Getting to Polkadraai Strawberry Farm Cape Town
You’ll find the big lush strawberry fields about 30 minutes from Cape Town – driving towards Stellenbosch on the N2 or N1 national roads. Type “Polkadraai Strawberry Farm” into Google Maps or look at their website for detailed directions. It’s hard to miss, as a giant red strawberry statue is visible from the main road and welcomes visitors to the farm. Let the strawberry picking in Cape Town begin!
Buy a bucket to start the strawberry-picking fun
Polkadraai Farm offers various activities to keep the entire family happy and entertained, but strawberry picking is the main attraction! Your strawberry-picking adventure starts at the Food & Wine Shop located at the farm entrance. Here you purchase an empty bucket for picking. There are four strawberry bucket sizes to choose from, starting at the small “Junior Picker” (cheapest) to the big “The Ultimate Picker” (more expensive).
Two or more people can not share a single bucket, so each person planning on entering the strawberry field must first purchase a strawberry bucket at the store. (You also can not bring a bucket from home.)
After purchasing your strawberry bucket, you head to the strawberry fields’ controlled entrance and then into the strawberry fields to start picking.
Once you enter the strawberry fields, you can stay and stroll around for as long as you want, taking your sweet time to look for the perfectly ripe strawberries. You decide which strawberries you want to add to your bucket. Helpful staff will instruct you where to go and tell you how to pick your strawberries to maximize their shelf life.
“A bucket load of fun” going strawberry picking in Cape Town
Filling your bucket with strawberries can take around 30 minutes, but it all depends on the size of your bucket and how quickly you can find ripe strawberries. The further you stroll into the strawberry fields (on paths less travelled by visitors), the more likely you’ll find more beautiful ripe strawberries.
Other activities at Polkadraai Farm
You do not have to pick strawberries while visiting Polkadraai Farm. You can choose only to use the Food and Wine store to buy estate wines, dried fruits, jams, or other things from their extensive range of other delicious treats.
You can also choose to have lunch at the food court while your children entertain themselves on the playground.
Child-friendly activities include tractor rides, pony rides, and mini-golf (at an additional charge).
Polkadraai Farm is also a popular venue for functions like birthday parties, baby showers, or kitchen teas. Each function venue has three tables with benches for approximately 24 people. You can bring platters and decorations to host your perfect event. Remember to contact Polkadraai ahead of time to reserve your booking.
My Recommendation for strawberry picking at Polkadraai Farm
Choose a beautiful Cape Town day to visit the farm. Go early in the morning. Buy a bucket of strawberries and at least one activity. For me, the smallest container was more than enough strawberries. Do the activity first, then pick strawberries afterwards. You want to carry a bucket full of strawberries while enjoying a game of mini-golf. After strawberry picking, have lunch at the food court and grab something delicious at the Food and Wine shop before making your way home again. Allow yourself +- 2 hours to fully enjoy the Polkadraai Farm outing.
If you’re looking for other fun activities to fill up your day, you can consider:
- Explore Cape Town’s coastlines in a kayak with Kayak Adventures Cape Town
- Experience Cape Town’s Stunning Sunsets with The City Sightseeing Bus
- Seeing birds of prey at Eagle Encounters at Spier
- Experience the world found within our oceans at the Two Oceans Aquarium
- Abseil down Table Mountain with Abseil Africa
- See giraffes in real life at the Giraffe House Wildlife Awareness Centre
Some notes:
- Go early! Strawberry picking at Polkadraai Strawberry farm is a popular attraction for families with younger kids – it can get pretty crowded on a beautiful Cape Town day (especially during school holidays). I recommend visiting the farm on a weekday or as early as possible on the weekend.
- Be prepared to walk. It’s roughly a 300m walk from the shop where you buy your strawberry bucket to the start of the strawberry fields. Then you also stroll up and down through the big strawberry fields to look for ripe, juicy strawberries.
- Comfortable shoes. On your strawberry-picking journey, you will walk around for a couple hundred meters on sandy terrain. I recommend sneakers or any other comfortable shoe you don’t mind getting dusty.
- Sun hat and sunscreen. There is no shade while you’re out in the strawberry field picking, so remember to bring sun protection.
- Keep an eye on the calendar. Strawberry picking season at Polkadraai Farm is only from September to January.
- Additional activities. Instead of simply going there to pick strawberries, do one or more of the activities on offer. Tractor rides and mini-golf are two activities grownups can also participate in.