The 15 best rainy day outings in Cape Town

Africa’s premier contemporary art gallery is the perfect option for a rainy day, offering continental creativity and city views from the upper-floor galleries. Inside, the reimagined grain silo is as much a draw as the exhibitions, with soaring concrete shafts, cathedral-like volumes, and galleries dedicated to contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora. Though it’s not usually free, time your visit right and it becomes one of the city’s best rainy-day bargains. On Wednesdays, African citizens can visit Zeitz MOCAA for free thanks to the museum’s Africa Wednesday: a smart midweek escape when the weather turns. Don’t forget to bring ID and arrive between 10am and 1pm. Not raining on a Wednesday? Entry to Zeitz MOCAA is free for under 18s every day of the week, and you can also get in for free on any day during your birthday month. It’s just one of 19 great birthday freebies in Cape Town!

Golf may not be the first thing that springs to mind when the rain starts hammering down, but Epic Golf in Diep River lets you practise bunker shots without the brolly. This simulator centre has four private rooms where players can bring their own clubs or hire on site, and tee off using Trackman technology. You can head to the driving range, play famous international courses, or simply book a room with friends for a four-ball where it’s warm and dry. There is also a putting green, a kids’ play area, work stations and a fully licensed restaurant, with food and drinks brought directly to the simulator rooms.

Norval Foundation is one of Cape Town’s best arty outings, rain or shine. Set amid the vineyards of Constantia, this landmark gallery offers polished gallery spaces showcasing major South African and African artists, alongside a sculpture garden and an excellent on-site restaurant run by chef Matt Manning. 

Clouds in the sky? Head for the stars instead! The Iziko Planetarium and Digital Dome, set within the Iziko South African Museum precinct, offers immersive 360-degree shows that make full use of the dome’s wraparound digital projection system. Depending on the programme, you might find yourself travelling through the solar system, diving into the human body, or exploring the deep structure of the universe. Most of the shows are aimed at kids – making it ideal for the winter school holidays – but there’s plenty to keep ala ges entertained. Check the daily show schedule here.

Cape Town’s commercial galleries are one of the city’s great free cultural pleasures, especially when the rain rules out beaches and mountain trails. Start in Green Point at Goodman Gallery, where contemporary African and international artists fill a crisp white-cube space on Somerset Road, then loop through the city or out to Woodstock for Stevenson, one of the country’s most respected contemporary galleries. If you’re near the Waterfront, Everard Read and CIRCA offer a more polished stop, with modern and contemporary South African work across gallery spaces on Portswood Ridge. The exhibitions change often, so this is one rainy-day plan that rewards repeat visits.

Not every rainy-day outing needs to involve a ticket or a tour guide. The Silent Book Club Cape Town offers a refreshingly low-pressure alternative: bring whatever you’re reading, settle in with fellow book lovers, and spend an hour reading in companionable silence. There are no assigned books, no homework and no need to share your clever opinions about the novel on your lap. Gatherings pop up at cafés, bookstores, parks and other venues around the city, with a short social window before and after for anyone who feels like chatting. It is free to join, though buying a coffee or snack from the host venue is encouraged. Follow on Instagram to find out about the next meet-up.

Sue, you could see a film at a big-chain cinema in a boring shopping mall, but why not combine the silver screen with a dash of city history? Few Cape Town rainy-day plans are as satisfying as a film at The Labia, the city’s much-loved independent cinema on Orange Street. Although the building dates to 1949, it opened as a cinema in September 1989 and has been a smash hit ever since. Expect a programme that usually mixes art-house releases and documentaries with more mainstream crowd-pleasers. It is charming rather than slick, with old-school screens and sometimes-creaky chairs, but there’s an undeniable charm to a cinema that’s become part of Cape Town’s cultural furniture. 

Did you know: The Labia was voted one of the World’s Greatest Cinemas!

At the Museum of Illusions Cape Town, everything is not as it seems. With over 60 visual and educational exhibits, including optical illusions, holograms and immersive experiences, get ready to see things from a new perspective. Whether you’re planning on visiting with friends, family or by yourself, they have something for everyone of all ages.

Cape Town has museums dedicated to art, slavery, diamonds and natural history, but only one devoted to our enduring obsession with dogs. Set close to the Company’s Garden, the Museum of Dogs is a delightfully oddball rainy-day stop that is far more thoughtful than the name might suggest. Across a series of indoor exhibition spaces, the museum explores the role of dogs in history, culture, popular music, literature and everyday life, with personal stories, photography, ceramics, sculpture and interactive displays adding warmth to the experience. There is also a small café and gift shop, and well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome too. Humans pay to enter. Dogs, of course, get in free.

If you’re going to suffer from winter cabin fever, you might as well make the most of it, because being locked indoors is the point at HintHunt! Set in the Watershed at the V&A Waterfront, this escape-room favourite puts small groups into themed rooms and gives them a set amount of time to solve puzzles, crack clues and escape before the clock runs out. It is a great option for families with older children, and for groups of friends or colleagues. Expect a bit of pressure, plenty of arguing over who missed the most obvious clues, and the small triumph of emerging into the daylight at the end. 

Clay Café In The City brings the Hout Bay favourite into the heart of town, swapping mountain views for Bree Street bustle and turning ceramic creativity into an easy rainy-day plan. Choose a piece, settle in with paints and brushes, and spend a few unhurried hours creating a memory for yourself, or a gift for a loved one. It works for dates, birthday parties, groups of friends and even solo visitors who want something more hands-on. Book ahead on wet weekends.

Part shop, part nostalgic Cape Town institution, the Scratch Patch at the V&A Waterfront is a simple – but surprisingly lovable – rainy-day option. The idea, which has kept generations of Cape Town kids entertained, is wonderfully straightforward: visitors choose a bag (priced according to size), then scratch through thousands of polished gemstones scattered across the floor, picking out the colours, shapes and stones that catch their eye. Children invariably love it (we suggest a bottle of hand sanitiser for afterwards!), but adults are not immune to the quiet satisfaction of searching for the perfect piece of tiger’s eye or rose quartz. You’ll find the Scratch Patch in the V&A, as well as in the Deep South near Simonstown.

Tucked away in leafy Newlands, Montebello Design Centre is a hidden gem of the southern suburbs. On a rainy day, this cluster of studios, workshops, craft spaces and small creative businesses makes for a gentle, creative-led outing. Wander among makers, browse ceramics, textiles, art and design pieces, and pause for coffee or lunch at the lovely Gardener’s Cottage café. Entry is free, but you’re sure to want to buy something beautiful!

Billed as the ‘art of paintertainment’, Artjamming is a creative studio concept that gives visitors a canvas, paints and space to play, making it a cheerful indoor option for those with a creative bent. The sessions are low-pressure and colourful, with enough structure to get you started without feeling like an art class. It’s an easy way to turn the blank canvas of a boring afternoon into something beautiful. There are Artjamming studios in Gardens and Somerset West.