Pietermaritzburg

Pietermaritzburg is the gateway between Johannesburg and Durban

Pietermaritzburg is a beautiful city, nesting among wooded hills.Its centre lies between the Dorp Spruit (Town Creek) and the Umsindusi rivers. The city was laid out according to Dutch tradition, and so has a Church Street and a Commercial Road intersecting at right angles at its heart. Other street names, such as Longmarket Street and Loop Street (Walk Street) are reminiscent of the same tradition. The city remains traditionally Victorian, with wrought-iron lace-like work on several of its older buildings. It is one of the best preserved Victorian cities in the World.

Pietermaritzburg is the gateway between Johannesburg and Durban as a result there are many bus services, rail services and taxis available on a daily basis.

Pietermaritzburg has a airport, which is known as Oribi Airport. It is not a international airport but it offers national destinations and inter - city flights.

The city lies some 600-700 metres above sea level, and so has a cooler and more extreme climate than Durban or the Kwazulu-Natal Coast. The summers tend to be very hot and tropical, with thunder storms and temperatures well above 30 degrees Celsius in mid-summer. The winters are usually very dry and can be quite cold with several degrees of frost during some nights. The rivers flood unpredictably, and disastrous floods of both the Umsindusi and the Dorp Spruit have been reported sporadically at most times of the year: even during the dry season.

Popular attractions in the city include the Lion Park on the South-Eastern side of the town and a few game parks. These, together with the spectacular scenery afforded by the surrounding country-side, especially the Drakensberg Mountain areas, make Pietermaritzburg a sought-after tourist destination. Vistitors to Kwazulu-Natal are well advised to include the region in their itineraries.

Attractions in Pietermaritzberg

butterflies for africa

Butterflies for Africa. A complex housing a butterfly craft shop, art gallery, coffee bar, African art & craft centre and a garden planted with a large range of butterfly food plants. The prime attraction is an impressive walk through the butterfly house where visitors can come into close contact with butterflies from around the world as they fly freely in a lush environment. An outdoor butterfly garden complements the enclosed house, enabling guests to observe these magnificent jewels of the air in their natural habitat.

golden horse casino

Theres a million reasons to visit the Golden Horse Casino! Not only is the Golden Horse the ultimate casino and entertainment experience, with R1 000 000 minimum jackpot on our Maximillion slot machine, 450 slot machines and 18 gaming tables, its also an ideal venue for your next business conference.

Pietermaritzburg Botanical Gardens

The National Botanical Gardens, one of eight in the country, is situated on an ancient floodplain and a hillside at the foot of a mist belt. Established in 1870, the garden concentrates on the conservation and propagation of rare and endangered indigenous plants as well as the cultivation of east coast grassland plants.

Tatham Art Gallery

Spend a few hours among beautiful beadwork and intricate basketry, wood and bronze sculptures as well as powerful lino-cuts and oil paintings. Theres also an impressive collection of British and French 19th and early 20th century English and French paintings, including Degas, Picasso, Matisse, Hockney and Renoir, as well as a Henry Moore maquette and china and glassware.

KZN Railway Museum

One of the more interesting attractions in the museum is a coach that had been converted to serve as a bullion carrier and which was used for the run from Rhodesia to Johannesburg during the early part of the 20th century.

The Natal Museum

The Natal Museum is the largest national museum in KwaZulu-Natal and is dedicated to the collection, preservation, study and exhibition of objects of cultural and scientific value, concentrating on both the Natural and Human Sciences. The exhibition galleries are continually being upgraded to make the museum even more efficient and enjoyable.

The Mahatma Gandhi statue

The Mahatma Gandhi statue is visited outside the Colonial Building - where he targeted many of his concerns about human rights issues. Visit the outstanding City Hall and Carbineer Gardens, which commemorate those who fell in South African and World conflicts.

Accommodation in and around Pietermaritzburg