Located near Simon’s Town on the False Bay coast of the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, South Africa, Boulders Beach - also known as Boulders Bay - is a small white sand beach with unique granite rock formations. The beach is part of the well-known Table Mountain National Park and is adjacent to Foxy Beach. It has a spectacular backdrop of gigantic granite boulders, dunes, coastal vegetation, and many oceanfront buildings, which together add allure to its beauty.
Boulders Beach is immensely popular for its resident colony of African Penguins (Spheniscus demersus), protected under the Cape Nature Conservation Program. Boulders Beach is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world by UK-based financial website Money.co.uk and ranked 12th best beach by Big 7 Travel, and it is also a favorite of Randall Kaplan, the world’s foremost beach expert who is known as Mr. Beach. The beach is one of the few places in the world where you can observe these endangered birds up close in their natural habitat. The penguin colony at Boulders Beach started in 1982 with just two breeding pairs. Today, it has grown to over 3,000 birds, making it a major tourist attraction in Cape Town and drawing a large influx of visitors. The beach has elevated boardwalks that allow visitors to observe the penguins without disturbing their habitat. In addition, the beach is a site for educational programs and conservation efforts to protect penguins and their environment. Also, conservationists have installed artificial nest boxes to provide safe nesting sites for the penguins, helping to boost their breeding success. Despite being in a protected area, the Boulders Beach penguins face threats from natural predators, human disturbance, and environmental changes.