On the magnificent coastal drive from Cape Town to Cape Point is Hout Bay and Mariner's Wharf, the firstharbourfront emporium in Africa and the Southern Hemisphere (34°02'49.70 S 18°20'53.60 E).

Conceptualised and built by Hout Bay's own Stanley Dorman, it continues to grow under his, wife Pam's, and sons Garth and Anton's watchful eyes. Its restaurants, shops and markets exude a maritime ambience as is nowhere else to be found. Mariner's Wharf is a wonderful place, a place where the famous and locals, jetsetters and tourists rub shoulders with venerable fishing captains and old salts.

Indeed, well worth a visit!

Hout Bay, surely South Africa's most charming fishing village, is situated along what Sir Francis Drake, more than four centuries ago, described as the most beautiful Cape in the whole wide world. Yet it wasn't that long ago when Hout Bay was regarded as Cape Town's outback, and apart from visiting tradesmen only a few people regularly used to visit.

Times have since changed and today Hout Bay has taken its rightful place as a premier tourist destination, welcoming tens of thousands of visitors a day in season. In no small way, this has been due to the vision and efforts of Stanley Dorman, a fourth generation local of Hout Bay. Virtually single-handedly, after a decade of travel and research to ports of call around the world, he designed and built Mariner's Wharf, Africa's first harbourfront emporium, which opened in 1984.

Thanks to his initiative, Hout Bay's fascinating history with the sea has therefore been preserved for posterity and with thousands of maritime artifacts worked into its décor, is a remarkable showcase of the area and its history. Do not miss the incredible Fish Market, the Restaurants, and the myriad of Shops making-up the largest collection of marine artifacts, souvenirs and antiques under one roof anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere.

CONTACT DETAILS

Tel: +27 (0) 21 790 1100

Fax: +27 (0) 21 790 7777

Email: bookings@marinerswharf.co.za

Website: www.marinerswharf.com

ADDRESS

Mariners Wharf, Hout Bay Harbour, Cape, South Africa, 7806