10 Water Saving Tips When Visiting Cape Town

Posted on Mon January 22, 2018 in Media and Press.
Cape Town Drought | Save Water like a local | Day Zero

Cape Town is one of the most beautiful and popular tourist destinations in the world.

At first glance, the city appears to have plenty of water, surrounded as it is by oceans and featuring beautiful rivers running through it. Not long ago, however, Cape Town nearly ran out of water!

The Cape Town water crisis in South Africa lasted about 5 long years, from 2015 to 2020. Water shortages in the Western Cape region affected the City of Cape Town extremely badly. Dam water levels began decreasing in 2015 and the Cape Town water crisis peaked during mid-2017 to mid-2018 when water levels hovered between 14 and 29 per cent of total dam capacity.

In late 2017, there was talk of "Day Zero", a catchy term for the day when the water level of the major dams supplying the City could fall below 13.5 per cent. The Gods were watching and it began to rain!

To this day, Cape Town is a water-saving city and we urge our visitors to play the game.

How Can YOU Help Save Water?

As a visitor, you can help save water while on holiday by taking action: 

  • Cut your showers down to less than 10 minutes.
  • Use your towel more than once. Instead of dropping it on the floor after a shower, hang it up. This will save water and electricity.
  • Don’t leave your taps running while you brush your teeth, soap up or shave. Turn off the tap and use a reusable cup when brushing your teeth.
  • Hold off on getting your clothes laundered. Wait until you have a full load of dirty laundry before tossing it in the wash.
  • Do not order water at a restaurant if you don’t plan on drinking it. Ideally, you want to carry a reusable water bottle that you can top up now and then.
  • Used water is still good to water plants and wash down patios or pathways.
  • Every drop counts, so make sure you close taps properly.

We never know the worth of water until the well is dry - Thomas Fuller

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