Join our 5 hour Pretoria City Tour

A perfect tour for those who have limited time and would like to learn about South Africa’s heritage, history and culture. This half Pretoria City tour covers some of the most iconic attractions in the city of Pretoria. These include the Union Buildings, the Voortrekker Monument, Paul Kruger House Museum and Church Square. Of course these attractions don’t mean much to you now, but after the tour you will have a great understanding of each. Our guide will spend time at each explaining the significance of each and how they contributed to the growth of our capital City of Pretoria.

Where is Pretoria situated?

The city is basically connected to Johannesburg now through a massive burst in urbanisation. The drive from Johannesburg takes about 45 minutes depending on the traffic conditions.

Where do we pick travelers up from?

Any centrally located hotel, guest house, Airbnb or airport within the Johannesburg or Pretoria area.

Who is this tour for?

If history and heritage is your thing, then this half day Pretoria City tour is for you. You will learn a lot about the political system as well as a lot of information on the history and heritage of the Boer or Afrikaans nation. A different tour completely to say a Soweto day tour which focuses more on the struggle against Apartheid.

About the Union Buildings

Pretoria’s Union Buildings are officially the buildings for the national government where of course the president of South Africa sits. Do you want to meet the president? Sure thing. Just make sure you join the tour with some camouflage clothing and maybe a parachute. We will be sure to bring you some cookies when you get arrested. Having said that, we will spend some time on the outside of the buildings taking in the their grand posture.

Our guide will take you through the history of the place. Given the dark history of South Africa, you can imagine what conversions have taken place within those walls. Even the great Nelson Mandela would have had a few conversations there. The union buildings are surrounded by terraced gardens that offer a panoramic view of Pretoria.

The building is composed of  sandstone and is 285m long. It is regarded as a neo-classical design built in a semi circular shape that reflect the British imperial tastes of the era. It is situated on the highest ridge in Pretoria- an iconic symbol of political power over the city. It comprises 2 twin domed towers that represent the English and Afrikaans language. We spend about 45 minutes at this attraction on this part of the tour.

Voortrekker Monument

A lot of history and heritage at this attraction. We will be spending about an hour on a guided tour of this fascinating monument. It was built in 1949 to commemorate what is known as The Great Trek. This was the treacherous journey taken by pioneering Boer ( Afrikaans ) families who decided to flee the Cape colony ruled by the British. The 40m high monument is located on top of a hill overlooking the city of Pretoria. The building is surrounded by 64 ox wagons that, the same number that was used in the Battle of Blood River against the Zulu Nation. This monument is a definite point of attraction that should not be missed on any day tour to Pretoria or even Johannesburg.

Paul Kruger House

We have included this attraction in our day tour for a number of reasons. Firstly it outlines the life and times of the 19th century Afrikaans leader and president of the Transvaal, Paul Kruger. Secondly,If you are interested in the Anglo-Boer wars there is a lot of memorabilia on exhibitions where you will learn at lot about Paul Kruger character. There is even a knife there he used to amputate part of his own wounded finger in a battle he suffered. The infamous Kruger Park is name in his honor.

Church Square

Church square in the centre of the city of Pretoria is an historic attraction that was used as a market place and church in the early 1900’s. What makes this part of the tour pretty interesting is that the square is surrounded by the impressive Palace of Justice where Nelson Mandela was tried for treason that led to his eventual imprisonment for 27 years. So an iconic attraction.