Cape Town is packed with expats from all over the world. Its a true melting pot of cultures. Networking and expat community events happen every week at different locations in Cape Town.
Favourite expat hang-outs in Cape Town
In South Africa, Cape Town boasts the largest community of expat English, German, Dutch, French and other foreign language speakers and immigrants, whilst in Johannesburg the expat community is not very visible at all. Most expat foreigners in Cape Town tend to congregate together in suburbs such as Tamboerskloof (close to the German school), Gardens, Oranjezicht, Vredehoek and Higgovale. Many foreigners also live in the Blouberg area, particularly those that are into watersports such as Kite and Windsurfing. Blouberg in fact features a fair amount of German guesthouses and surf hostels. Hout Bay, with its international school is another popular suburb for foreigners in Cape Town. In-fact you will more than likely find a foreign language being spoken wherever you go in Cape Town.
Another huge German community lives in the Helderberg area around Somerset West, where a big German supermarket is located too, selling exotic food like Haribo Bears, Landjaeger and Toppers. With a high density of vineyards and a beautiful mountain range framing the mini-town of Somerset West, it is a particularly popular place for pensioners and those lucky enough to early retire.
South Africa being one of the most hospitable and friendly countries in the world, you certainly won’t feel homesick. You will notice complete strangers stopping and talking to you on the street as if they have been friends with you for years. You might for instance get stopped on the street by someone walking past to be told that your boots look great. Small talk, entirely unknown in other countries is part of everyday life in South Africa.
Equally friendly and welcoming are the many expats living in Cape Town. Obviously well traveled, they are open and tolerant and its easy to get invited to a braai or two. There are also quite a few expat hot spots, some formal, some informal. There is for instance the Saturday market at the Labia Cinema in Town, run by Swedish expats, that’s where the Swedish community meets. The German community is quite dominant in Cape Town. There is Raith (the German butchery), Marcellos (the German bakery) and the Deutsche Schule Kapstadt (German school Cape Town), to name just a few.
Below are a few networks/websites, used by expats in South Africa. The networks contain great information on clubs, places and restaurants for expats living and working in South Africa. Some of those expat networks have regular meetings in different restaurants in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Some are formal, some are more informal in nature.
Expat communities in South Africa
- InterNations
- Expat Cape Town
- Expat Blog
- Xing Business Network Cape Town and Johannesburg
- Goethe Institute Suedafrika
- German Information Centre Pretoria
- Deutsche Schule Kapstadt
- Expat Forum
- Expat Exchange
- Kaptstadt.de
- Kapstadt.com
Let us know about expat communities in Cape Town, Johannesburg and other parts of South Africa
If you have any communities you would like to bring to Initiate Immigrations attention please do not hesitate to contact us and we will add them to this page.
Should you have any questions with regard to expat communities & networks in Cape Town or immigrating to South Africa, feel free to speak to one of our experienced immigration consultants.