Being such a diverse and vibrant city, there is plenty to do in Johannesburg. The area around Johannesburg also offers travellers plenty of things to do. Johannesburg is one of the most popular cities in Africa, attracting millions of foreign tourists every year. At first glance, Johannesburg may not seem like a particularly attractive city to visit compared to seaside cities like Cape Town and Durban, but there is much more to South Africa than meets the eye. As the largest city in South Africa and the largest economic centre on the African continent, Johannesburg is worth a visit. In addition to being a great cosmopolitan city and the closest thing to the best safaris, Johannesburg is the perfect place for those who want to learn about the history of South Africa and apartheid, the apartheid period that began in 1948 and ended only in 1991. The Apartheid Museum is another great attraction for tourists visiting Johannesburg. Further from the centre is the Apartheid Museum, which is a detailed study of the history and heritage of apartheid in South Africa, which is also at the centre of the Mandela House Museum and the Hector Peterson Memorial and Museum in Soweto. Most tours include visits to the Mandela House, a museum in the former Nelson Mandela House dedicated to the life of Nelson Mandela, and the Hector Peterson Museum dedicated to the Soweto uprising against apartheid. This Johannesburg museum, located near the Nelson Mandela Bridge, is part of the Wits Cultural District. This museum is one of the most important tourist attractions in Johannesburg. You can't spend time in Josie without visiting the Apartheid Museum, one of Johannesburg's top tourist attractions. The Apartheid Museum is a must-see during your stay in this city. Take a tour of Johannesburg and you'll quickly realize that the city's most visited attractions have something to do with the apartheid era. Spend enough time in the city and you'll find plenty of interesting art galleries; very well-maintained museums; markets; great restaurants, cafe(s), and bars. Some of the best things to do in Johannesburg include learning about history, art galleries, jungle safaris, adventure sports, African cultural experiences, and nature trails. If you're looking to shop for African arts or crafts, Johannesburg has several places of interest including markets, malls, craft centres, galleries, and gift shops. Johannesburg has countless attractions that every travel lover should visit at least once in a lifetime, such as world-class restaurants and hotels, art studios, cafes, museums, state-of-the-art galleries, beautiful gardens, and parks. In the city centre alone, there are several attractions that can be seen for at least a couple of hours each, including the Apartheid Museum, Constitution Hill (the former prison where Nelson Mandela was once held) and the Carlton Centre, Johannesburg's largest building with views from the 50th floor. Constitution Hill (a former prison for dissident politicians like Mandela), the Apartheid Emotions Museum and the Mandela Museum in Soweto are just a few examples of Johannesburg's must-see attractions that are essential for understanding the city's past and now crucial. Constitution Hill dominates Johannesburg and is now home to some interesting exhibits, including the Fourth Museum, the Old Fort Museum (where the White Prison was located) and the Women's Prison Museum. A visit to Constitution Hill takes an average of two hours, and you can explore various parts of this ancient fort, including the men's prison known as No. 4, the women's prison, waiting passages, and even the Supreme Court in South Africa, the Constitutional Court. If you stop at Constitution Hill, you can take the Green Line to visit other attractions such as the National Museum of Military History, the Johannesburg Zoo, and the nearby Lakeside Zoo. Nelson Mandela spent his entire life in the Gauteng area, so one of the most visited places is his house, turned into a museum, and tells a bit about the history of apartheid. The Mandela House is a national museum that houses historic apartheid artifacts detailing Mandela's life with his children and ex-wife Winnie Madikizela Mandela. Today, with more than 1 million people living in 29 different communities, this is the place to experience South Africa's painful past and learn how it shaped Johannesburg. Soweto is also the birthplace of so much culture and life that the true face of the city would not be complete without a visit. Johannesburg is the perfect base from which to explore the many national parks and reserves in Northeast South Africa, as well as the perfect place to see the best of Africa's most iconic animals in their natural habitat. The Kruger National Park covers a large area, but from Johannesburg, many companies offer day trips to the edge of the park, where you can get a taste of the earth's wildlife and see many of the protected animals here, before returning to Johannesburg at night. A little further down the road is the historic city of Pretoria, where you can learn more about South Africa's divided history, while nearby Sun City offers amusement parks and water parks for those looking for a different kind of escape from Johannesburg. Today Johannesburg remains the financial centre of South Africa; the city that shaped the history and politics of South Africa; and a city of strong contrasts: on the one hand the poverty and struggle of Soweto; on the other - luxurious skyscrapers and secluded villas of the few rich.