Journey to Freedom: Robben Island Skip-The-Line Tour

Cannot recommend this tour highly enough. We really loved every minute and our tour guides were excellent.

I wish to express my dissatisfaction with this trip. I booked two tickets for a 10am commencement time. We arrived in good time in advance of the start time and enquired where we should queue in preparation for the start. I was advised (rather rudely) by the information desk we were too early; boarding wouldn't start until 1am. In light of this information we decided to get refreshments nearby. As I paid a large increase over the standard ticket price hoping for a premium service as we were on a tight schedule, I messaged via you App to convey my disappointment. Whilst having refreshments, I received a phone call off your local representative stating we needed to be at the venue as queuing had commenced; I informed him we would be there in 5 minutes. When we meet up with the Aim Cape Tours rep he was overly keen to persuade us to reschedule to a later trip. I explained to him there was no alternative due to our scheduling and this was the only option. He kept trying to press different times/dates, but when I repeatedly declined these offers he finally admitted our tickets had been sold and no others were available. The local rep told us to join the queue for boarding and went off. He return after approximately 5 minutes and tried to offer an alternative time, when I declined he asked us to exit the queue and wait to after the boat had been loaded to see if something could be negotiated! Once all the other passengers' had been boarded we did manage to join. However, no tickets scanned like other passenger's and seemed very much like some separate unofficial transaction had happened. My contemporaneous messaging to verify my testament are recorded via your App, please view. I paid £150.18 for this trip, but direct was 1200 zar (£52.29 at todays exchange rate). Your experience was no way any premium over standard. Moreover, your local appointed company caused massive stress by their total mismanagement of a simple transaction.

Make sure and try to get a boat back to the mainland that has windows that open for ventilation OR actually a/c that WORKS. We were in stuffy hot cabin with multiple people vomiting. They said the A/c would be better once We were underway but it did not improve. The seas were not too rough either. 100+ crammed in a small space creates a lot of body heat!

The museum website said trips were fully booked but we were able to book via Viator. You do pay a bit more but definitely worth it. We were contacted by a guide in advance who provided lots of information and met us at the ferry to let us know what to expect from the trip. Ferry takes just over 30 mins and all the crew were super friendly. The tour guide on the bus around the island was fantastic, full of interesting information about its history, but it was the tour of the prison itself that was the most memorable part of the trip. We were shown around by a former inmate who brought to life what it was like to live through apartheid. This is a trip that everyone should take once. Incredibly moving experience.

I loved everything about the Robben Island tour from start to finish. Emma picked us up early and brought us to the V&A Waterfront, where he introduced us to the many things we could do there — from great food and museums to scenic cruises. He dropped us off right at the departure point and made sure we were safely on board before leaving us to enjoy the tour. After a 30-minute boat ride, we boarded a bus for a guided tour around Robben Island — it’s much larger than I expected! We only got off the bus near the end of the tour, where we met a former prisoner who shared powerful and emotional stories from his own experience while serving his sentence. We also got to see Nelson Mandela’s cell, which was truly humbling and thought-provoking. Overall, it was an unforgettable experience.

Our guide, who was a former prisoner there, was excellent. He had a wonderful sense of humor despite his ordeal. Seeing the facility and hearing it’s long history made all the stories I real to me. Getting there and back on the boat was difficult. The trip back had very rough seas and made a lot of people sea sick. Be prepared for that if you go.

Guides in English were difficult to understand. Talk in cell of 50 too long. Island and buildings interesting. Ferry over very old and unpleasant.

Be sure to get your tickets well in advance because they sell out often. The former prisoner who led the group tour gave us a wealth of information and somehow he managed to keep his sense of humor throughout his life. The boat ride to and from the island was not for the faint of stomach. The sea was very rough with big roller waves so be sure everyone in your group can handle rough seas. Wear comfortable walking shoes as most of it is gravel or stone and bring a water bottle.

The best, everything was well organised. I didn’t have to constantly chase after them for tickets. If anything they kept us abreast of everything we needed for our activity 👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽

Very good and interstellar experienceI definitely recommend it. Very educational will visit again when the weather improves