situated 10 kilometres southeast of Cape Town City Centre, surrounded by the suburbs of Rondebosch East, Crawford, Wetton, Claremont, Kenwyn and Athlone.

Lansdowne is served by a railway station of the same name, on the Cape Flats Line.

Lansdowne is the birthplace of acclaimed South African poet and social philosopher Athol Williams.

Lansdowne is in the City of Cape Town municipality, it falls within Sub-council 17.

It is part of three wards that stretches from Athlone, through Crawford, Penlyn Estate and Hanover Park through Manenberg.