| Noordhoek | |
| Pushpin Map: | Cape Town#South Africa Western Cape#South Africa |
| Coordinates: | -34.104°N 18.36°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | South Africa |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Western Cape |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name3: | City of Cape Town |
| Subdivision Type4: | Main Place |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Leader Title: | Councillor |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 29.05 |
| Population Total: | 31980 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Racial makeup (2011) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Black African |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 67.3% |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Coloured |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 2.3% |
| Demographics1 Title3: | Indian/Asian |
| Demographics1 Info3: | 0.4% |
| Demographics1 Title4: | White |
| Demographics1 Info4: | 24.6% |
| Demographics1 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics1 Info5: | 5.4% |
| Demographics Type2: | First languages (2011) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Xhosa |
| Demographics2 Info1: | 47.4% |
| Demographics2 Title2: | English |
| Demographics2 Info2: | 28.5% |
| Demographics2 Title3: | Afrikaans |
| Demographics2 Info3: | 4.8% |
| Demographics2 Title4: | Sotho |
| Demographics2 Info4: | 1.1% |
| Demographics2 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics2 Info5: | 18.2% |
| Timezone1: | SAST |
| Utc Offset1: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code (street) |
| Postal2 Code Type: | PO box |
| Postal2 Code: | 7979 |
| Area Code Type: | Area code |
Noordhoek is a seaside town in the Western Cape, South Africa, located below Chapman's Peak on the west coast of the Cape Peninsula and is approximately to the south of Cape Town. The name "Noordhoek" was taken from Dutch and literally means "north corner". It was given this name in 1743 as being the northern corner of the Slangkop farm. The first permanent resident of European origin is Jaco Malan who built his house there. In 1857, the region was divided into six plots, most of which were bought by a single family, that of the de Villiers. Noordhoek nevertheless remains a predominantly rural area where farmers grow vegetables to supply ships calling at Simon's Town. It is best known for its shoreline and its long, wide, sandy beach, which stretches south to the neighbouring village of Kommetjie. Near the southern end of this beach is the wreck of the steamship "Kakapo", which ran aground in 1900, when the captain mistook Chapman's Peak for the Cape of Good Hope and put the helm over to port.[2]
Noordhoek can be accessed either from the scenic coastal road Chapman's Peak Drive, which leads out of Hout Bay or via the mountain road Ou Kaapse Weg which cuts through the Silvermine Nature Reserve - now part of the Table Mountain National Park. Noordhoek is a small scattered community of houses, often with sea views and has a large horse population as riding on the long sandy beach is common; the beach is a 61NaN1 stretch of fine white sand backed by Chapman's Peak (5920NaN0) and the Table Mountain National Park. Winds are often strong and the sea is cold and wild. The town consists of a riding stables and a scattering of villas in a wide grassy valley with oak trees. In the middle of this valley is the Noordhoek Farm Village, with craft shops, a children's playground, café, pub and restaurant.[3]
Noordhoek is accessed by two metropolitan routes within the Greater Cape Town metropolitan area, the M6 and M65.
The M6 links Noordhoek to Hout Bay and Cape Town in the north as ‘Noordhoek Main Road’ and Simon’s Town in the south-east as ‘Glencairn Expressway’ and the M64, better known as ‘Ou Kaapse Weg’ links Noordhoek to Westlake and Cape Town (via the M3 freeway) through the Steenberg mountains.