Why you need a Portuguese Tour Guide in Cape Town

Cape Town is one of the best cities to visit in the world with many attractions such as Table Mountain, Robben Island, The Cape of Good Hope, it’s white sandy beaches and many more.

While lots of places can be visited without a tour guide, there are many other tourism destinations we do recommend you go with a trained tour guide in order to get the maximum pleasure the destination has to offer.

Because we get most of our customers from Brazil, Angola, Portugal and other Portuguese speaking countries we decided to write a few tips to keep in mind to help our prospective clients plan their trip.

1. 1. Driving: use a tour guide

South Africa has an English driving system which means that we drive contrary to the system countries in the other parts of world use. While other countries will drive their vehicles on the right side of the road, here in South Africa we use the left-hand side similar to England, Australia and other countries. 

Therefore, if you desire peace of mind on the road, we encourage you to delegate the task of driving and keeping alert on the road to a local driver/tourist guide who knows the roads very well and have experience in driving in our busy roads.

• • Language: use a tour guide

South Africa has 11 official languages and even though some places can be enjoyed without a guide, to have someone who knows the area and speaks the language you speak, and the native language will enhance the experience and maximize understanding of your surroundings.

 The tourist guide will point out unnoticeable details that tourists often times do not see by themselves (do not bother to look it up on the internet) because they are written in local languages. For example, during wine tastings and safaris, tourist guides are of much help in translating the difficult details and interesting facts about the products.

• • Food: use a tour guide

The mother city is the food capital city of the world and there is a huge chance that you will find whatever food flavor you are searching for. However, if you have a language/Portuguese guide, he will be able to advise you and take you to the restaurants that are more likely your favorites. 

For those who are allergic to other types of food, the guide can help in explaining about the allergies which will help you avoid discomforts and delays giving you more time to enjoy your day. Here is a quick list of South African foods that your guide will probably indicate to you during the tour: The Gatsby, Potsjiekos, Malva pudding, Melktert, Chakalaka, Koeksistters, Bunny chow, Bobotie, Boererwors, Braai and many more… 

• • Shopping: use a tour guide

When you get in a country for the first time, it can take a while before you start getting used to handling the local currency. In South Africa we use the RAND which at the time of writing this article is costing R18,48 against the USA DOLLAR. As you can imagine it can be quite confusing to deal with money and one has to be careful to calculate before buying anything. 

Therefore, to minimize miscalculations and misunderstandings, it is best to go with a language speaking tourist guide so that he can help in such instances in order save both time and money.

 In most instances tourists can use a credit card or debit card to make purchases and the guide will be there to give you an idea of how much you will be paying in your own currency.

 If you use cash to make a payment, then depending on how much the item is you might be entitled to change, and your tourist guide will help you be aware of that and make sure you receive the right amount back.

In conclusion, the mother city of South Africa can be enjoyed in many different ways but here at Viemma Tours we recommend you use the services of a trained/language guide to maximize your experience.