Bring in the New Year with these Cape Town events

Cape Town, like the rest of the world, is preparing to ring in the New Year, and the Mother City has a range of exciting events in store to help residents and visitors usher in 2026 in style.

Here is a guide to those events:

The Cape Malay Road March will usher in the New Year with traditional Malay music, drums, and marching as several choirs take to the streets of the Cape Town CBD on Wednesday, December 31, 2025. The evening will begin with a procession from Rose Street in Bo-Kaap at 8:30pm, before making its way down Wale Street and concluding in Adderley Street.

The event is expected to finish at about 4am on Thursday, January 1, 2026.

This is a free event, and the public can line up along Rose Street, Wale Street and Adderley Street to celebrate with the bands and choirs who will be entertaining the crowds.

Several roads in the CBD will be closed on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, to accommodate the procession and ensure public safety. The affected roads and times are shown in the image attached at the end of this article.

Due to the road closures, the MyCiTi service in the inner city will be affected. For more information on the service disruption, visit the MyCiTi website.

Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Concert

The South African band Mango Groove, joined by The Billy Joel Experience, will take to the stage at the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden for a celebration that ensures everyone enters the New Year on a high note.

Music lovers can spend New Year’s Eve surrounded by nature under the shadow of Table Mountain. The New Year’s Eve Concert will bring an upbeat sound and nostalgic energy for an unforgettable evening.

Gates open at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden at 7pm, with the concert scheduled to start at 8:30pm. Tickets are available via Webtickets.

SA20 Cricket Action

Cricket lovers are in for a New Year’s T20 action at Newlands Cricket Ground, where home team MI Cape Town will be taking on the Pretoria Capitals in the SA20 clash.

The reigning champion MI Cape Town will be looking to once again turn Newlands into a fortress, having gone unbeaten at home last season. The game kicks off at 5:30pm. Gates open three hours before the start of play.

General parking is available at Groote Schuur Primary on Campground Road and Groote Schuur High School on Palmyra Road. Tickets are available from the MI Cape Town website.

V&A Waterfront New Year’s Eve Celebrations

The V&A Waterfront will once again host one of Cape Town’s most iconic New Year’s Eve celebrations, offering a free, family-friendly event at one of the City’s most popular destinations.

The evening will feature live performances by an impressive line-up of artists, including Emo & Loukmaan Adams, Zoë Modiga, GoodLuck, DJ Shezzy K and the Starlight Band.

Entertainment is scheduled for a 6pm start, with the various acts taking the stage through the evening for this free event. High pedestrian volumes are expected. Visitors are advised to arrive early, expect traffic delays, and make use of public transport where possible.

For more information on these and other events taking place in Cape Town, visit the Events section in the Cape Town website via this link.