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By-Car Hire Guide To Johannesburg

The South African city of Johannesburg is an exciting place filled with attractions, and is a great place to use as a base for a hire car holiday.

Johannesburg Overview

Usually referred to as Jo'burg, Jozi or, more romantically, the City of Gold, rather than by its full name, Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa and it's also the wealthiest. It has excellent shops, a vibrant nightlife and a variety of parks, museums and galleries to keep visitors entertained.

Johannesburg's attractions include the Johannesburg Zoo, which is home to more than 2,000 animals and children will enjoy the Johannesburg Planetarium. You can use your Johannesburg hire car to drive to the Lion Park, where you can see hyenas, cheetahs, jackals, wildebeest and giraffes, as well as more than 80 lions, or the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden, which is a haven for bird life.

Another popular family attraction is Gold Reef City, a historically-themed attraction incorporating a theme park, where you'll find more than 30 thrill rides and a number of museum houses. You can learn about the history of gold mining in the area and even pan for gold!

To experience some African culture, head for the Market Theatre Complex on Bree Street, where you'll find four live theatre venues, which play host to some excellent productions. Whilst you're there, you can also visit the Museum Africa, which features exhibits tracing Jo'burg's turbulent history, and the photography museum and Museum of South African Rock Art which are housed in the same building.

If you want to find some souvenirs to take home with you, visit the African Craft Market in Rosebank, or Bruma Market World in Bruma, where you'll find a range of stalls selling African masks, jewellery, clothes and ornaments. There are also many modern malls and shopping areas in Jo'burg, such as the Eastgate Centre, and the Brightwater Commons in the Randberg district.

Although Johannesburg has a reputation for wealth, however, there is also a less glamorous side to its history. As a result of apartheid, it became known for its poverty-stricken black townships, particularly Soweto. You can take a guided tour of Soweto (it's not safe to explore it on your own), and visit the Mandela Museum, which is located in the house in which Nelson Mandela lived following his release from prison.

You can also see houses previously owned by Winnie Mandela and Desmond Tutu, and visit the Hector Pieterson Memorial Museum, which is dedicated to the 12 year old boy who was the first victim of the 1976 Soweto Uprising, in which more than 500 people protesting against the enforced use of Afrikaans as a teaching language in township schools were killed when the police opened fire.

Other significant historical sites to visit during your visit to Johannesburg include Constitution Hill, which was once the location of the Old Fort Prison Complex, where Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Ghandi and other famous people were imprisoned, and the Apartheid Museum, which features exhibits tracing the history of apartheid in South Africa.

Although there is plenty to see and do in Johannesburg, to truly experience this area of South Africa, you need to hire a car. You can use your hire car to reach the nearby city of Pretoria or the holiday resort of Hartbeespoort Dam, or drive to the luxurious Sun City complex and go on a safari in the neighbouring Pilanesburg National Park.

You can also break up your holiday by using your hire car to drive to another destination, such as the gold rush city of Welkom or the vast Kruger National Park.

You can find out more about some of the attractions in the Johannesburg area that you can visit if you hire a car:

Getting to Johannesburg and Johannesburg Car Hire

Johannesburg International Airport is the main airport for the area, and you can hire a car when you arrive. However, you might want to break up your holiday by flying to the coastal city of Durban. You can hire a car at Durban Airport, explore the city, and then drive to Johannesburg to experience more of what South Africa has to offer.