Legendary Routes

The Cape of Good Hope

Discovery and endurance

In 1488, when the Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias first rounded what he termed the Cape of Storms, the world was poised for transformation. Dias’s voyage marked far more than a geographical milestone: it heralded the dawn of a new trade route that would forever shift the global balance. Though the name was later softened to the more positive Cape of Good Hope, it remained a passage defined by both promise and peril.

The waters around the Cape are infamous for violent storms, unpredictable currents and rugged reefs. For centuries, these treacherous seas tested the skill and courage of every sailor who dared to venture through them. The Atlantic battered the hulls of ships, and countless vessels succumbed to the tempestuous conditions. Yet, despite the inherent danger, merchants, adventurers and monarchs were drawn by the alluring promise of Asia’s spices, silks and porcelain.

Curious about the whole story and the interview with Hapag-Lloyd's captain Peter Roessler? Read on here from page 37!