South Africa
Johannesburg
A city that exists because of gold, and the place to understand how apartheid was built and broken.
Johannesburg is South Africa's largest city and its economic engine, a sprawling metropolis built on the richest gold field ever found, barely 140 years ago. It sits high on the highveld, where leafy northern suburbs give way to old mine dumps and a dense inner city. Most visitors come for the country's hardest history, told with real force at the Apartheid Museum and in Soweto, where Mandela once lived on Vilakazi Street. Around that is a confident art, food and music scene, and the easiest base for the Cradle of Humankind.
Suggested stay
2–4 days
Language
English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa
Currency
ZAR
Timezone
UTC+2
Why you'll love Johannesburg
The history The Apartheid Museum, Constitution Hill and Soweto tell the story of segregation and resistance where much of it actually happened
Soweto Vilakazi Street holds the former homes of two Nobel Peace Prize winners, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, steps from the Hector Pieterson Memorial
Highveld skies At around 1,750 metres the dry season brings day after day of clear sun, and summer storms roll in fast and clear the air by evening
The creative city Galleries, design studios, jazz and amapiano, and food running from township shisa nyama to the curry houses of Fordsburg
Best time to visit
Mar-Oct
17-25° days
26.205° S, 28.050° E
UTC+2 · Africa/Johannesburg
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Weather & when to go to Johannesburg
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Mar-Oct
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Johannesburg
No month is graded to avoid. November-February is the rainy season, when warm days often end in short, violent afternoon thunderstorms with heavy lightning, and the city empties over the Christmas holidays. Winter days are dry and sunny, but nights can fall close to freezing and many buildings have little heating. Crime is the real planning factor year-round, not weather.
Top things to do in Johannesburg
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Apartheid Museum - the story of segregation and its end
history ⭐ Highly recommendedThe country's essential history museum, beside Gold Reef City in the south. Your ticket randomly classifies you as white or non-white and sends you through a separate entrance, and the galleries move from the gold rush through apartheid's laws to the 1994 election. Allow at least half a day.
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Soweto - Vilakazi Street and the Hector Pieterson Memorial
history culture arts 👍 PopularIn Orlando West, Mandela's small brick house on Vilakazi Street is now a museum, with Desmond Tutu's former home just along the road. A few blocks away the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum tell the story of the 1976 student uprising. Go with a local guide or on a cycling tour to see more of the township.
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Constitution Hill - the Old Fort prison and Constitutional Court
history culture arts ⭐ Highly recommendedA 19th-century fort turned notorious prison that held Gandhi, Mandela and thousands of ordinary pass-law offenders, with the grim Number Four block and the Women's Jail open to visit. The Constitutional Court now stands on the site, built partly from the old prison's bricks and filled with South African art.
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Liliesleaf Farm - the Rivonia hideout
historyA farmhouse in the northern suburb of Rivonia that served as the secret headquarters of the armed struggle in the early 1960s, where Mandela lived disguised as a farm worker. The 1963 police raid here led to the Rivonia Trial, and the museum tells it in detail.
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Gold Reef City - the old mine turned theme park
history adventure 👍 PopularA theme park built around a former gold mine shaft south of the centre, with rollercoasters, recreated gold-rush streets and an underground tour into the old workings. Lighter than the Apartheid Museum next door, and a good way to see what built the city.
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Market Theatre - Newtown's stage of protest
culture arts nightlife musicFounded in a converted produce market in 1976, it became famous for staging anti-apartheid plays to mixed audiences when that was a political act. It still anchors the Newtown cultural precinct, alongside music venues and Museum Africa.
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Maboneng - the inner-city arts precinct
culture arts foodA few blocks of converted warehouses on the eastern edge of the CBD, filled with galleries, studios, street art, cafes and rooftop bars. Visit by day, arrive by car or e-hailing, and stay within the precinct.
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Ponte City - guided walks below Africa's famous tower
culture arts off beaten pathThe 54-storey hollow cylinder above Hillbrow is the inner city's landmark, a symbol of its decline and revival. Locally run walking tours start at the tower and lead through Hillbrow and Yeoville, areas visitors should only explore with a guide.
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Rosebank galleries - the city's art strip
culture arts shoppingRosebank and nearby Parkwood hold a cluster of serious commercial galleries showing contemporary South African and African art, all within a short walk of the Gautrain station. Easy to combine with lunch and the area's weekend markets.
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Kota and shisa nyama - eat like Jozi
foodThe kota, a hollowed quarter-loaf stuffed with chips, polony, cheese and atchar, is the township staple. At a shisa nyama you choose raw meat at the butcher counter and have it grilled over coals, with pap and chakalaka. For curries and samoosas, head to Fordsburg.
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Melville Koppies and Emmarentia - ridge and dam walks
nature wildlife scenicA rocky ridge nature reserve with highveld grassland, city views and the remains of an Iron Age furnace, a short walk from the Emmarentia Dam and the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens and their rose garden. Walk in a group or with the reserve's guided outings.
Best areas to stay in Johannesburg
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Rosebank
First-time visitors $$Walkable gallery and dining hub
Explore hotels in Rosebank →
Sandton
Business and stopovers $$$Glass towers, malls and business hotels
Explore hotels in Sandton →
Melville
Budget and nightlife $Bohemian bar and cafe strip
Explore hotels in Melville →
Parkhurst
Couples $$Leafy village around one cafe street
Explore hotels in Parkhurst →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Johannesburg
Getting to & around Johannesburg
Getting there
Fly into O.R. Tambo International (JNB), east of the city, then take the Gautrain to Sandton or Rosebank
Flight
O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB)
O.R. Tambo lies east of the city in Ekurhuleni. The Gautrain runs from the terminal to Sandton in about 15 minutes, with a change there for Rosebank and Park Station; e-hailing cars and taxis take 30-45 minutes to the northern suburbs, longer at rush hour.
Coach
Park Station
Long-distance coaches from Cape Town, Durban and neighbouring countries arrive at Park Station in the city centre
Train
Park Station
Long-distance passenger trains from Cape Town and Durban terminate at Park Station; luxury rail journeys leave from Pretoria
Getting around
Gautrain
Fast, clean rapid rail linking the airport, Sandton, Rosebank, Park Station and Pretoria, with feeder buses from the stations
TBC
E-hailing
Uber and Bolt are the default way for visitors to get around, door to door and especially after dark
TBC
Rental car
Useful for day trips; drive on the left, keep doors locked and valuables out of sight at intersections
TBC
Rea Vaya bus
Bus rapid transit linking the CBD, Braamfontein and Soweto on dedicated lanes
TBC
Walking
Fine by day within Rosebank, Parkhurst, Melville's main strip and Maboneng; distances elsewhere are long and pavements patchy
Free
Day trips from Johannesburg
Cradle of Humankind
Half dayFossil caves
A UNESCO World Heritage valley of limestone caves that has yielded a huge share of the world's early hominin fossils. Visit the Sterkfontein Caves, where Mrs Ples and Little Foot were found, and the Maropeng visitor centre.
Getting there
car | tour
About 1 hr by car or tour north-west of the city
Pretoria
Full dayCapital city
The administrative capital, home to the terraced Union Buildings with their giant Mandela statue, the Voortrekker Monument and Church Square. In spring its streets turn purple with flowering jacarandas.
Getting there
train | car | tour
About 40 min by Gautrain from Sandton or Rosebank, or 1 hr by car
Pilanesberg National Park
1-2 daysBig Five reserve
A game reserve set inside the rings of an ancient volcanic crater, with the Big Five and malaria-free bush. The closest real safari to Johannesburg, next to the Sun City resort.
Getting there
car | tour
About 2.5-3 hr by car or tour north-west
Magaliesberg and Hartbeespoort Dam
Full dayMountains and reservoir
An old, rugged mountain range with hiking trails, balloon flights and country lodges. The cableway above Hartbeespoort Dam gives the widest views over the reservoir and the plains.
Getting there
car
About 1 hr by car north-west
A little history of Johannesburg
Johannesburg did not exist until 1886, when gold was found on the Witwatersrand ridge and a mining camp on open highveld grew within a decade into the largest town in southern Africa. The reef ran deep, so mining needed huge capital and a vast, cheap workforce, and the system of migrant labour, compounds and segregated townships built around the mines shaped the whole country.
Under apartheid from 1948, Black residents were removed from mixed areas such as Sophiatown and pushed out to the South Western Townships, Soweto. The city became the centre of resistance, from the Freedom Charter adopted at Kliptown in 1955 to the Rivonia Trial and the 1976 Soweto uprising. Since the first democratic elections in 1994 it has remained the country's commercial capital and its most diverse city.
Gold is found on the Witwatersrand and Johannesburg is laid out as a mining camp
British forces occupy the town during the South African War
The National Party comes to power and begins building apartheid
The Freedom Charter is adopted at the Congress of the People in Kliptown, Soweto
Police raid Liliesleaf Farm in Rivonia, leading to the Rivonia Trial and Mandela's life sentence
Soweto students march against Afrikaans-medium schooling on 16 June, starting a nationwide uprising
South Africa holds its first democratic elections and Nelson Mandela becomes president
The Cradle of Humankind is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site
Soccer City in Soweto hosts the FIFA World Cup final
Know before you go
Payment
Cards everywhere
English
Everywhere
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type C / M / N
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+27
Mobile network & SIM card
Get an eSIM before you fly
A South Africa eSIM installs in minutes and works the moment you switch off flight mode. No SIM swap, no roaming bill.
FAQs about Johannesburg
▸ When is the best time to visit Johannesburg?
March-October is the best stretch. Autumn is mild and settling into the dry season, winter brings clear sunny days with cold nights, and September-October warm up nicely, with jacarandas flowering in October. November-February is warm and green, with frequent afternoon thunderstorms.
▸ Is Johannesburg safe for visitors?
Crime is a real issue and shapes how people get around. Use e-hailing or the Gautrain rather than walking at night, keep phones and bags out of sight, and keep car doors locked with nothing on the seats. Visit Soweto and the inner city with a guide or a reputable tour. Rosebank, Parkhurst and Sandton are the most relaxed areas to stay.
▸ Can you go on safari from Johannesburg?
Yes. Pilanesberg, a Big Five reserve about 2.5-3 hours' drive away, works as a long day trip or an overnight stay. Kruger National Park is much further, around five hours by road, so most people fly to the airports near the park or allow several days.
▸ How many days do you need in Johannesburg?
Two days covers the essentials: the Apartheid Museum and Soweto on one day, Constitution Hill and the inner city or Rosebank's galleries on the other. Add a third for the Cradle of Humankind or Pretoria. Many travellers simply pass through on the way to a safari or Cape Town, and miss the city's best history.
▸ Do I need a car in Johannesburg?
Not for a short stay. The Gautrain plus e-hailing covers the airport and the main areas, and tours handle Soweto and the Cradle of Humankind. A rental car makes more sense for independent day trips to the Magaliesberg or Pilanesberg.
More in South Africa
Cape Town
A mountain in the middle of the city, two oceans around it, and three centuries of vineyards half an hour inland.
✓ best all yearDrakensberg (Winterton)
Walk beneath, then climb on top of, the Amphitheatre, and see San paintings that have survived for centuries in the caves below.
✓ best Mar-NovDurban
South Africa's warm-water city: Indian Ocean surf all year, and the country's best curry, eaten out of a loaf.
✓ best Mar-Sep