What to do in Pretoria

What to do in Tshwane

Information courtesy of City of Tshwane

As one of the oldest and largest cities in South Africa, Tshwane has a rich heritage, immense cultural diversity and a wealth of natural wonders.

• Thousands of people visit the City every year to experience its many landmarks, heritage sites, and other places of important historical, cultural, architectural and natural significance.
• Tshwane has many fine heritage sites, museums and art galleries. These include the Union Buildings and its spectacular gardens, as well as the Diamond Hill Battlefield, Voortrekker Monument and Freedom Park. Other must-sees include the Botanical Gardens, the Zoo, and museums and galleries such as Melrose House, the Pioneer Museum, Sammy Marks Museum and the Ditsong National Museum of Natural History.
• Visitors can also range outdoors – Tshwane’s parks and other outdoor facilities offer the perfect respite from the hustle-and-bustle of business of the central business district and urban districts. Tshwane is home to the National Zoological Gardens – the largest zoo in the country – and its botanical gardens spread over 76 hectares.
• Tshwane recently became the only city in the world with a big-five game reserve within city boundaries – the 90 000 hectare Dinokeng Big 5 Game Reserve. It is also home to the oldest game sanctuary in Africa, the 500-hectare Groenkloof Nature Reserve, proclaimed in 1895. Tshwane’s Rietvlei Nature Reserve, one of the world’s largest urban reserves, is a unique retreat where many bird and animal species can be viewed on 3 800 hectares of open grassland.
• In Soshanguve, 40 kilometres to the north of the Tshwane city centre, lies one of South Africa’s most remarkable geological features: the Tswaing Crater, a 220 000-year-old meteor impact site. The Tswaing Meteorite Crater Museum is the only ecotourism destination of its kind in Africa.
• Tshwane is also home of the Nan Hua Buddhist Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere and the only one in Africa.
• The City of Tshwane plays host to many local, national and international sporting events. Most recently Tshwane was one of the host cities for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Other major events include the Rugby World Cup, Cricket World Cup and All Africa Games.
• Major sporting facilities in the city include Supersport Park Cricket Stadium in Centurion, Loftus Versfeld stadium, home of the Blue Bulls rugby team and also a venue for major football events, the High Performance Centre at the University of Pretoria and the Pilditch athletics stadium in Pretoria West.
• Loftus Versfeld is a familiar City landmark. The stadium lies some two kilometres from the city centre, in the heart of an attractive tree-lined residential area that accommodates rows of foreign embassies. Tshwane is also home to three Premiership football clubs, Pretoria University, Sundowns and Supersport United.