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This is the first in a series of blogs that I will be posting about my recent trip to South Africa.

In late February/early March (2024) I had the opportunity to visit South Africa with South Africa Tourism and Adventure Destinations.

Approximately 90 Travel Agents and Journalists from around Australia and New Zealand were sent across the country to discover different aspects of South Africa and at the end of our journeys we all met up in Sun City to present our experiences. Our group of ten came to be known as the Rhino group, a moniker that would later prove to be incredibly apt given the nature of our shared experience, as detailed in an upcoming blog post.

When I first mentioned to people that I was travelling to South Africa, they all asked “isn’t South Africa dangerous?” or “are you worried about your safety?”, and I must admit when I found out we were spending 3 nights in Johannesburg I had similar thoughts as I had only ever sold it as a stopover on the way to the Game Reserves, National Parks and other cities such as Cape Town or Victoria Falls.

How wrong was I.

Our hotel (voco Johannesburg Rosebank) was located in the upscale and business district of Rosebank, boasting a plethora of excellent restaurants, bars, shopping and rooftop markets. After checking into our hotel we headed down the street to inspect 54 on Bath, a 4 star iconic hotel with an outdoor swimming pool and the decadent Perrier-Jouet Champagne and garden bar. I found the food at both these hotels amazing, particularly the breakfast at voco Johannesburg Rosebank.

Rosebank Street Performance Art

Perrier_Jouet Champagne Bar

Maboneng

The following day we headed to downtown Johannesburg to the quirky CurioCity Hostel where we met up with the delightful Tsepo who guided us around the Maboneng Precinct.
Maboneng is an urban neighbourhood on the east side of the Johannesburg CBD where there is a rising art and music movement committed to revitalising the area. We were treated to some of the best street art I have seen and visited the jazz club and speak easy where Beyonce and JayZ once “popped” in.

Maboneng

Sending a message through art

Daily life in Maboneng

Soweto

Next on the list of things to do in Johannesburg was a Tuk Tuk tour of Soweto. Known as the home of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, Soweto is a 40 minute drive from Johannesburg. Once there we were greeted with song by the wonderful staff at Lebo’s Backpackers where the tours depart from.

What a diverse network of townships this area is, from slums with no running water or sewage to gentrified suburban houses to the sobering Hector Pieterson memorial. After seeing the sights of Soweto we were treated to a traditional lunch cooked in potjies (cast iron pots)  and a cup of traditional beer made from corn called umqombothi.

Hector Pieterson Memorial

My Tuk Tuk Driver

Soweto Hair Salon

With a great exchange rate (approximately 11:1) food and shopping is great value. We had dinner at Marble Restaurant, one of the top award winning restaurants in Johannesburg where we were able to eat like kings on a pub budget.

So, would I go to Johannesburg again ….. most certainly yes.

Keep an eye out for my Safari experiences soon to be published.