starving kids!

I'd recommend that you go for a weekend. Tulbagh is just a gentle 2-hour drive out from Cape Town. The roads are good, traffic is medium depending on the time of day, and day of the week, and there are other places to stop at on the way. The scenery is varied from the flat farming plain outside Wellington, to the mountain range that you weave through to get to Tulbagh. Book into one of the many B&B's, then spend the days walking the old town area, enjoy coffee and snacks in the various eateries, antique shops, buy local wine and food at the Deli, and wonder at how the pioneers found the valley, as well as survived earthquakes.

The various museums trace the founding and growth of Tulbagh, and the challenges those who lived here faced. Well worth a visit! There is a lot of information on the www -

the Tourist Office is on http://www.tulbaghtourism.co.za/
more historical notes on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulbagh
Written 26 February 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

bluu
5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2022
lovely to walk and read the history of the houses and chat to the locals in the street - gem of a restaurant was readers worth a visit
Written 11 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Rachel S
16 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2021 • Friends
We paid for entrance to all 4 of the museums/points of interest in the street, however they neglected to inform us that only 2 of the 4 museums were open. So couldn't see much, what a let down.
Written 23 March 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MartiCapeTown
Cape Town135 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2020
The town is beautiful and the restored Church Street must be one of the most beautiful streets in South Africa, but we were very disappointed that all the museums were closed on the Saturday afternoon. This is not a good advertisement for the town as a weekend getaway as this is one of the main tourist attractions and you expect to be able to visit them
Written 25 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Annette W
46 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2019
History of the town as well as the earth quake info ,very interesting and taking a stroll through town is worth a visit
Written 8 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Isabella A
The Netherlands46 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2019
We travelled to Tulbagh for the day from Cape Town. We expected more than what we saw though. It is a "one / two horse town". Lovely shops and places to eat in the only two roads of the town. The area is scenic and peaceful with a relaxing vibe. We ate at the Paddagang Eeethuis in Church street. Meals were tasty and staff friendly.
Written 4 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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OLD TOWN TULBAGH (2024) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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