Travel Eye on Johannesburg (South Africa)

Write a review or view peoples experiences in Johannesburg.	Vacation Rentals & Holiday Rentals in Johannesburg and rest of South Africa.	Hotels in Johannesburg	Flights	Car Hire/Rental

Overview:

The capital of South Africa's smallest province, Gauteng, Johannesburg is the economic powerhouse of Africa with its ever-growing suburban sprawl creeping outwards from the central city skyscrapers and ring-road motorways.

The more than 10-million inhabitants live fast and have a restless spirit, which they have imparted into the fabric of the city, also known by its African name as Egoli, 'the place of gold'. The development of the city, which is just over a century old, has followed the fortunes of the Witwatersrand (White Water Reef), the rich gold-bearing rock reef that stretches across this area of central South Africa. The initial gold rush started in the 1880s, and barely ten years later Johannesburg had become South Africa's largest town and the site of frenzied development that has been ongoing ever since.

Johannesburg today is a city of contrasts, with glass-paned modern luxury high-rise buildings towering beside a few remaining dilapidated Victorian buildings, and affluent northern suburbs filled with stunning private homes giving way to the squalid streets and tiny shoebox houses of the massive Soweto township in the south. The chasm between rich and poor in the city has given rise to a high crime rate, evidenced by the fortress-like security that pervades the wealthier suburbs.

In reality tourists only go to (or rather through) Johannesburg because it is the country's major airport hub and gateway to the province of Mpumalanga and its game reserves. Unless visiting friends or relations, or on business in the city, most people tend to avoid it as much as possible. If an overnight is necessary because of flight schedules, some people may prefer to use airport hotels.

There is a relatively small selection of hotels from 3 to 5 stars, used mainly for overnights between flights or onward connections on tours etc. Virtually all hotels used by UK tour operators have followed the exodus of business premises and commercial offices out to the relatively safer, and definitely more pleasant, affluent N suburbs like Rosebank and Sandton.

Locality:

Johannesburg is towards the north east of the country, 280 mls inland from the Indian Ocean, 875 mls NE of Cape Town, 370 mls NW of Durban and 19 mls W of the international airport. It is at an altitude of 5,700 ft on the highveld (grassland plateau).

Entertainment/Facilities/Attractions/Things to do:

There is little in Johannesburg itself to grab the attention of tourists, but a few days can be filled taking in some entertaining man-made attractions before heading off to the game parks of the northeast or the coastal regions. The most interesting diversion in Johannesburg is undoubtedly a 'Heritage Route' or 'Shebeen Crawl' tour of Soweto, but take care only to venture into the maze of the township with an organised tour or professional guide.

Shopping here is mainly in modern, glitzy and expensive malls insulated from the weather and patrolled by armed security personnel.

For food the shopping malls at Sandton and Rosebank have numerous restaurants and are relatively safe. Other than these, it is probably best to eat in and avoid the risk of travelling, especially after dark.