Pretoria

Since 1994 Pretoria has become to only capital city of South Africa. It is also referred to as the “City of Jacarandas”, due to the large amount of the purple trees that can be seen throughout the city. Although it is in relatively close proximity to Johannesburg the two cities are very different. Johannesburg is fast paced and typically urban, whereas Pretoria is more laid back and peaceful, a fact which the residence of the city are quite happy about. Some people enjoy the peace and quite of Pretoria so much that they are prepared to suffer the daily commute through to Johannesburg.

Pretoria is currently undergoing a name change to Tshwane, which is that name of the Metropolitan municipality that Pretoria is to be found in. The name change was approved in 2005 already, however, the Minister of Arts and Culture is yet to give the go ahead and so the named change remains under consideration.

Pretoria Activities

A must see in Pretoria is the Pretoria Botanical Gardens. In a city nicknamed and known for its beautiful trees a botanical garden is sure to be an absolute delight. Other great attractions include the Pretoria Zoo, the various museums, such as the Cultural History Museum, the Union Buildings and the Voortrekker Monument. A great way to get your bearings, as well as get a general idea of what the city looks like and where you would like to see more of is to ride on cities steam train, which does a roundabout trip of the Pretoria.

Pretoria does of course have the nature reserves that seem to be mandatory in South African towns and cities, the Wonderboom and Goenkloof Nature Reserves are the two of note, as is the Austin Roberts Bird Sanctuary.