Port of Cape Town
In short
Cape Town: 6 ships in port now, 4 arrivals and 2 departures in the last 24 h (detected from AIS, as of Oct 3, 2026, 13:30 UTC).
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- In port now
- 6
- Arrivals, last 24 h
- 4
- Departures, last 24 h
- 2
- Ships nearby, last 6 h
- 40
Arrivals and departures AIS-detected
Ships Voydar detected in port from their AIS positions: who is in port now and who left in the last 48 hours. Calls shorter than 30 minutes are not shown, and at places without a charted harbour only ships with an IMO number count. Times UTC.
In port now
| Vessel | Arrived |
|---|---|
 MFV FOXGLOVEFishing | Oct 2, 2026, 20:58 UTC |
 JOSCO LANZHOUCargo | Oct 2, 2026, 18:24 UTC |
| MADIBA 1Passenger | Oct 2, 2026, 15:51 UTC |
| BLUEBELLFishing | Oct 2, 2026, 09:03 UTC |
| ILITHATanker | Oct 2, 2026, 08:48 UTC |
 ARDMORE_GIBRALTARTanker | Oct 2, 2026, 07:39 UTC |
Left in the last 48 h
| Vessel | Left | Time in port |
|---|---|---|
| MFV LEE-ANNEFishing | Oct 2, 2026, 19:21 UTC | 5 h 16 min |
| KROTOAPassenger | Oct 2, 2026, 13:38 UTC | 57 min |
 BRIGHT HORIZONCargo | Oct 2, 2026, 13:16 UTC | 34 h 35 min |
| MADIBA 1Passenger | Oct 2, 2026, 12:04 UTC | 56 min |
| SEA PRINCESSPassenger | Oct 2, 2026, 11:49 UTC | 3 h 11 min |
| FUAT BEYCargo | Oct 2, 2026, 04:26 UTC | 38 h 38 min |
| BRIGHT SKYCargo | Oct 2, 2026, 00:59 UTC | 2 d 17 h |
| SFL PANTHERTanker | Oct 2, 2026, 00:51 UTC | 36 h 49 min |
| KAROLINECargo | Oct 1, 2026, 16:57 UTC | 2 d 14 h |
As of Oct 3, 2026, 13:30 UTC.
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Try the live demo, no sign-upExpected arrivals AIS-detected
Ships whose AIS destination names Cape Town, with the arrival time their crew entered. Reported in the last 24 hours, due within 7 days. Crews type these by hand: a destination can be out of date and an ETA can slip.
5 ships shown, earliest first.
| Vessel | ETA (UTC) | Destination as broadcast | Matched by |
|---|---|---|---|
| AZTECACargo | Oct 3, 2026, 13:00 UTC | AUBUY>ZACPT | UN/LOCODE |
 ARCADIACargo | Oct 3, 2026, 17:00 UTC | ZA CPT | UN/LOCODE |
 JARAMATanker | Oct 3, 2026, 18:00 UTC | ZACPT | UN/LOCODE |
 SANTA URSULACargo (hazardous cat. C) | Oct 4, 2026, 15:00 UTC | ZADURP1>ZACPT04 | UN/LOCODE |
| KAPSALITanker | Oct 4, 2026, 15:00 UTC | CAPE TOWN | Name match |
Source: AIS voyage reports via AISstream.io global terrestrial AIS. Times are the crew's ETA, not a Voydar estimate. As of Oct 3, 2026, 13:30 UTC.
Arrivals per day AIS-detected
Ships Voydar detected arriving at Cape Town on each of the last 30 days (UTC), counted once per ship per day. A day with no bar had no detected arrivals, which can also mean a gap in our AIS coverage.
Show as a table
| Day (UTC) | Ships arriving |
|---|---|
| Sep 3, 2026 | 1 |
| Sep 4, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 5, 2026 | 0 |
| Sep 6, 2026 | 7 |
| Sep 7, 2026 | 2 |
| Sep 8, 2026 | 3 |
| Sep 9, 2026 | 2 |
| Sep 10, 2026 | 3 |
| Sep 11, 2026 | 0 |
| Sep 12, 2026 | 3 |
| Sep 13, 2026 | 7 |
| Sep 14, 2026 | 2 |
| Sep 15, 2026 | 2 |
| Sep 16, 2026 | 1 |
| Sep 17, 2026 | 3 |
| Sep 18, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 19, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 20, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 21, 2026 | 5 |
| Sep 22, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 23, 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 24, 2026 | 5 |
| Sep 25, 2026 | 7 |
| Sep 26, 2026 | 7 |
| Sep 27, 2026 | 5 |
| Sep 28, 2026 | 8 |
| Sep 29, 2026 | 6 |
| Sep 30, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 1, 2026 | 2 |
| Oct 2, 2026 | 9 |
Vessels near Cape Town
Ships Voydar received on AIS near the port in the last 6 hours, most recent first. Being near a port is not a port call; the board above lists calls.
| Vessel | Type | IMO / MMSI | Last seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| BEATRICE MARINEFishing | Fishing | IMO 8704664 | |
 CM PARKFishing | Fishing | IMO 9929479 | |
 SW TERNFishing | Fishing | MMSI 659206000 | |
| FLAME THORN | — | IMO 9147318 | |
| FPV RUTH FIRSTOther | Other | MMSI 601834000 | |
 FU XING HAIFishing | Fishing | IMO 9959620 | |
| HUA XIANG 9Fishing | Fishing | IMO 9975313 | |
 ANTARCTIC SEAFishing | Fishing | IMO 9160358 | |
 THE EXPLORERDredging or underwater ops | Dredging or underwater ops | IMO 7904932 | |
| CODESA1Fishing | Fishing | MMSI 601332000 | |
| GRAND BANKSOther | Other | IMO 7212468 | |
| ISABELLA MARINEFishing | Fishing | IMO 8816869 | |
| CAPE CHALLENGER | — | MMSI 601212600 | |
| SISTROFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601087000 | |
| ENDURANCE RESEARCHNoncombatant | Noncombatant | MMSI 258028480 | |
| UMKHOMAZIPilot vessel | Pilot vessel | IMO 9755270 | |
| DREAM PARKFishing | Fishing | IMO 9929467 | |
| USIBAPilot vessel | Pilot vessel | MMSI 601366500 | |
| OKOMBAHEFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601093500 | |
| NILAYASailing | Sailing | IMO 9925588 | |
| NALEDI | — | MMSI 601515000 | |
| SOUTH WEST CONDORFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601089100 | |
| MFV FOXGLOVEFishing | Fishing | IMO 9293492 | |
| SARAH BAARTMANLaw enforcement | Law enforcement | MMSI 601739000 | |
| PACIFIC LEADEROther | Other | IMO 9648362 | |
| ZAMANI 1Fishing | Fishing | IMO 8812021 | |
| SANTA MONICAFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601391000 | |
 YUN MAO NO.168 | — | MMSI 416004839 | |
| CHIEN JUI NO.102Cargo | Cargo | MMSI 416067800 | |
| PREDATORFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601731000 | |
| BRAVEHEART ICargo | Cargo | IMO 9392444 | |
| ADMIRAAL DE RUITERFishing | Fishing | MMSI 601770000 | |
| MADIBA 1Passenger | Passenger | MMSI 601938800 | |
| YUN MAO NO.128Fishing | Fishing | MMSI 416009259 | |
| SUPERLITE IIPort tender | Port tender | MMSI 601024650 | |
 SC MARACargo | Cargo | IMO 9302578 | |
| KAO FONG NO 372Fishing | Fishing | MMSI 416336000 | |
 THUNDERERPleasure craft | Pleasure craft | MMSI 664055000 | |
| SOUTHERN VALOURTanker | Tanker | MMSI 601225400 | |
 LANCEFishing | Fishing | IMO 7638351 |
Harbour & facilities
Harbour particulars for Cape Town from the NGA World Port Index (WPI port no. 46770). Depths in metres as charted by NGA.
- Harbour size
- Large
- Harbour type
- Coastal (breakwater)
- Shelter
- Good
- Channel depth
- 16 m
- Anchorage depth
- 23 m
- Cargo pier depth
- 13 m
- Oil terminal depth
- 13 m
- Mean tide
- 1 m
- Pilotage compulsory
- Yes
- First port of entry
- Yes
- Repairs
- Major
- Dry dock
- Large
Source: NGA World Port Index (Pub. 150). Licence: US Government public domain.
Not for navigation.
Forecast
Model forecast for Cape Town over the next 72 hours, every 6 hours: wind, gusts, waves and visibility. Times in UTC.
| Time (UTC) | Wind (kn) | From | Gusts (kn) | Waves (m) | Period (s) | Visibility (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 146° | 34 | 2.1 | 11 | 24 | |
| 14 | 135° | 27 | 1.8 | 10 | 24 | |
| 6 | 140° | 15 | 1.5 | 10 | 24 | |
| 3 | 125° | 9 | 1.5 | 11 | 24 | |
| 7 | 194° | 16 | 1.5 | 11 | 23 | |
| 7 | 177° | 15 | 1.6 | 12 | 24 | |
| 4 | 165° | 8 | 1.7 | 12 | 24 | |
| 2 | 186° | 6 | 1.5 | 12 | 24 | |
| 5 | 214° | 16 | 1.3 | 12 | 14 | |
| 4 | 174° | 12 | 1.3 | 11 | 24 | |
| 7 | 292° | 13 | 1.5 | 12 | 12 |
Forecast: ECMWF IFS 0.25° + ECMWF WAM, run of Oct 3, 2026, 00:00 UTC. Visibility: NOAA GFS 0.25° + GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III), run of Oct 3, 2026, 06:00 UTC. Waves are taken from the wave model's nearest sea point, 18 km away.
Source: ECMWF open data (IFS 0.25° forecasts, ECMWF WAM waves). This service is based on data and products of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). Source: www.ecmwf.int. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Licence: CC-BY-4.0 + ECMWF Terms of Use.
Source: NOAA GFS 0.25° and GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III) forecasts. Forecast: NOAA NCEP GFS / GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III). Licence: US Government work (public domain); NOAA Open Data Dissemination.
A model forecast, not an observation. Not for navigation.
Cape Town: daily port calls from satellite AIS (IMF PortWatch)
Estimates published by the International Monetary Fund's PortWatch, built from satellite and terrestrial AIS. They cover waters our own receivers do not reach yet. These are the IMF's figures, not Voydar's counts.
The IMF estimates 21 port calls in the 7 days and 88 in the 30 days to Sep 25, 2026. That is 1% less than the same 30 days a year earlier (89).
- Container
- 37
- Tanker
- 19
- Dry bulk
- 13
- General cargo
- 19
- Ro-ro
- 0
Estimated cargo loaded and discharged in those 30 days: 0.6 million tonnes.
09-12 2 | 09-13 5 | 09-14 6 | 09-15 2 | 09-16 3 | 09-17 2 | 09-18 3 | 09-19 5 | 09-20 3 | 09-21 3 | 09-22 1 | 09-23 3 | 09-24 2 | 09-25 4 |
Sources: Kpler; UN Global Platform; IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org). IMF estimates, updated weekly; the latest days are revised. portwatch.imf.org. Counts cover container ships, tankers, dry bulk, general cargo and ro-ro vessels (30-day totals above).
Cape Town: global benchmarks
How Cape Town compares with the world's ports, from published statistics. These are the publishers' figures, not Voydar's own measurements.
- Container Port Performance Index 2023
- #405 of 405
- World Bank ranking of container ports by vessel time in port (lower rank = faster turnaround). Port identified from the CPPI port name "CAPE TOWN" (80% confidence).
- Source: World Bank, The Container Port Performance Index 2023 (CC BY 3.0 IGO). Retrieved Sep 24, 2026.
- Port liner shipping connectivity, 2 2026
- 171.2
- UNCTAD index (100 = the average port in Q1 2023). Up 7% on a year earlier.
- Source: UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Data Hub, port liner shipping connectivity index (CC BY 3.0 IGO). Retrieved Sep 24, 2026.
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