Fish Hoek or Vissers Baay or Visch Hoek appears on the earliest maps of the Cape. The arrival of European settlers in 1652 forced the indigenous population to leave the area, and during the 18th century farmers appeared in the Noordhoek area.

Fish Hoek beach was used on an informal basis for whaling and fishing, but it was not until 1918 that it was laid out as a township.[citation needed] Diplomat Edmund Roberts visited Fish Hoek in 1833. He described it as a "poor village" with a whaling industry.