Cape Town Jazz Festival Returns on 19 March 2027

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SOUTH AFRICA · EVENTS

The Cape Town Jazz Festival returns on Friday 19 March 2027 for its 24th edition, and it is moving into the city centre. The festival runs to Sunday 21 March, inside a month of music, art, fashion and food called the Month of the Mother City.

For a US visitor, the Cape Town Jazz Festival is a reason to plan a Cape Town trip around mid-March. An early-bird pass for Friday and Saturday costs R1,950 (about US$117), and the early price is on sale now.

What the Festival Is and Why It Matters

The Cape Town International Jazz Festival calls itself “Africa’s Grandest Gathering”. Its 2027 edition is the 24th, and the producer named on the site is espAfrika.

This year the Cape Town Jazz Festival has a new home in the city centre. The organisers say it now sits inside the Month of the Mother City, which has two flagship weekends and three free community concerts.

The festival names places from District Six to the Company’s Garden and from Bree Street to Langa. District Six and Langa are historic Cape Town neighbourhoods, and the Company’s Garden is a public park in the centre.

That spread matters because the Cape Town Jazz Festival will not sit in one building. A visitor can combine paid shows with free concerts and city walks in the same week.

Jazz here is wider than the American idea of the word. The announced acts mix Zulu choral soul, Xhosa bow music, Malian kora and Indian bass guitar.

Dates and Tickets

The festival’s ticket page says the 2027 edition runs from 19 to 21 March 2027. That is a Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The only ticket listed so far is the Early Bird Two Day Pass for Friday 19 and Saturday 20 March. It costs R1,950 (about US$117), and the page gives no end date for the early price.

Dollar figures here use 16.63 rand per US dollar, the rate on Thursday 29 October 2026. At that rate the early-bird pass works out at about US$117, or roughly US$59 for each of the two days.

On Thursday 29 October 2026, the Buy Tickets buttons on the ticket page did not yet lead to a working checkout. The page also does not name the company that will sell the tickets.

Start only from the festival’s own site, capetownjazzfest.com, and wait for it to publish its seller. Avoid resale offers on social media, because fake tickets are a known risk for popular events.

No price is published yet for Sunday 21 March, for single-day entry or for hospitality packages. The festival has not said when the early-bird price ends or what the full price will be.

The Line-Up So Far

The Cape Town Jazz Festival’s artists page lists ten acts: Emma Nissen, Ballaké Sissoko, Simphiwe Dana with guest Bongeziwe Mabandla and Mohini Dey. It then names Mahotella Queens, Yarwood, Internet Athi, Vuyo Viwe, The Joy and Thandeka Mfinyongo.

The Joy is a vocal group from a small town in KwaZulu-Natal, the Zulu heartland on South Africa’s east coast. Its biography says Jennifer Hudson, the American singer and actress, named it her favorite band and featured it on her album The Gift of Love.

Internet Athi is a songwriter and band leader from Khayelitsha, a large township outside Cape Town, who sings in Xhosa. Thandeka Mfinyongo is an ethnomusicologist, a scholar of music, who plays the Xhosa uhadi gourd bow and the umrhubhe mouth bow.

Yarwood is a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bassist working in alternative soul and rhythm and blues. Vuyo Viwe is a 25-year-old flautist and composer based in South Africa, according to her festival biography.

The artists page does not yet say who plays on which day, and several biographies still carry placeholder text. Expect the schedule to appear later, so do not book flights around one name.

Where It Happens and How to Get Around

The festival says only that it has a new home in the city centre of Cape Town. No building, street address or gate time has been published.

Central Cape Town is compact, and many hotels sit in the city bowl, the bowl-shaped area between Table Mountain and the harbour. If the main stages of the Cape Town Jazz Festival are in the centre, a nearby hotel saves you a long ride.

Do not book a room for the Cape Town Jazz Festival on a guess about the venue. Free cancellation is the safest booking choice until the festival confirms it.

Ride-hailing apps and licensed taxis are the usual way to get around at night. Ask your hotel to arrange a car back after the last act.

Cape Town is a long flight from the United States, and most itineraries need at least one connection. We did not check airfares or routes for this guide, so price them before you commit.

Tips for US and Foreign Visitors

The US State Department, the American foreign ministry, says US visitors need no visa for stays of 90 days or less. It also says you need two consecutive completely blank visa pages in your passport on every arrival.

South Africa has also launched an optional online travel authorisation for visa-exempt visitors. Our explainer on the South Africa travel authorisation for Americans covers the fee and who should apply.

The State Department’s advice for South Africa is “Exercise increased caution” because of crime and civil unrest. It says the risk of violent crime is higher in the central business districts of major cities after dark.

That matters because the Cape Town Jazz Festival is moving into the city centre. Plan your ride home before the show, keep your phone and wallet out of sight, and avoid walking alone late at night.

South Africa Standard Time is two hours ahead of Universal Time and does not change in summer. On Friday 19 March 2027, Cape Town is six hours ahead of New York, because US clocks move forward on 14 March.

Bring a card that works abroad, since prices will be in rand. Check your bank’s foreign-transaction fee, and carry a light layer for evenings and sun protection for the day.

What Is Not Confirmed Yet

The Cape Town Jazz Festival has not named its venue, the stage times or the day each act plays. It has also not said when the three free community concerts happen or where.

The ticket seller, the price of a Sunday or single-day ticket and the date the early-bird price ends are not confirmed. The ticket buttons on the official page were not yet working on Thursday 29 October 2026.

Capacity, age limits and bag rules are also absent from the site. The Cape Town Jazz Festival has not said when it will publish them.

The ten-act line-up is partial, and the artists page links to a full line-up. More international names may be added before March.

What Comes Next

For a longer stay, read our guide to the best time to visit South Africa by region and our page on Cape Town. Music fans can also see our guide to the Dave Koz concert in Cape Town on 23 January 2027.

Runners can pair the trip with the Two Oceans Marathon in Cape Town on 3 and 4 April. For this month, see our Cape Town guide for November.

More: South Africa news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the Cape Town International Jazz Festival in 2027?

The festival’s ticket page says 19 to 21 March 2027, a Friday to Sunday. The early-bird pass covers Friday 19 and Saturday 20 March.

How much is a Cape Town Jazz Festival ticket?

The only published price is R1,950 (about US$117) for the early-bird two-day pass. Single-day and Sunday prices are not yet published.

Where is the Cape Town Jazz Festival held in 2027?

The organisers say it moves to a new home in the city centre of Cape Town. No venue or street address has been named yet.

Sources: Cape Town International Jazz Festival (organiser): 2027 home page, Month of the Mother City, accessed 29 October 2026; Cape Town International Jazz Festival: tickets page (dates 19 to 21 March 2027 and the Early Bird Two Day Pass), accessed 29 October 2026; Cape Town International Jazz Festival: 2027 artist line-up, accessed 29 October 2026; US Department of State, South Africa country information (entry requirements, travel advisory), accessed 29 October 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief