South Africa has been on our travel bucket list for AGES. We wanted to go for our first anniversary, but we applied for our visa too late and didn’t receive it on time. It was crushing to have to cancel all of our plans. But honestly, this was the best time to visit. I feel like a more confident traveler who’s more aware of what she likes, so I’ve gotten way more out of the trip than I would’ve gotten last year.
I’m writing a TON of posts about our three-week stay in South Africa, so prepare to get lots of recommendations and tips. We started our trip in Johannesburg and spent five days in December. If you’re planning a visit to Johannesburg, I’m sharing some of our favorite things we did there, where we stayed, and my top places to eat as a major foodie. Feel free to steal our itinerary!
Heads up: We’re pretty chill travelers (and we spent two days with our friends in Krugerdorsp — about an hour from Johannesburg). We’re never out to see and do everything because we actually want to feel rested at the end of our trips. Our real lives are very much go-go-go, so feel free to pile on more items to your itinerary if you please.
5 Things to do in Johannesburg in December
We had at least two people ask us why we bothered to come to Johannesburg (apparently, everyone just heads off to Cape Town?), and for a second, we were worried that there’d be nothing to do. We were wrong! There’s so much to do in Johannesburg, especially if you like history, culture, and literature.
Visit the Apartheid Museum
If you could only do one thing in Johannesburg, make it this museum! I felt the same way I did when we visited the Genocide Memorial in Kigali: heartbroken, sad, but ultimately grateful that this account had been preserved. It’s tragic to see how much harm humans can cause each other, but I’m glad that South Africa hasn’t buried or tried to rewrite this important part of its history.
We bought tickets online, and it saved us a bit of time (although there wasn’t a queue or anything, and we went during peak tourist season). The museum closes on December 23, and we saw some signs saying it wouldn’t open again until January 8. If you’re traveling in December, be sure to visit before the holidays start.
When you arrive at the museum, your tickets will randomly assign you a race: either Whites or NonWhites. I was “White,” and my husband was “Non-White.” To simulate the segregation of the apartheid period (which lasted over 50 years — insane!), each race enters through a different door, but you’ll meet before the tour begins.
The tour is self-guided and begins outside with a brief history of South Africa as a nation. Then, you’ll go down a winding staircase to the door of the actual museum, and photographs are prohibited from that point.
Eat Brunch at Tashas
When we landed after 20 hours of flying, we were STARVING, so we dropped off our bags at our Airbnb and headed off to Tashas. It’s a chain of restaurants that serves brunch and light lunches. We visited the restaurant in Rosebank.
I found the Rosebank area to be generally charming, and the Tashas restaurant there was beautifully decorated — and packed!
My husband ordered the steak affettato fillets, which were DELICIOUS (I think of them every day), while I ordered a bagel that was so hard to find on the menu. It was absolutely wonderful. Just tell them you want a bagel with cream cheese and salmon — they’ll tell you about it!
Visit Sandton City
I always go to malls when I travel because I learn so much about the people, and also, it’s nice to shop in a foreign country (especially when you live in a third-world country with limited shopping opportunities). Sandton City was not on my itinerary, but after hearing people gush about the Sandton area, I convinced my husband to check out the mall on our last day in Joburg — and boy, is it something!
This place is HUGE. I mean, the mall is called Sandton CITY (no “mall” at the end, just “city” because it’s ginormous — we struggled to find our way out and definitely made our step count just walking around there). Whether you’re looking for local brands, luxury brands (hi Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and the likes), or our run-of-the-mill fast fashion like H&M and Zara, you’ll find it here.
I replenished my makeup products, bought a new watch, and eyed many other things I did not buy. We went home tired and ready to order some Uber Eats.
Go Book Shopping at Love Books
In case you didn’t know, my job is in children’s books (see Reading Middle Grade), so I have to visit bookstores in every city I go to. In addition to a big chain book store called Exclusive Books, we stepped into this rustic independent bookstore in Melville, Johannesburg.
Love Books is small but excellently curated. You get the sense that every book there was carefully chosen. I also love that they have a sizable children’s collection (for a relatively small bookstore). I loved searching the stacks to see which of my favorite titles were there.
I will say, though, that their gift selections (nonbooks) could be better. We bought some cute magnetic bookmarks and greeting cards at Exclusive Books in Sandton City. Still, this is a charming bookstore with a cute coffee shop next door.
Enjoy Korean Food at Banchan Korean Restaurant
Between recovering from our long flights and visiting friends in Krugersdorp, we were pretty wiped out for most of our Joburg stay, so Uber Eats saved our butts a lot. My favorite place to order from was Banchan Korean Restaurant.
I ordered their ramen (with pork), kimchi, and kimchi fried rice, and everything tasted fantastic. The kimchi was so well done, and the ramen was perfect! I’m always worried about ordering ramen delivery, but they packed the broth separately, and everything was impeccably seasoned.
I ended up having the kimchi fried rice for breakfast the following day, and it tasted good! I ditched the day-old fried egg, but the seaweed and leftover kimchi were tasty, as always.
A few other things I wish we’d done
Here are a couple of things I would’ve loved to do if we hadn’t run out of time:
Try out more restaurants
I’m still kicking myself for missing out on amazing brunch spots like The Fat Zebra, Salvation Cafe, and Pantry by Gemelli. I’ll be back, Jozi! If you get the chance to try either of those, please report back; I’d love to know how it goes.
Visit Mandela’s house
I read a fair bit about Nelson Mandela while I was growing up and it was fascinating to see the role he played in South African activism and politics, but we just didn’t have the time to squeeze in any other tours besides the Apartheid Museum.
Check out the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens
I love a good botanical garden, so I’m bummed I missed out on the one in Jozi. We’re hoping to swing by the one in Cape Town while we’re visiting, so hopefully, that satisfies my love for botanical gardens.
Where to stay in Johannesburg
There are so many places to stay in Joburg. We’re big Marriot people, so we did consider staying at one of their properties, but when I saw this spacious, airy Airbnb, I was sold!
It looks just as it does in the pictures and won me over because it’s budget-friendly, spacious, and located in the quiet, accessible Norwood neighborhood. It also features a delicious bathtub if you fancy soaks.
Unfortunately, if you plan to stay longer, you should know that there’s no in-unit washer, there were no mosquito nets (although it was cool enough that we rarely had to open windows fully), and the stairs mean that it’s neither safe for little kids nor wheelchair accessible.
Our stay in Johannesburg was short and sweet, but the city definitely left a mark, and we hope to come back and explore more someday.
If you’ve been to Joburg, what were your favorite things to do? I’m working on a full guide to visiting South Africa soon, so you’ll get more tips about taking your first South Africa trip in that post!
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