# Robben Island Museum in Cape Town — Citylit Travel by ferry to the island whose former prison tells a central story of South African history. Canonical page: https://citylit.vercel.app/cape-town/entertainment/robben-island-museum Source check dates describe our catalog research, not live confirmation by the venue. Opening hours, prices and accessibility can change. Unknown facts are not confirmed unavailable. City-reference coordinates and city photographs must not be treated as venue locations or venue photos. ## Robben Island Museum Travel by ferry to the island whose former prison tells a central story of South African history. - City: Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa - Category: Entertainment - Address: Nelson Mandela Gateway, V&A Waterfront (ferry departure) - Citylit page: https://citylit.vercel.app/cape-town/entertainment/robben-island-museum - Official website: https://www.robben-island.org.za/ - Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robben_Island - Sources checked: 2026-10-08 - Coordinates: longitude 18.37, latitude -33.805 (venue pin; entrance may be unverified) - Coordinate source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robben\_Island Robben Island (Afrikaans: Robbeneiland) is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometers (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the archaic Dutch word for seals (robben), hence the Dutch/Afrikaans name Robbeneiland, which translates to Seal(s) Island. Robben Island is roughly oval in shape, 3.3 kilometres (2 miles) long north–south, and 1.9 km (1+1⁄8 mi) wide, with an area of 5.08 km2 (1+31⁄32 sq mi). It is flat and only a few metres above sea level, as a result of an ancient erosion event. About source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robben_Island; checked 2026-10-12; license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/. ### Practical facts - admission: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - booking: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - stepFreeEntrance: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - accessibleToilets: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - parking: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - publicTransport: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - family: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - environment: Unknown / unconfirmed (unknown) - durationMinutes: 90 (editorial-estimate); checked 2026-10-08; source: Citylit editorial planning estimate ### Sources - Home - Robben Island Museum: https://www.robben-island.org.za/; fetched 2026-10-08; retrieved during research - Robben Island: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robben_Island; fetched 2026-10-07; retrieved during research ### Photographs and credits - https://citylit.vercel.app/images/46e7a8bc7408.jpg — Some kilometers off the coast of \Cape Town\ lies the famous Robben Is. Venue photograph. Author: South African Tourism from South Africa; license: CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0); source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robben_Island_-_Cape_Town,_South_Africa_(3883849594).jpg - https://citylit.vercel.app/images/a0c652c88862.jpg — According to the Leupe catalogue (NA), the original title reads: Kaart van het Robben Eyland met opgave der dieptens enz. (Map of Seal Island with specification of the depths etc.). Venue photograph. Author: Anoniem / Anonymous; license: Public domain; source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AMH-2554-NA_Map_of_Robben_Island.jpg - https://citylit.vercel.app/images/2fc1b5f6daa0.jpg — Blackfoot penguin (Spheniscus demersus) at Robben Island.. Venue photograph. Author: Aart Rietveld; license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0); source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ASC_Leiden_-_Rietveld_Collection_-_17_-_Blackfoot_penguin_(Spheniscus_demersus)_near_trees_on_Robben_Island_-_2015.jpg ## Further reading [How Citylit researches its guides](https://citylit.vercel.app/about) · [Privacy and data](https://citylit.vercel.app/privacy) Original descriptions are Citylit editorial content. Wikipedia excerpts and photographs retain their separately linked licenses. No blanket license covers all third-party material.