Things to do in  Johannesburg

For most, Soweto (short for South West Townships) is synonymous with resistance to apartheid, South Africa’s former policy of racial segregation. The township’s complex past is visible in Soweto’s moving museums, historical monuments, and strong traditions.

The Apartheid Museum details the injustice, cruelty, and absurdities of white minority rule in South Africa. Apartheid, meaning “separateness” in Afrikaans, was officially in effect from 1948 to 1994, though segregation had been a cornerstone of South African politics since the country’s inception. The museum is dedicated to helping South Africa overcome its oppressive past and look toward the future.

The Nelson Mandela National Museum (Mandela House), is dedicated to the preservation of the history, heritage, and legacy of the Mandela family. Former South African president Nelson Mandela and his family lived in this Johannesburg house from 1946 to the 1990s before dedicating it to the Soweto Heritage Trust.

Sun City is a resort and entertainment complex located north-west of Johannesburg. One of South Africa's top leisure destinations, the resort complex is conveniently located on the South African Garden Route and next to Pilanesberg National Park. Highlights of Sun City include a casino, spa, water park, and golf courses.

Perhaps nowhere is South Africa’s transition to democracy more apparent than on Constitution Hill. For over a hundred years, buildings here functioned as a feared prison complex, holding everyone from common criminals to activists Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, and even Winston Churchill (briefly during the Boer War. Since 2004, the site has been home to South Africa’s Constitutional Court.

This theme park and casino complex built on the site of a former gold mine offers 24-hour entertainment for both kids and adults. Highlights of Gold Reef City include a casino, live theater, cinema complex, bowling alley, trampoline park, 30-ride theme park, and Johannesburg’s only authentic underground mine tour.

Set among the rocky hills and bushland outside Johannesburg, Aha Lesedi, an African lodge and cultural village is made up of traditional homesteads and provides an opportunity to meet people from Zulu, Xhosa, Pedi, Ndebele, and Basotho origins. Lesedi reflects the diversity of South Africa’s original inhabitants with elements from many tribal cultures.

A complex of 300 limestone caves, South Africa's Cradle of Humankind is one of the most significant archaeological and anthropological sites in the world. The UNESCO World Heritage Site has produced an extensive human and animal fossil record, including a nearly-complete hominin skull dating back more than 2 million years. Note: Cradle of Humankind is temporarily closed.

Once a grim post-industrial zone, Newtown is one of Johannesburg’s most vibrant cultural quarters, alive with theaters, galleries, street art, live music, and more. Travelers flock to cultural destinations such as Museum Africa and the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, and head to Mary Fitzgerald Square for live events.

The Carlton Centre is a 50-story, four-blocks-long skyscraper in downtown Johannesburg, and at 732-feet (223-meters tall, it's one of the tallest buildings in Africa. This towering structure is also known as a shopping destination and it offers unparalleled roof-top views of the South African capital city.

From tiny fennec foxes to majestic leopards and lions, the Bothongo Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve brims with life—and is the perfect way to discover the diversity of South African wildlife. Compared to traditional safaris, it has more organized and curated experiences. It's also close to downtown Johannesburg and a top city destination.

You don’t have to visit the big game reserves to appreciate the variety of South African wildlife—it’s all on display at the Johannesburg Zoo. The sprawling 136-acre (55-hectare) site includes spacious habitats for more than 320 species, with a focus on the physical and psychological wellbeing of the animals on display.

Built for irrigation purposes in the 1920s, Hartbeespoort Dam created a reservoir and a recreation hot spot that now draws visitors to what has become a small resort town. Nestled in the Magaliesberg, Hartbeespoort offers a mountain escape complete with scenic views and everything from cruises to paragliding.

The Hillbrow Tower is a tall tower located in the Hillbrow suburb of Johannesburg. Originally known as the JG Strijdom tower, the structure was completed in 1971 and is one of the tallest constructions in the Southern Hemisphere. The Hillbrow Tower was also a major telecommunications for the city.

It may be hard to picture the tree-lined suburbs of Johannesburg’s Rivonia as farmland, but just over 40 years ago it was. And Liliesleaf was a farm with a dual purpose: Many of the events that led to the overthrow of apartheid were concocted at Liliesleaf. Its remote location housed clandestine planning meetings and government-opposition discussions by leading members of the ANC during apartheid in the 1960s. Open to the public as a museum since 2008, the multiple farm buildings now house photographs, maps, films and period information that share the history of the rise of apartheid to its eventual collapse, the heritage of the liberation movement and the farm’s unique role in the country’s history. A visit here begins at the Liberation Centre and its auditorium with a 12-minute introductory film. From there, visitors can guide themselves through the farm’s various spaces or opt for a docent-guided tour. These must be booked at least five days in advance and vary in length from 45 minutes to 3 hours, depending on preference. One of Liliesleaf’s highlights is the garage area where Nelson Mandela lived under the pseudonym David Motsamayi between 1961 and 1962. Today the building houses exhibits on Radio Freedom and the farm laborers who worked at Liliesleaf unaware of its other use. In July of 1963, police officers arrived concealed in a laundry van and detained of eight key party members in a raid. The event proved a major setback after two years using the space as a headquarters. An entire building is dedicated to the persisting mystery of how exactly the police knew about Liliesleaf, and near the end a four-part film plays on loop, detailing the subsequent prison break by the eight detainees. The onsite Cedric’s Café, named for the farm’s codename, offers light meals and snacks.