The Cape Town School Calendars below apply to most schools in the Western Cape.
South African schools usually divide their academic year into four terms. In general, the school year starts mid of January and ends at the beginning of December. But dates may vary if your child visits a private (independent) school. Take note, that the American School and the French school in Cape Town have a completely different calendar.
Please find below the updated school calendars for 2019 for easy reference.
Public School Terms 2019 and Public School Holidays for 2019 are as follows: Term 1: 9 January 2019 – 15 March 2019 --------Autumn Break: 16 March 2019 - 1 April 2019 Term 2: 2 April 2019 – 14 June 2019 --------Winter Break: 15 June 2019 - 8 July 2019 Term 3: 9 July 2019 – 20 September 2019 --------Spring Break: 21 September 2019 - 30 September 2019 Term 4: 1 October 2019 – 4 December 2019 --------Summer Break: 5 December 2019 - 14 January 2020 Public School Terms 2020 and Public School Holidays for 2020 are as follows: Term 1: 15 January 2020 – 20 March 2020 --------Autumn Break: 21 March 2019 - 30 March 2019 Term 2: 31 March 2020 – 12 June 2020 --------Winter Break: 13 June 2020 - 6 July 2020 Term 3: 7 July 2020 – 18 September 2020 --------Spring Break: 19 September 2019 - 28 September 2020 Term 4: 29 September 2020 – 2 December 2020 --------Summer Break: 3 December 2020 - 13 January 2021 (TBC!) |
16 Mar 2019 - 1 Apr 2019
15 Jun 2019 - 8 Jul 2019
21 Sep 2019 - 30 Sep 2019
5 Dec 2019 - 14 Jan 2020
All public schools in the nine South African provinces will adhere to the same school calendar in 2019 and 2020!
21 Mar 2020 - 30 Mar 2020
13 Jun 2020 - 6 Jul 2020
19 Sep 2020 - 28 Sep 2020
3 Dec 2020 - 13 Jan 2021
Private, also called independent, schools in Cape Town may add some days either before or after the official state school holidays. The dates above refer to the public (state) schools' holidays as given by the Department of Education of the Western Cape and below you will find the ISASA (Independent Schools Association of South Africa) calendar which most independent schools follow.
ISASA - Private Schools with 4 TermsPrivate School Terms for 2019 are as follows (as proposed by ISASA): Term 1: 16 January 2019 - 15 March 2019 Term 2: 3 April 2019 - 14 June 2019 Term 3: 10 July 2019 - 20 September 2019 Term 4: 8 October 2019 - 6 December 2019 Private School Terms for 2020 are as follows (as proposed by ISASA): Term 1: 15 January 2020 - 20 March 2020 Term 2: 14 April 2020 - 12 June 2020 Term 3: 7 July 2020 - 18 September 2020 Term 4: 6 October 2020 - 2 December 2020 |
ISASA Private Schools with 3 TermsPrivate School Terms for 2019 are as follows (as proposed by ISASA): Term 1: 16 January 2019 - 12 April 2019 Term 2: 7 May 2019 - 8 August 2019 Term 3: 10 September 2019 - 6 December 2019 Private School Terms for 2020 are as follows (as proposed by ISASA): Term 1: 15 January 2020 - 9 April 2020 Term 2: 5 May 2020 - 31 July 2020 Term 3: 1 September 2020 - 4 December 2020 |
Different school holidays?Beware if your children attend different (private) schools, the school holiday dates might differ significantly! One child might be off school when the other one already has to be back at school! So better know your term dates and plan your family's holidays accordingly. |
Term 3: 21 January 2019 - 20 March 2019 - School Holidays: 21 March 2019 - 31 March 2019 Term 4: 1 April 2019 - 13 June 2019 - School Holidays: 14 June 2019 - tbc Term 1: August 2019 - September 2019 - Spring Break: October 2019 - October 2019 Term 2: October 2019 - December 2019 - Christmas Holidays: December 2019 - January 2020 Term 3: January 2020 - March 2020 - School Holidays: March 2020 - March 2020 Term 4: March 2020 - June 2020 Cape Town School Calendar and School Holidays in South Africa |
American School in Cape TownWhat you should know...The American School in Cape Town (AISCT) has a completely different school calendar, and adheres to the US American schools calendar. Find the term dates below. Also the French School in Cape Town adheres to the European school calendar. Find more info on their school terms and holidays here. |
Always check your child's school holiday calendar and view your specific private school's website for exact dates as the holiday dates above are given for reference only. |
The dates given above serve as a rough guideline and are important to know if you want to book your holidays, travels or flights to be aware about the peak travel seasons in South Africa. Check our page with the most popular holiday clubs and kids activities and let us know if you know of other great holiday and camp programmes.
Sources for this Cape Town School Calendar page:
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