Destination

The Mandela Museum in Soweto is housed in what was once the home of Nelson Mandela, the world’s most famous political prisoner and South Africa’s former president. Soweto was an important locus of the struggle against apartheid, and Mandela’s house seems an appropriate site for a museum which is filled with many interesting artefacts and memorabilia pertaining to South Africa's greatest icon.

Based on an ancient Tuscan village Montecasino offers a host of attractions and facilities including the fantastic Bird gardens, the Teatro theatre, a plethora of restaurants and many shops in a covered and open environment.

The Apartheid Museum, which opened in 2001, offers a multi-media, multi-sensory walk through the history of apartheid, crafting a dramatic and moving experience for the museum’s visitors. The experience is largely audiovisual. Film and video footage collected from around the world documents the history of South Africa under apartheid - from the building of Afrikaner nationalism and life in the townships, to black and white resistance to this iniquitous system.

A fascinating theme park on the site of a former gold mine. Featuring rides for all ages the park also offers trips 400 metres down the former mine shaft. Museums and former mine housing set in quaint surroundings are both historical and informative.

The Johannesburg Art Gallery is the largest on the subcontinent and houses works by Rodin, Dante, Gabriel Rossetti, Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas and Henry Moore. A comprehensive South African collection including the works of Gerard Sekoto, Alexis Preller, Maud Sumner, Sydney Kumalo and Ezrom Legae graces the walls of the gallery. The collection is large enough that at any given time the gallery exhibits only 10% of its works.

The Maropeng Visitor Centre is a world-class exhibition, focusing on the development of humans and our ancestors over the past few million years. The exhibition is highly interactive and thus appeals to children. Within the Sterkfontein caves, scientists have discovered many hominid and other animal fossils, dating back more than 4-million years.

A spacious and trendy shopping and entertainment complex that offers open spaces, secure public squares and sidewalk cafe seating in a pedestrian friendly environment.

Everard Read Gallery - Southern Africa´s most famous commercial art gallery was established in the young mining town of Johannesburg in 1912. In 1980 the gallery moved from its downtown location to the suburb of Rosebank. The building is an outstanding example of post-modern architecture. Surrounding a charming 1920´s house, which is the gallery´s administrative centre, is a curvaceous structure comprising sculpture courtyards and four exhibition areas of various proportions.

Believed to be the largest Mural ever in South Africa, the cooling towers are a distinctive pictorial record of life in Soweto and incorporate images of well-loved faces and famous landmarks in the township. Depicted is a smiling Nelson Mandela, an illustration of the Madonna and Child, a soccer stadium, Baragwanath Bridge, a woman selling her wares, taxis, and many painted images of Soweto's history. The site currently offers Bungee jump, Power Swing and Lift ride to the viewing platform.

An hours drive from Johannesburg and Pretoria will take you to the heart of the bushveld and here you'll find Ukutula, known as the "place of quiet". The lodge is nestled in lush bushveld, where the roar of the lion can be heard for miles. The farm has 260 hectares of unspoilt bushveld boasting a variety of antelope species, giraffe and zebra as well as more than 130 different bird species. At Ukutula you can experience Lions in their natural habitat by taking a walk with them through the bush.

The Elephant Sanctuary hosts a unique and fully guided educational program that sets itself apart from anything else in South Africa in terms of elephants. Guest numbers are limited to ensure personal attention and maximum elephant interaction for all, making this truly a memorable and enriching experience with an opportunity to touch, feed and even walk side by side with these magnificent animals. Visitors can learn more about the elephants' habits, behaviour and their different personalities.