The Maboneng Tours provide an exclusive opportunity to learn more about the Eastern side of the Inner City.
Maboneng meaning “Place of Light” is a fully integrated urban neighborhood on the east side of Johannesburg CBD. Both a mixed-use development and urban community, Maboneng is home to several independent retail, restaurants and entertainment venues as well as loft apartments, offices, film and sound studios, a hotel, a hostel, a museum and creative factory spaces.
As such, the Maboneng Precinct offers a range of well-designed and affordable spaces within an urban landscape in Johannesburg. With all its offerings, Maboneng has proved to be a popular destination for locals and international tourists
Itinerary includes:
(i) Meet at 302 Fox Street, Curiocity Backpackers
(ii) The Cosmopolitan
*The Cosmopolitan is one of the most elegant heritage buildings in downtown Johannesburg. Built in 1899, the Cosmopolitan was opened as a hotel and bar in 1902 (following the end of the Anglo-Boer War) but sadly fell into disrepair during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
In 2015 work began on restoring the building and incorporating it into the trendy, regenerated Maboneng precinct, a former industrial area that is known for its many bars, cafes, boutiques and art galleries.
(iii) Drivelines Development
*A new urban development using up-cycled ISO shipping containers has launched in Johannesburg’s Maboneng precinct, bringing affordable housing to the mixed-space area that is often used as the poster-child for recapturing the heart of South Africa’s biggest city.
(iv)A Visit to Agog
*Maboneng is the home of many artist and far too few galleries. This will now change with the arrival of AGOG. AGOG is a unique art gallery where we believe that the meaning of art is also the meaning of the artist. While the greatest art historian W. Gombrich said “There is no art but the artist’, he actually reached a very important determination. The reason of existence of art is actually the human itself.”
(v) Kwa Mai-Mai Traditional Healers Market
Kwa Mai-Mai Traditional Healers Market which is said to be one of the oldest in the city. Visitors may encounter Sangomas (traditional healers) at the market, and will also see various animal parts, used as traditional medicine (or “muti”), at stalls. But there are also more conventional items on offer, including traditional clothing and accompaniments;
(vi) The Collectors Treasure
*The largest second hand bookstore in the Southern hemisphere. There are books stacked everywhere, plus LP records, sheet music, maps, porcelain and postcards. You get time to get lost and wonder!
(vii) Explore the Public Art future developments of the Maboneng Precinct, Doornfontein and its surrounding community
*Walk through an open air museum with rich exhibits of public art, urban living, fascinating history and amazing architecture
Days: Wednesdays & Thursdays (Private tours can be arranged)
Times: 15h00
Duration: 2hr
Costs:
Backpacker guests: R250 . pp
Tour Only guests: R300 . pp
bookings essential
