What's the best way to see Cape Town Diamond Museum?

According to Tripadvisor travelers, these are the best ways to experience Cape Town Diamond Museum: Cape Town City Pass including Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Transport (From $97.60) Cape Town Halfday City and Table Mountain Tour (From $51.66) PRIVATE TOUR: Highlights & Hidden Gems of Cape Town - Tickets and Snack Included (From $78.97) Robben Island Prison Museum and Diamond Museum Plus Ferry Tickets (From $157.69) Cape Town Premium City Pass including Transport (From $211.79)

What hotels are near Cape Town Diamond Museum?

Hotels near Cape Town Diamond Museum: (0.10 mi) The Silo Hotel (0.15 mi) Radisson RED V&A Waterfront, Cape Town (0.22 mi) Dock House Boutique Hotel And Spa By Newmark (0.24 mi) Queen Victoria Hotel & Manor House (0.15 mi) Pembroke 403 View all hotels near Cape Town Diamond Museum on Tripadvisor

What restaurants are near Cape Town Diamond Museum?

Restaurants near Cape Town Diamond Museum: (0.01 mi) Tunisian Delights (0.01 mi) The Fat Fish Cafe (0.01 mi) Royaltea (0.01 mi) Sushi To Go (0.01 mi) Tuttis Frozen Yogurt View all restaurants near Cape Town Diamond Museum on Tripadvisor

Cape Town Diamond Museum - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

#3 of 196 things to do in Cape Town Central

Speciality Museums

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Monday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Tuesday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Wednesday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Thursday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Friday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Saturday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Sunday

9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

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About

The Cape Town Diamond Museum pays tribute to the world's most precious gem, the diamond. Discover a 3 billion year old story unfold from a diamond's formation to the final polished stone. The Cape Town Diamond Museum also pays homage to the most famous South African diamonds and showcases specimens of Kimberlite rock dating billions of years old. Situated in the bustling heart of the Clock Tower precinct at the V&A Waterfront, the Cape Town Diamond Museum is a must-see for any visitor to Cape Town. Book in advance recommended.

Duration: 1-2 hours

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See what travelers are saying

elodTlv
Tel Aviv, Israel157 contributions
OK, but they will try to sell you stuff
A short guided explanation about the history of diamonds, followed by a display of factory then they try to sell you. You get a free drink but you do have to pay for entrance and register your details for security reasons. It was OK, but nothing more as I am not a jewelry enthusiast.
Visited December 2022
Traveled solo
Written December 30, 2022
Zed M
13 contributions
A sales pitch disguised as a museum
While the museum shows you how diamonds are made, and the history of diamonds in South Africa, it is really a 30-minute infomercial for why you should buy moned diamonds. It does not discuss the environmental damage or the history of demands during apartheid. (apartheid was kept to maximize diamond prifuts)
Visited December 2022
Written February 21, 2023
Malwina Iwona T
2 contributions
Luxury Goosebumps from Méan
It was very spontaneous visit but it actually made my day. The tour given by our guide Méan was incredibly interesting. We learned a lot. There were goosebumps moments that I can thank Méan for. Visit in this museum is a must.
Visited October 2023
Traveled as a couple
Written October 25, 2023

These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5

837 reviews

Excellent

604

Very good

140

Average

63

Poor

21

Terrible

9

Storyteller754583

9 contributions

Couldn't go in

Feb 2020

Despite this museum saying it is open 9am to 9pm, my husband and I went mid morning and were told the earliest availability to visit was 6pm! We were flying home that evening so couldn't go. There was no one else in sight and no notice to say there would be timed tours during the opening times for us to plan ahead and book. Our tour guide just said to go and visit.

Written February 8, 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Elana K

We are terribly sorry that you were unable to attend your tour - unfortunately, we do tend to be extremely busy this time of year making bookings to visit essential. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. Should you find your way back to Cape Town, we would love to offer you both a complimentary tour. Warmest Regards, The Cape Town Diamond Museum Team

Written February 17, 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Toré A.

5 contributions

Diamond treatment from the Diamond Museum

Feb 2022

Thanks to Marlene Naidoo, we've been part of an extremely informative and highly enjoyable museum tour experience which took us from 3.3 bn years ago all the way through to modern day. It's been one of the most exciting tours my Mom and I have ever been to. Thank you Cape Town Diamond Museum for such excellent customer service and courtesy!

Written February 14, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Vika

Dubai, United Arab Emirates11 contributions

A nice small museum / jewellery store

May 2022 • Family

Our kids WANTED to visit diamonds museum so we came here to explore.

We loved it. The museum display is nice, the story is light and interesting and one can learn a bit about diamonds, how they are polished and how they were discovered in South Africa and stunning for us adults story and pictures of old Kimberley mine! We are thankful to our guide Zukiswa, she was amazing.

We didn’t buy anything (honestly I felt discomfortable not buying!) though there was no pressure to buy and all staff were very nice to us! Our son however is now going to get very reach and buy a huge diamond when he gets older:)

Maybe you can allow larger groups and with that, would have more visitors and more purchases. It’s not easy to get to this museum as you need to book in advance and many visitors come and get sent out with no visit slots available... It would be great to start accommodating as hoc visitors to join the planned groups.
Cheers to all.

Written May 13, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Trish D

1 contribution

Great experience!

Nov 2022

Nadya has an incredible wealth of knowledge on the history of diamonds. She shared interesting anecdotes with genuine interest and enthusiasm which made the tour most enjoyable and well worth it. I would recommend visiting the Cape Town Diamond Museum as both young and old are catered for. A great experience all round!

Written January 11, 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mrs T Rennie

1 contribution

Thoroughly enjoyable.

Oct 2022

We thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Our guide Gabi Pembion was so knowledgeable, so patient with all our questions although we were unfortunately not in a position to buy anything. I would highly recommend a visit it was both interesting and informative in terms of the history of diamonds and diamonds in general. If I win the lotto this will be one of my first stops.

Written October 10, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

anchi100

Prague, Czech Republic416 contributions

Beautiful experience with iconic gems.

Jan 2023 • Solo

The museum works on a tour basis only. My first try - they had a large group already booked and I could not visit directly; today it was not busy, so I had a private guide - a wonderful Aloma- who guided me through the historical exhibition and the showroom.
It is a great experience to learn more about diamonds in SA, understand their grading system and then of course to see and try some beautiful pieces in the showroom. I also loved it that they have a collection of tanzanites which is a stone you cannot see in many places around the world.

Written January 20, 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ankeb1959

Edinburgh, UK6 contributions

Diamonds are a girl's best friend

Feb 2022

While staying in the area, we decided to visit the Cape Town Diamond Museum. Although the entry fee was R100, this was waived for both of us. Wesley, member of staff, patiently explained the history of the diamond mining in South Africa from the earliest days to the present. This was followed by a short video, a tour of the work shops and it finished in the Shimansky showroom. Their jewellery and gemstones are all made on the premises and the styles are innovative and exciting. They specialise in diamond and Tanzanite jewellery. We couldn't resist buying a little diamond souvenir to remind us of our visit to Cape Town. If you love diamonds, this is an experience you can't afford to miss.

Written February 8, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

James Drury

3 contributions

Excellent service and professionalism, highly recommend.

May 2022 • Business

I recently went with my students to the diamond museum and I can say that this was an excellent experience through the diamond museum, the show room and the factory. In particular Marlene Naidoo was an incredible guide through the whole facility and really captured the students attention and was professional and kind. I will be returning in future as this was a wonderful learning experience.

Written May 17, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Vero Prima

3 contributions

Great tour with Leila

Apr 2023 • Solo

I would like to sincerely thank Leila for the wonderful guided tour of the Diamond Museum! Leila not only introduced the museum and its history in a very interesting and entertaining way, but also shared her extensive knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject. I was thrilled with the variety of information Leila imparted and I’m sure that without her help I would not have learned so much about the fascinating world of diamonds. I can only recommend anyone who wants to visit the Diamond Museum to take a tour with Leila.

Written April 28, 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Raphael M

52 contributions

Very nice visit, but tour guide spoiled the visit by insisting we bought diamond jewellery at the end

Apr 2022

the "museum" part of the visit is very informative, and our guide was very knowledgeable and showed a real passion for all things diamonds. It was interesting to see how diamonds were crafted in the workshop towards the end. What I did not enjoy, on the other hand, was how insistant the guide was to make us purchase jewellery at the boutique at the end of the tour. When you think of visiting a diamond museum, you expect to do just that - learning how diamonds are found, crafted etc..., and not to end up justifying yourself about why you don't want to buy expensive jewellery in a jewellery store. It is a real shame because all other aspects of the tour were really enjoyable.

Written April 18, 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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