Stellenbosch is situated in the province of the Western Cape of South Africa, approximately a forty minute drive away from the northern suburbs of Cape Town, near the head of the Eerste (first) River Valley. It therefore enjoys quite the same moderate coastal climate of Cape Town, with wet winters and dry summers. The only difference is that Stellenbosch doesn't catch the Cape's sea breeze and that makes the oak city extremely hot in the heart of the summer. Fortunately, as the town's nickname suggests, there is a lot of oak trees that provide its inhabitants with shade. Being a university town, Stellenbosch hosts an extremely diverse population.

Stellenbosch Car Rental includes

• Free mileage per day according to package booked (either 100km free per day OR 200 km free per day or unlimited mileage)
• Collision damage waiver liability. This covers you for damage to your hired vehicle in the event of an accident.
• Theft waiver
• Airport surcharges
• Bail bonds (where needed)
• All local taxes

Car Hire Pick Up And Drop Off Points

• Stellenbosch Downtown

History

Stellenbosch was founded by Simon van der Stel in 1679 when he was appointed Governor of the Cape. After his arrival in Cape Town, he and his party took a trip to the mountains of Africa, where eventually they came across a lush valley, which he described as a level valley suitable for agriculture provided with water from the passing river and wood from the many trees.

Hiking and wine tasting

Stellenbosch offers 106 wine cellars and a bunch of wine routes. All of these cellars are open for tasting and it is a good place for the consumer to start, because that is where they will find some of South Africa's finest wines. There are a few hiking possibilities such as the 17,1 km Panorama Trail and the 18 km Swartboskloof Trail. Also visit Granny's Forest at Helderberg Farm for easy walking on a variety of trails and enjoy the overnight hut. The full-day, 24 km, vineyard Hiking Trail is most enjoyable in autumn or spring, when one don't have to face the extremes of winter and summer.

LeBonheur Crocodile Farm

The farm offers guided tours across open dams via ramp ways, that are conducted every half an hour. The dams hold more than a thousand crocs. Visitors are given the opportunity to hold a baby croc and during summer months they can make an appointment to witness the feeding of the bigger crocs. The farm also offers a restaurant overlooking a waterfront and a beautiful garden plus a shop displaying leather articles.

Historic and interesting buildings

Due to its rich history Stellenbosch offers its visitors a lot of historic buildings in the town centre, so it is worth taking the historical trail, which will show you most of the historical places of interest in the town centre. However this is only a very short summary of some of the historical places.

The Kolonieshuis is located at 2 Ryneveld Street and it used to serve as accommodation for visitors when Stellenbosch was known as a Colony of the settlement at the Cape. In Herte Street one will find a simple row of cottages which were build in the 1830's by a missionary teacher for recently emancipated slaves. In Market Street is a white stone wall and a lush green garden with a lovely Cape Dutch house at the top. This is the Rhenish Parsonage and the toy Museum. The museum is well worth a visit to bring back childhood memories and the Parsonage itself is set in beautiful gardens and has some amazing architecture. At the top of Market Street where it splits in to two, one will see a little island with an old gun powder house on it called the Voc Kruithuis, which was build in 1777 and now hosts a small museum.

On the Braak, or the village green which was used for festivals or military parades are a few buildings of significance. In the northwestern corner stands st Mary's, a lovely little Anglican church. On the corner of Bloem and Alexander Street, is the Burgerhuis, which has an outstanding collection of furniture and other household positions. It also serves as the headquarters of the Historical Homes of South Africa. On the southern side of the Braak is the Rhenish church.

Stellenbosch has quite a number of theaters and venues where live music can be herd and the town produced international recognized talent.

Stellenbosch has a variety of attractions, ranging from night life entertainment, to places of rich heritage as well as some amazing opportunities for bird and animal viewing.