Johannesburg

Johannesburg, City of Gold. Johannesburg is a city that was built on gold, and to this day the city thrives on its gold mines. Gold was first discovered in the area in 1853, but it was not until over thirty years later that the enormity of the strike was realized. By 1889 it was a bawdy noisy frontier town with its full complement of beer halls, brothels and gambling houses. In the southern suburbs of today’s Johannesburg you can find a reproduction of the Johannesburg of old and even take a trip underground in one of the old mineshafts.

The old central business district of Johannesburg is no more – over the past few years almost all of the corporate offices that were once in the centre of the city have now moved to the Sandton area. Here lies Sandton City, where you will find Africa’s best shopping malls alongside luxury hotels and new corporate offices. To the west of Sandton is the Randburg Waterfront, a collection of restaurants, fast food outlets and flea market. There is a similar complex on the waterfront at Bruma to the East of the city centre.

You will never go short on things to do in and around Johannesburg. There is horse racing, motor racing, show jumping, museums, the zoo, hot air balloons as well as helicopter trips, bird sanctuaries, ice rinks and a planetarium. The list goes on and on. Just to the west of the city is a World Heritage site, the Cradle of Mankind, where the world’s earliest hominid fossils were found. If you are still at a loss for things to do, there are countless flea markets that display goods from around the world scattered about the city. For the more adventurous, there are hiking trails, horse trails and 4-wheel drive adventure trails. This is definitely a city with plenty to do.