This site's tour
Full-day group tour
The tour of this site
- Day10 hours
- At Boulders1 hour
- Pricefrom $44
Group price check
Cape Point and Boulders Beach: the penguin stop on the day
Full-day Cape Point and Boulders Beach tour from Cape Town
★ 4.8 · 3,399 reviews total
Choose from 4 options
What a Cape Point and Boulders day costs
Type your party size and compare four listings that include the colony
- Full-day group tourOur own pick · per individual from $44
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View - 5-hour group tourShorter day · per individual from $40
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View - Penguins day tourPickup included · per individual from $51
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View - Private day tourYour own party · starts at $151
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View
Starting prices on GetYourGuide, exchanged at the ECB reference rate. The booking page gives the exact price.
Most Cape Point day tours pair the cape with the penguin colony at Boulders Beach. This page shows what the stop gives you, how long each tour allows and the rules.
Editorial team, capepointtour.top · Updated November 7, 2026 · Allow 6 min
Overview
- Time on siteThe tour's record gives the Boulders penguin colony 1 hour.
- BoardwalksThree wheelchair-friendly boardwalks serve the colony.1
- DistanceA lawful distance of 5m must be kept from nesting or congregating penguins.2
- Colony sizeThe Boulders colony is estimated at 2,000 to 3,000 birds.3
- Next stopSimon's Town is 35 km from Cape Town and gets 75 minutes on the tour.4
Where the penguin hour sits in the day
The tour this site sells is a Boulders penguins and Cape Point day tour, a full-day outing that combines the reserve at the tip of the peninsula with the penguin colony on False Bay. The record gives it a total of 10 hours and lists a short chain of stops: Chapman's Peak Drive for 20 minutes, the Cape of Good Hope for 30 minutes and the new Cape Point lighthouse for 45 minutes. The record also lists the penguin stop, at 1 hour.
The Boulders Penguin Colony is the longest single stop that the record gives on the Cape Point leg, although the Simon's Town lunch and walk that follows is longer at 75 minutes. Muizenberg Beach closes the day for 25 minutes, and the description says the guests stop there to see the shark spotters on the way back.
Cape Town Tourism's drive guide describes the same order from the other direction: visit the penguins at Boulders Beach before the quiet, untouched coastline to the promontory of Cape Point.5 On a tour the order is up to the operator, so read the record for the day you book.
Listings side by side
Tours that include the penguin colony
| Tour | Day length | At Boulders | From price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Site full-day tour | 10 hours | 1 hour | from $44 |
| 5-hour tour | 5 hours | 25 minutes | from $40 |
| Small-group tour | 9 hours | 45 minutes | from $116 |
| Private tour | 8 hours | 1 hour | from $151 |
| Penguins day tour | 10 hours | 1 hour | from $51 |
All prices are from prices and not exact quotes; check the booking page for the details of each listing.
What you can do in the hour
The Boulders section of the park consists of 3 beaches, 1 penguin viewing area and 3 boardwalks.6 Three wheelchair-friendly boardwalks serve the nearly 60,000 visitors the colony receives each year.1 The boardwalks are how you see the birds without stepping into their space, and they are the heart of the stop.
Cape Town Tourism's beach page also points to the visitors' centre, where the penguins are explained.7 Rangers patrol the beach daily.8 With an hour in hand, the sensible plan is to walk the boardwalks first, to check the visitors' centre if the queue is short and to keep the last stretch of the hour for the beach itself.
It helps to keep the stop in proportion. The stop is a timed visit inside a long day, and the next item on the record is lunch in Simon's Town for 75 minutes. If your priority is longer with the birds, a dedicated penguin visit is a separate plan.
Time with the penguins
Minutes at Boulders on several Cape Point tours
- 5-hour tour25
- Small group45
- Our tour1 hour
- Private tour1 hour
- Penguins day tour1 hour
The 5-hour record lists 25 minutes and the small-group record 45 minutes, while the others list 1 hour.
The rules that apply while you are there
Visitors must keep a lawful distance of 5m from nesting or congregating penguins.2 Penguins must not be fed, and visitors must not come too close.9 Penguins also bite, so they must not be touched or fed.10
Alcohol and smoking are prohibited on the beach.11 Boats of every kind, canoes and kayaks included, are barred from the beach.12 Those rules are consistent with the city's wider wildlife guidance, under which failing to act responsibly could lead to an arrest, a spot fine or both.13 On a guided day, listen to the briefing before you leave the vehicle.
One small rule is easy to forget. Drivers should look under the car before driving off after viewing penguins.14 If you are following the day in a rental car, check around the wheels before you reverse.
Match your visit
Which penguin stop suits you?
Choose the line that sounds like your plan and read the answer beside it
If I want the most time at the colony
A listing with 1 hour
Several listings give the colony 1 hour, against 25 minutes on the 5-hour tour.
If I have only a short day
The 5-hour tour
It lists a 5-hour day and 25 minutes at Boulders.
If I want the cape and the penguins in one day
The full-day tour
It lists the reserve, the colony and Simon's Town across 10 hours.
If I use a wheelchair
Use the boardwalks
Three wheelchair-friendly boardwalks serve the colony.1
If I want to keep expenses down
Compare the from prices
The 5-hour tour starts from $40 and the site tour from $44.
Ways to meet the colony
Our tour, the 5-hour day and the private day
Shortest
5-hour group tour
A shorter loop
- Day5 hours
- At Boulders25 minutes
- Pricefrom $40
Private
Private day tour
Your party only
- Day8 hours
- At Boulders1 hour
- Pricefrom $151
Tides, parking and the time of day
Beach space at Boulders depends on the tides, and low tide is the best time, especially for picnics.16 A tour operator cannot move the tide, so the beach you see depends on the day.
Parking at Boulders Beach is limited.17 It is best to arrive early in the peak summer months.15 If you drive yourself, that is the reason to put the penguins early in the day. On a tour the operator deals with the parking.
The season changes the day. Winter is the rainy season in Cape Town, and Cape Town Tourism advises an umbrella or raincoat.18 The weather page of this site gives the month-by-month figures. For the stop itself, bring sun protection in summer, a layer for the wind and shoes that cope with sand and wooden boards.
The stops in order
Where the penguin hour fits among the stops
20 minutes
Chapman's Peak Drive
The record lists Chapman's Peak Drive at 20 minutes.
30 minutes
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope stop is listed at 30 minutes.
45 minutes
New lighthouse
The new Cape Point lighthouse stop is listed at 45 minutes.
1 hour
Boulders colony
The Boulders Penguin Colony is listed at 1 hour.
75 minutes
Simon's Town lunch
Simon's Town is listed for lunch and a walk at 75 minutes.
25 minutes
Muizenberg Beach
Muizenberg Beach is listed at 25 minutes.
A few facts about the colony itself
This site treats the penguins as a stop, not a subject, so the colony facts are brief. A couple of penguins settled on the sand at Boulders in 1982.19 The colony is now estimated at 2,000 to 3,000 birds.3 Those numbers come from Cape Town Tourism and are worth reading as estimates, because colonies change from year to year.
The African penguin was reclassified as endangered on 26 May 2010.20 Rangers patrol the beach daily.8 If you want more detail about the animal, a dedicated visit goes much deeper than a stop on a day tour can.
The colony lives on soft white sand between large granite boulders that shelter the beach from wind and waves.21 The boardwalks wind through the dunes and vegetation, giving viewing spots and protecting nesting penguins and their chicks.22 On the boards you look across low vegetation to the birds, and to the sea beyond. Cameras with a modest zoom are enough, and a phone does well in good light, as long as you stay on the boards.
Video
Exploring Cape Point and Boulders Beach
Wanderlust Explorer on YouTube · Your tap on play is what loads the video.
Three wheelchair-friendly boardwalks were constructed to accommodate the nearly 60,000 visitors.
Before the stop
What to know at the colony
Rules at the cove4
How long other tours give the colony
Tours that pair Cape Point with Boulders do not all allot the same time at the colony. The record for the site tour gives the penguin colony 1 hour. The 5-hour tour lists Boulders Beach at 25 minutes, with a 5-hour day overall. The small-group tour lists the Boulders Penguin Colony for 45 minutes.
The private full-day tour lists the colony at 1 hour, and the day-tour listing built around the Cape of Good Hope also gives it 1 hour. The table on this page puts those numbers side by side with the day length and the from price, so you can see what a shorter or longer penguin stop does to the price and the rest of the day.
Time is the main difference. A 5-hour tour has to fit the cape, the lighthouse and the penguins into 5 hours, while the 10-hour tours add Simon's Town and a lunch stop. If the penguins are your priority, choose a listing that gives the colony at least an hour, and if the cape is your priority, the shorter day may be enough.
Simon's Town, just beyond the cove
Simon's Town is 35 km from Cape Town according to Cape Town Tourism.4 The site tour gives it 75 minutes for lunch and a walk. The tourism guide to the town lists the South African Naval Museum, which is a free attraction, and a bronze statue of the dog Just Nuisance on Jubilee Square.23,24
Lunch and the walk share the 75 minutes, so decide early whether you prefer the statue and the museum or a longer meal. Jubilee Square is where the bronze statue of Just Nuisance stands, which makes it an easy landmark to meet at if your group splits up for a while.24 Plan the free museum for a quiet moment after lunch rather than before it.23
The route from Simon's Town to the reserve passes Boulders on the way out, and it is the same road a self-drive visitor takes. For anyone who has not decided between a tour and a rental car, the tour-or-self-drive page of this site compares them, and the peninsula page describes the whole loop.5
FAQ
Quick questions get quick answers.
How long do you get at Boulders Beach on the tour?
1 hour.
The record for the site tour lists the Boulders Penguin Colony at 1 hour.
Can you touch the penguins?
How close can you get to the penguins?
5m is the legal distance.
A lawful distance of 5m must be kept from nesting or congregating penguins.2
Is Boulders Beach wheelchair friendly?
Yes, via the boardwalks.
Three wheelchair-friendly boardwalks serve the colony.1
When is the best time of day to go?
How many penguins live at Boulders?
About 2,000 to 3,000.
Cape Town Tourism gives that estimate for the colony.3
Where can you picnic at Boulders?
Where is lunch on the tour?
In Simon's Town.
The record gives Simon's Town 75 minutes for lunch and a walk.
Sources
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Wildlife Encounter Safety Tips you Should Know Before Visiting Cape Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Neighbourhood Guide to Simon's Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to the Best Scenic Drives in Cape Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Wildlife Encounter Safety Tips you Should Know Before Visiting Cape Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Wildlife Encounter Safety Tips you Should Know Before Visiting Cape Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Wildlife Encounter Safety Tips you Should Know Before Visiting Cape Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Guide to Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Meet The Penguins At Boulders Beach ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Neighbourhood Guide to Simon's Town ↩
- Cape Town Tourism (the city of Cape Town's official Regional Tourism Organisation, capetown.travel) · Your Neighbourhood Guide to Simon's Town ↩
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