Things to do in  Gauteng

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.

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.

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.

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.

The granite Voortrekker Monument towers 200 feet (60 meters) above Pretoria. The monument was built to honor the Great Trek—a 19th-century exodus from the then British-ruled Cape Colony to central South Africa. The monument depicts the treacherous journey in the Hall of Heroes, and an empty tomb represents the lives lost on the trek.

The neoclassical Union Buildings house Pretoria’s government headquarters and presidential offices. Designed in 1908, the sandstone wings represent South Africa’s Afrikaners and English people—joined by a central courtyard. While the building isn’t open to the public, you can always enjoy the surrounding gardens and statues.

The Harties Aerial Cableway transports visitors to a mountaintop viewing platform and activity area and offers panoramic views of the Magaliesberg mountains and Hartebeespoort Dam. Located just 50 miles (80 kilometers) outside of Johannesburg, the gondola offers an experience similar to a trip to Cape Town’s Table Mountain.

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.

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.

Nestled in Pretoria, the Kruger Museum honors the life of Paul Kruger, the President of the old Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) during the late 19th century. Built in 1884, this historic home-turned-museum captures the era's essence with original furnishings and Kruger's personal effects, including his impressive State Railway Coach, his medals, and even poems and old letters.

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.