Budget-Friendly Things to Do in Johannesburg

Johannesburg is frequently referred to as the financial center of South Africa and “Africa’s Financial Powerhouse,” yet this is a limiting definition because Jozi is so much more. The largest city in South Africa is experiencing an urban and cultural revival that must be experienced to be believed.

Plenty keeps you active whether you stay three days or three weeks. The longer you stay here, the better you’ll comprehend the new social forces advancing in Africa in the twenty-first century.

City Center of Johannesburg

To put it mildly, Johannesburg’s inner city received a terrible name for a long time, but in recent years, significant funds have been invested in reviving what was once a massive slum. The area in question is currently one of the fascinating examples of urban redevelopment on the African continent.

The red bus will take you around the city, stopping at numerous popular tourist attractions. There are two routes—city only or city and Soweto—and you can get off and on as you like. This is an excellent method to get an overview of Jozi if you only have a short amount of time and no transportation (or don’t feel like navigating the traffic in Johannesburg).

Dine out in Johannesburg

Sakhumzi is a must-visit restaurant in Soweto for an authentic South African dining experience. It is conveniently located on Vilakazi Street. A house has been turned into a restaurant and opens onto a garden. Many of the favorite traditional South African dishes are served at the meals. The restaurant has a terrific atmosphere and good food and is buzzy and boisterous.

Try Vusi’s famous biltong sushi to put this idea to the test. The dish is Afro-Asian fusion, and news of these culinary pleasures has reached as far as the New York Times. You’ll find an unlimited sushi buffet on Tuesdays, and on Sundays, it’s time for the perennially popular prawn braai.

Johannesburg and the Outdoors

Nature and the vast outdoors may not immediately come to mind when one thinks about Johannesburg. That’s not right! Johannesburg is renowned as one of the most extensive artificial “forests” because of the many trees in the suburbs, but it also has lovely parks and areas where you can spend time in nature.

These lovely gardens in Roodepoort, northwest of the CBD, contain both tended gardens and uncultivated jungle. There is a stunning waterfall, and the gardens are well known for the Verreaux’s Eagles, a breeding pair that builds their nest in the rocks near the waterfall. The lovely Johannesburg Botanical Gardens are located closer to the CBD. Boasting herb gardens, rose gardens, and over 30,000 trees.

Adventure & Sport Activities

Are you looking for excitement? Want to feel your blood pounding with adrenaline? Look no farther; Johannesburg will supply it. So you believed that to find a dune to snowboard down, you had to travel out into the desert? Nope. Think again. The adventure business Pure Rush’ll show you. Make the quick trek to Benoni, east of Johannesburg, where you can enjoy the adrenaline of sandboarding down Mount Mayhem, a former mining dump. And here we thought that the only thing Benoni could boast about was being the hometown of Oscar winner Charlize Theron! The Orlando cooling towers in Soweto, seen for miles, are now renowned for their “vertical adventures” and fantastic murals. You can stroll into the middle of the suspension bridge that connects the two towers and jump from there by using a lift to ascend one of the towers—obviously attached to a bungee cord. A power swing, internal swing, or, for the timider, just taking the lift to the observation platform and back down are possibilities.

Shop Till You Drop

Johannesburg provides a wide variety of shopping possibilities, ranging from marketplaces to designer shops and all in between. You won’t have any trouble spending your hard-earned money at one of the many malls or from a hawker on the corner. Visit Sandton City in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg for a glitzier shopping experience. All the designer shops are located here, spread out over several levels of heaven for shoppers. Once your credit card has been maxed out, and your boot is full of bags, head outside for lunch or coffee to Mandela Square. 

Don’t forget to take a picture in front of the stunning Mandela statue in the square. The Neighbourgoods Market is held downtown Braamfontein every Saturday from 9 am to 3 pm. The market sells food, drinks, and a variety of treats and is housed in a historic building decorated with a stunning Eduardo Villa mural that spans five stories. There is a focus on sustainable, organic products. Come for the day and peruse the exquisite clothing, jewelry, and design stalls before relaxing with a drink of wine and some delectable fare at one of the communal tables. This is where everything is going on.

Lastly, read more about travel around the world here.