The funicular and the lighthouse

Is there a Flying Dutchman funicular at Cape Point?

Yes. It runs 585 m from the lower station near the car park to the upper station below the old lighthouse, climbing 87 m in about three minutes.

The Flying Dutchman Funicular opened in 1996, replacing a 16-seat diesel bus of the same name that made its last run that December. Each car holds 40 people, the line moves about 450 an hour, and the steepest stretch is 16%. The two cars pass each other halfway. Electric power was chosen as the cleaner option, and the cars were refurbished in 2010.

The upper station sits at 214 m above sea level. From there, a short flight of steps leads to the viewing terraces around the old lighthouse.

Is the Cape Point funicular open in 2026?

Yes. It reopened on 1 October 2026 after a maintenance closure and a control-system upgrade. It also closed for one day on Monday 26 October 2026, with a shuttle running.

The closure was reported on 18 March 2026 as essential maintenance, confirmed by the company that runs Cape Point's visitor facilities. Cape Town ETC reported the official reopening on 1 October, after the maintenance and a major upgrade to a modern control system. Cape Point then listed a single maintenance day on 26 October with a shuttle in its place.

Short closures for maintenance or high wind still happen. If the funicular is down on your day, the walk is the plan B, and it is a good one. Our news post on the reopening has the timeline.

How much is the Cape Point funicular, and when does it run?

R115 return or R100 one way per adult on the 2025-26 list, valid to 31 October 2026. It runs from 09:00 every day.

Prices are from Cape Point's visitor page for 1 November 2025 to 31 October 2026. They go up each 1 November, and the 2026-27 rate was not yet published when we checked; expect a small rise. Hours: 09:00 to 17:30 from October to March, 09:00 to 17:00 from April to September. The funicular is extra on all five tours here.

How long does the walk up to Cape Point take?

About 15 minutes uphill on a paved path from the car park to the old lighthouse. Allow more for photos and for the steps at the top.

The path follows the old road that the Flying Dutchman bus once used (Cape Point). It is steady rather than steep, with low stone walls and benches on the way. The tour listings quote 15 minutes for the climb, and most fit adults manage that with stops.

Our take: ride the funicular up, walk down. Going down costs no effort, the views open up in front of you, and you save R15 on the one-way ticket against a return. Walk both ways only on a cool day with time to spare.

Short on time? The half day still gives you 45 minutes at the lighthouse, enough to ride up and walk down.

★ 4.8 · 5 to 6 hours · from $40

Check dates → Tour details

What is the difference between the old and new Cape Point lighthouse?

The old lighthouse (1860) stands at about 238 to 262 m above sea level and was often lost in cloud. The new one (1919) sits at 87 m and is the most powerful light on the South African coast.

The old light was a good idea that failed in fog. At around 262 metres (sources give 238 m to 262 m), it sat in the cloud that often caps the point, and on clear nights ships saw it too early, bringing them too close to shore (Wikipedia). Today its base is a viewing terrace, and the old tower is the one in everybody's photos.

The newer lighthouse, lit in 1919, stands at 87 m on a ledge closer to the tip. Its beam reaches 63 km with 10 megacandelas in each flash. You can see it from the Lighthouse Keeper's Trail, about 2 km and an hour return from the upper station (Cape Point walks).

What happened to the Lusitania at Cape Point in 1911?

The Portuguese liner Lusitania struck Bellows Rock off Cape Point in fog at midnight on 18 April 1911. Eight people died when a lifeboat capsized.

She was sailing from Lourenço Marques, now Maputo, for Empresa Nacional de Navegação of Lisbon, with 774 people on board (Wikipedia). Not the Cunard Lusitania, sunk off Ireland in 1915; a different ship with the same name.

The wreck settled the argument about the high lighthouse. Construction of the lower light followed, and it was lit in 1919. From the upper viewing terraces you can look down toward Bellows Rock, where the swell still breaks.

Why is it called the Flying Dutchman?

After the legend of a Dutch ghost ship condemned to sail forever, because its captain swore he would round the Cape of Good Hope if it took till the day of judgment.

The legend first shows up in print in John MacDonald's Travels of 1790, where sailors report a ship in distress in stormy weather off the Cape (Wikipedia). In an 1821 story in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, the captain, Hendrick van der Decken, is blocked by storms trying to round the Cape and swears: "May I be eternally damned if I do, though I should beat about here till the day of judgment." Wagner turned it into an opera in 1843.

The most famous sighting, by Prince George, later King George V, in July 1881, happened off Australia, not the Cape. Cape Point still says the ghost ship has been seen near the point over the years. Look out to sea anyway.

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