Why Walk When You Can Take The Flying Dutchman

Africa's only commercial funicular in Cape Point

A new, improved Flying Dutchman put the "fun" back into "fun-icular" when it reopened for business on June 8, 2010, ahead of an expected influx of tourists arriving in Cape Town for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

So what exactly is The Flying Dutchman? It’s a cable-drawn railway system that provides 370 000 passengers a year with a quick and easy way of reaching the old lighthouse at Cape Point – 238m above the notorious oceans at the most south-western tip of Africa.

Sure, you can walk up to the lighthouse, but it may be a good idea to save your energy for the scenic walk from the upper lighthouse to the lower lighthouse, or even better, the beautiful 1-hour walk to Dias Beach.

The Flying Dutchman is a favourite among families; Mom and Dad can enjoy the spectacular views while their kids enjoy the thrill of being pulled up the mountainside in the funicular on a magic carpet ride to the end of the world! A bonus is that youngsters under 6 years of age ride for free.

So it’s useful and fun, but why is it called The Flying Dutchman? In 1680, a ship named The Flying Dutchman got into trouble at the ‘Cape of Storms’, notorious for fierce storms.

Legend has it that the ship’s captain swore that he would round the Cape if it was the last thing he did, and it was. The Flying Dutchman lost a battle against Mother Nature and was swallowed by the ocean. Ever since then many people have claimed to have experienced ghostly sightings of The Flying Dutchman ship around what is nowadays known as the Cape of Good Hope.

Initially the Flying Dutchman transport system at Cape Point was a diesel bus, which operated until December 1996, and then gave way to the two much more environmentally friendly funicular cars that operate today.

Apart from being Africa’s only commercial funicular, another unique aspect of the Flying Dutchman is that it has two cars on one track (with a short split halfway to allow them to pass each other) and is also curved both vertically and horizontally; certainly an unusual transport experience and perfect for Cape Point.

Famous personalities who have enjoyed rides on the Flying Dutchman include Cliff Richard, Sean Paul, Jacob Zuma, Samuel L. Jackson, Forest Whitaker and a number of state presidents. The tallest man and shortest man in the world have also enjoyed the Flying Dutchman experience.

A ride up the 585m-long Flying Dutchman track enables you to take in awe-inspiring views of the Cape of Good Hope, Dias Beach, Buffels Bay, Bellows Rock and Cape Maclear, either from the funicular itself on the way up or from any of the lookout points in the vicinity of the lighthouse at the top.

The funicular runs to the top light house at Cape Point every few minutes, and six hundred people per hour can be transported in the Flying Dutchman.

The original Flying Dutchman funicular was launched in 1996 to help ferry over 100 000 monthly visitors between the new 200-seater restaurant and the lighthouse.  Cape Point is one of the “big six” tourist destination and visitors flock to get a view from the end of the African continent out over the sea where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet.

There have been many changes to the new funicular, starting with brand new superstructures fitted to the two original chassis.  Additional changes include a new computer system that manages the funiculars, the windows being bigger to allow for better views, the tracks have been made smoother, and there are new seats, handrails and doors.

Harry Hawkins, Cape Point Partnership General Manager comments on the number of people the funicular carries: “The locally designed system is very safe and although it is designed to hold 40 people, it comfortably carries 30 passengers every 3 minutes in each direction.”

What’s more, the carbon footprint of the new system is low, due to the solar powered batteries that charge the funicular via photovoltaic panels while in transit. This is in keeping with the green aspects of Cape Point, which is now part of the Table Mountain National park and marks the most south western part of Africa.”

The legend of the Flying Dutchman is a ghost ship doomed to sail around Cape Point forever.  This ship, which lends its name to the funicular, is the most famous ghost ship in the world.  She has been the topic of mariners’ bar room banter for hundreds of years, been immortalised by poets and composers, and still, the legend lives on.

If you’ve worked up an appetite after returning with the Flying Dutchman Funicular, the Two Oceans Restaurant offers excellent seafood as well as easy lunches with an epic view. It’s certainly one of the best lunch spots on the Cape Peninsula, and not just for a Flying Dutchman.”

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