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Johannesburg's high-rises and television tower in golden evening light

Sample journey · 7–9 days

Johannesburg stories and the Madikwe bush

Constitution Hill, Maboneng, Soweto & Madikwe Game Reserve

Photo: Simon Hurry / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Most journeys through South Africa only pass through Johannesburg, changing planes. This one stops, because this is the best place to understand where today's country came from. At Constitution Hill, the cells of the old prison, which held both Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, tell the story of injustice, while the Constitutional Court building beside them tells how it was overcome. In Soweto, with a local guide, the same history becomes personal: Vilakazi Street, the Hector Pieterson Memorial and the people who live here today.

After three days in the city come four nights in Madikwe Game Reserve, about four to five hours north-west by road, on the Botswana border. Africa's great mammals live here, wild dog are often seen, and the reserve is considered to lie outside the malaria-risk area, which matters to many families. It's a short, clear journey for first-time visitors to Africa: a great deal of meaning in not too many days, and enough time that children don't tire.

The route

The journey

  1. Johannesburg
  2. Constitution Hill
  3. The Apartheid Museum
  4. Maboneng
  5. Soweto
  6. Madikwe Game Reserve
  7. Johannesburg
  1. Johannesburg's apartment blocks and trees seen from Constitution Hill

    01Days 1–3 · Johannesburg

    A city built on gold and on history

    Two nights in a quiet northern suburb among trees and gardens. The first day is for resting after the flight and dinner nearby. On the second, with a guide, Constitution Hill: the old fort and prison blocks where thousands were held, and the Constitutional Court, partly built with bricks from the demolished prison. After lunch, the Apartheid Museum, whose entrance ticket randomly assigns you to one 'race': a powerful and sometimes difficult experience, so we choose with parents which exhibits to see with younger children. In the evening, Maboneng, a revived district in the city's east: street art, workshops, small restaurants and, on Sundays, a market. From the viewpoints you see how far the city reaches, grown on gold-bearing reef in little more than a century.

  2. The two painted Soweto cooling towers rising above open grassland

    02Days 3–4 · Soweto

    A street with two Nobel prizes

    One night in Soweto itself, at a small guesthouse, because this city is best known from somewhere other than a coach window. With a local guide, often someone who grew up here, on foot or by bike through the streets of Orlando. Vilakazi Street is the only street in the world where two Nobel Peace Prize laureates lived, Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu; Mandela's house is now a small museum. Nearby, the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum tells of 16 June 1976, when schoolchildren took to the streets against being taught in Afrikaans. Children often remember this story most, because it was made by young people their own age. In the evening, dinner in Soweto, where music and conversation run late; in the morning, a look at the two painted Orlando cooling towers, now a symbol of the city.

  3. A rhino running across a dirt track in Madikwe Game Reserve

    03Days 4–6 · Madikwe Game Reserve

    A reserve born of a bold idea

    From Soweto it's about four to five hours north-west by road, or roughly an hour by small plane from Johannesburg. Madikwe was created in the early 1990s on former farmland, into which thousands of animals, from elephant to lion, were moved over several years. Today it's a large reserve of open plains, hills and bush. Four nights at a family-friendly lodge where children are welcome and some places run programmes just for them: reading tracks, hunting for insects and stories by the fire. Drives in an open vehicle go out at dawn and late afternoon, with a guide who can explain why an elephant flaps its ears or why the birds suddenly went quiet. The hot afternoon is for the pool, a book and perhaps elephants at the waterhole in front of the lodge.

  4. An African wild dog standing on a dirt track in Madikwe Game Reserve

    04Days 6–8 · Madikwe & back to Johannesburg

    Following the wild dogs

    In the second half of the Madikwe stay the days grow slower and more personal. Madikwe is known for its wild dogs, among Africa's rarest predators, which live in packs and cover great distances each day, so guides look for them in advance, and they are often found, though never guaranteed. One afternoon can be set aside for a short walk with an armed guide (for older children and adults), when attention turns to small things: plants, tracks and insects you'd never notice from the vehicle. The last evening brings dinner under the stars, and in the morning, after a final drive, the road or flight back to Johannesburg, timed for an evening flight home.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    Constitution Hill

    The old prison and the new Constitutional Court on one site: the country's story in a handful of buildings.

  2. 02

    Soweto with a local guide

    Vilakazi Street, the Hector Pieterson Memorial and a night in Soweto itself.

  3. 03

    Wild dogs

    Among Africa's rarest predators, often seen in Madikwe, though never guaranteed.

  4. 04

    A safari for the family

    A reserve outside the malaria-risk area, programmes designed for children and lodges where they're welcome.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • With young children

    In the city, shorter visits and more time in parks; in Madikwe, a lodge that welcomes the youngest children and a private vehicle so you choose how long each drive lasts.

  • With Cape Town

    Cape Town is two hours' flight from Johannesburg, so the journey extends naturally with a few days by the ocean and the penguins.

  • Choosing the season

    In the dry season (roughly May to September) wildlife is easier to see, though mornings are cold; summer is green, hot and full of young animals, with afternoon storms.

  • With Pilanesberg

    For a shorter version or an extra night, Pilanesberg National Park, set in the crater of an ancient volcano, just a few hours from Johannesburg.

Practical considerations

  • Madikwe is generally considered to lie outside the malaria-risk area, but it's still worth speaking to a doctor or travel clinic about health advice for the whole family before you go.
  • In Johannesburg and Soweto we travel with local guides and drivers who know the city well; before you go we check current advice and plan the days around it.
  • Some Madikwe lodges set minimum ages for children or for drives, so we choose one that suits your family.
  • In the dry season, mornings and evenings in the bush are cold, so warm layers and hats are useful in the open vehicles.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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