South Africa Cultural Heritage

South Africa's cultural heritage invites you to learn about the sacred places of the Xhosa, visit Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, learn about its unique Rock Art... and so much more.

South Africa is a country rich in cultural diversity and this assortment in South African culture makes it one of the most interesting destinations.

Cultural Villages

Learn about the cultures, lives and experiences of the various people of South Africa by visiting various cultural villages around the country - or visit Kagga Kamma - the place of the Bushmen - in Ceres.

* African Art Centre - Durban
* Shangana Cultural Village - Hazyview - Mpumalanga
* Basotho Cultural Village - Witsieshoek - Free State
* Lesedi Cultural Village - Hartbeespoort - North West

Rock Art

The world's biggest outdoor art exhibition lies deep in the mountains and caves of the Drakensberg (KwaZulu Natal) at Didima Resort and Kamberg and in the Cederberg (Western Cape) - the sites of San cave paintings.

The oldest dated rock art in South Africa, an engraved stone, was discovered in a living floor some 10 200 years old at the Wonderwerk Cave near Kuruman in the Northern Cape.

Outdoor Art

Helen Martins' Owl House in Nieu Bethesda (Eastern Cape) is the hallmark of South African outsider art. In places like Lydenburg (Mpumalanga) you'll come also across artworks of massive scale that were built purely for the joy of making the road traveller pull off.

Winelands

The Western Cape is awash with winelands. South African wine is very highly rated, and the experience of visiting these superb estates is special. Their settings, Cape Dutch architecture and basic welcoming style make the various Cape wine routes one of the country's must-do's for the first-time visitor.

From Robertson to Helderbarg at Somerset West, you'll find an astonishing variety. Stellenbosch Wine Route is definitely the most popular.

Handcrafts

Markets, rambles and various routes around all the main cities will expose you to the variety of African and other crafts that can be purchased at excellent prices.

* Soweto - Gauteng
* Johannesburg Shopping
* V&A Waterfront - Cape Town
* The Midlands Meander - Howick - KwaZulu Natal
* Brightwater Commons - Randburg - Johannesburg
* The Vaal Meander - Vereeniging - Gauteng
* Magaliesburg - Gauteng
* Franschhoek - Western Cape

Arts

From theatre to dance, opera to cabaret, fine art to craft art, classical music to jazz, poetry readings to lectures, every art form is represented in all main cities and larges towns.

Several galleries throughout South Africa provide opportunities for well-known and lesser known artists to show-case their talents.

* Stellenbosch Art and Culture - Western Cape - various works of art from a variety of artisans, housed in various gallerys and art centres
* State Theatre - Pretoria - renowned for its performing arts
* Arts in Durban - KwaZulu Natal
* African Art Centre - Durban - KwaZulu Natal

Festivals

Arts festivals, Afrikaans music and performance festivals, national choral festivals, Garden Route festivals, cherry festivals, rock and folk music festivals and even a whale festival happen all over the country at various times of the year.

* National Arts Festival - Grahamstown - the largest festival of its kind in Africa.

Mission Stations

At the birth of the 18th Century, missionaries began streaming to South Africa. They came from all over Europe: the Moravians, the Berlin Missionary Society, the Rhenish and many others. Mamre, Elim, Wupperthal and Ebenhaezer in the Western Cape are some of the West Coast Mission Route stopovers of great interest.

* Rorke's Drift - Dundee, KwaZulu Natal is a famous battlefield established original as mission station.
* Moffat Mission - Kuruman, Northern Cape concentrated mainly on education.

Townships

Whilst Soweto is the landmark, the place everybody wants to visit, South Africa has other excellent township trails, like Intabazwe outside Harrismith in the Eastern Free State.