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For both residents and visitors, the V&A Waterfront sets the scene for a full day’s worth of things to see and do. From harbour views to shopping and dining to activities, events and exhibitions galore, there’s always something happening.

And if you’re really lucky, you may even score a ‘spectacular’ lunch, served with a sighting of one of the V&A Waterfront harbour’s many wildlife visitors.

Also read: V&A Waterfront to host world-class turtle conservation centre

Among the crowd of fellow spectators who gathered around to welcome the V&A’s latest visitor on Friday, 21 June, was lucky luncher An van Leeuwen who noticed a humpback whale coming into the harbour while she was seated at the harbourside terrace of the popular Belgian restaurant, Den Anker.

Take a look: 

Picture: An van Leeuwen / Supplied

According to her waiter, the humpback whale spent most of its Friday morning in the harbour waters. By the time Leeuwen left at around 3pm, the whale was still swimming around.

Picture: An van Leeuwen / Supplied

As marine conservationist and wildlife storyteller Martine Viljoen writes in her Instagram post of the sighting, you’d be surprised by the variety of wildlife visitors that find themselves at the harbour: whales, dolphins, seals, otters, sunfish and seabirds.

@mo_simpson1 Whale in the Harbour – Waterfront #CapCut #whalecapetown #vawaterfront ♬ Dark Whale – Syed Hassan Samin & Fatin Al Shadab Ratul

In the comment section of Leeuwen’s post, one Facebook user added that the whale’s fourth time at the Waterfront and that it has made several visits over the past week, spending a couple of hours swimming about in the harbour waters and then exiting again.

Picture: Ann van Leeuwen / Supplied

Every year these majestic creatures can be seen frolicking along the Cape Coast from June to December. They migrate from the colder waters of Antarctica to our warmer south coast waters to calve their offspring.

Suffice it to say, whale season is upon us.

Also read:

Look: A pair of southern right whales splashing about in Sea Point

Picture: Ann van Leeuwen / Supplied

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