What to do and see in Joburg Craighall Park, Rosebank Region, Johannesburg

Johannesburg Red City Tour
Even seasoned travellers who don’t like to be seen as mass-tourists, will take a guided bus tour when they first arrive in a big city. It’s an ideal way to get an overview – literally – from the top of a double decker (or diggle-dupper as my son used to call it!) as well as having an explanatory commentary to the main sights and history of the city. Joburg’s Hop-on Hop-Off bus tours have been going since January 2013 and have changed many visitors’ perceptions of the city.

A Green tour has been added which takes visitors from Rosebank around the suburbs before arrival at Constitution Hill to change for the Red tour through the city to the south.

The Joburg Green and city bus starts from outside the Holiday Inn in Rosebank with the first bus leaving at 9.00. There is a good commentary available in 16 languages and a fun kids’ commentary channel.

Buying tickets
You can buy pre-paid discounted tickets on-line or full price with debit/credit card on the bus. And there are various different packages you can purchase. Often guests at Liz at Lancaster take the 2 day pass so that they have time to spend at Constitution Hill, the Apartheid Museum as well as doing the 2 hour tour of Soweto.

1. Depart from outside the Holiday Inn in Rosebank
2. Melrose Arch is an ultra-chic urban precinct designed around the concept of live, work and play. Built around a series of piazzas and walkways it is very walkable with plenty of luxury stores, sidewalk cafes, restaurants and bars.
3. Mandela Foundation in Houghton Monday to Saturday 9am to 5pm closed Sunday. There is a small museum with a permanent focusing on Mandela’s life with personal letters, photographs and his Nobel Peace prize on exhibition. Between 2002 and 2010 Mandela used this as a working space.
4. Munro Drive -up 900 metres with a hairpin bend you will pass from Houghton to Upper Houghton for a magnificent photo opportunity over Rosebank, Sandton to the north. On a clear day you can see, not forever, but to the Magaliesberg.
5. Constitution Hill – For me if there is one site you experience in Joburg it is this one. Gives a good geographic orientation to Johannesburg and excellent historical overview from Colonial times through to the democratic South Africa; fascinating but tough site with Old Fort which became a prison complex and the uplifting new Constitutional Court. Mandela and Gandhi were both imprisoned here (along with petty criminals, murderers and so-called ‘pass offenders’ under the Apartheid regime (Hourly tours 9-4 weekdays and 9-12 on Saturdays) Corner Kotze St and Hospital St Braamfontein 011 381-3100 www.constitutionhill.org.za

Join Joburg Red City bus at Constitution Hill
At Consitution Hill you can transfer to the Red Route.

• Mining District – home to Anglo-American one of the famous mining houses; small outdoor pedestrian ‘museum’ along Main St with very interesting story boards and old mining gear
• Gold Reef City and Casino Hotel. Check the website for current entry prices – if funfairs, mock historic towns or gambling is your thing .. this is the place to hop off.
• Apartheid Museum Excellent museum but quite ‘text’ heavy with few objects. If you want to do it justice you need a good 3 hours. Check the website for current entry prices
• Newtown: The Sci-Bono Discovery Centre at the old Electric Workshop is a great museum for older children and young adults.
• Nearby is MuseumAfrica, which although it has amazing holdings is run by the City and is underfunded, mismanaged and disappointing
• Braamfontein Square Is home to the Playground (old Neighbourhoods Market) which is open Saturday 10am to 6pm. An artisanal market with lots of food stalls, buskers and informal performers. Free entry with City Sightseeing ticket.
• From Braamfontein Square you could walk through Braamfontein to Origins Centre at the south end of Wits University. If you can’t make it out to Sterkfontein and Maropeng in the Cradle of Humankind, this as an excellent option for the fascinating archeological history in this area.
• And on the way to Origins you will pass the Wits Art Museum which has a very good collection of African Art. But check what the current exhibition is on the website.

Red City Bus Soweto extension tour
From the Apartheid Museum, you can join a 2 hour Soweto extension tour on a small shuttle bus. But you will be take to a limited number of standard tourist sites.