City of Gold: A Guide to Johannesburg

Johannesburg, South Africa. Sopotnicki/Shutterstock

I was chasing the sunset. Having landed at OR Tambo and climbed into the back of a cab, we promptly got caught in traffic. As we inched forward along one of this city’s many freeways, I kept my eyes on the horizon. Late afternoon sun, fading to amber. That tall spire was my goal, but I wasn’t getting much closer.

The driver used some creative routing. Dropping down from the elevated, car-choked thoroughfare, he wound along surface streets, zooming through yellow lights, taking this challenge of mine as his own. And by some miracle, we made it. Met by a friend at reception, we rode the elevator to the top of the continent. Reaching the tallest bar in the country, atop the highest building in sub-Saharan Africa, we grabbed a couple flutes of champagne. My friend pointed down. “Look at that helicopter; it’s below us!” she exclaimed.

We clinked glasses. Around us, a dynamic city transitioned from afternoon to evening. We stood almost 770 feet up. A storm was rolling in from the south; big, dark clouds were already dropping great tendrils of rain. Below that weather, riding the ridge of Witwatersrand, the towers of the Central Business District were about to get very wet. Stretching in all directions, there are many patches of green space. And out there, to the west, the last remnants of that sunset, fading from fire to powdered pink, seemed to stretch out all the way to the Kalahari.

Visiting JoBurg

Johannesburg isn’t like most big cities. The largest urban center in South Africa, it’s home to more than five million people, with some 14 million in a metro area that includes nearby Soweto and Pretoria. You'll never mistake the country’s economic capital for New York or Hong Kong. Almost a mile high, it all spreads out, feeling like a city built inside a park.

JoBurg, or sometimes affectionately, “Jozi,” is young, only founded in 1886. It’s not clear which Johannes, exactly, gave the city its name—there are a few different theories. Once a windswept agricultural region set on a high plateau, one dramatic event transformed this area: the discovery of gold. First uncovered on a farm, the area boomed. Within a decade, 100,000 people had settled into what became, like most boomtowns, a rough-and-tumble place.

On various visits to the city, I’ve learned that each individual neighborhood can feel like a place apart. For example, a recent stay in the upscale suburb of Rosebank felt quasi-European; the hotel was hipster-cool, located in a former bank with a busy barber shop and pool tables. A pedestrian-only shopping street was just outside, and I spent time browsing for books and clothes.

Sandton has long been a visitor favorite, a sort of alternative city core, with stores and restaurants, hotels, and glassy apartment complexes all within close walking distance of a major mall. And just nearby, Houghton Estate is very green; the streets are lined with jacaranda trees. Home to a couple golf courses, you can also stroll along footpaths past waterfalls at The Wilds Nature Reserve, 40 acres of parkland right in the heart of the city.

And while you’ll find a wide variety of worthwhile galleries and museums, the one most essential stop is the Apartheid Museum. Here, your ticket dictates which door takes you inside: whites (blankes) or non-whites (nie-blankes). The immersive experience continues once you enter. Films and photographs take you through more than four decades of this oppressive system, from the classification of the races, to day-to-day life in a country where hundreds of strict laws were designed to keep power from non-whites—to the protest movements that resisted these injustices. An excellent museum, it is a sobering place to visit.

Time for a Tour

And while all the green space in the city can feel refreshing and the diversity of neighborhoods keeps things interesting, with everything so spread out and varied, it can be hard to feel the heartbeat here. But that definitely wasn’t the case the day I went for a walk with Sarah Barret. I met the owner of Joburg 360 and a small group for a tour of the city’s inner core.

We started at a coffee shop called Uncle Merv’s and proceeded to the Maboneng Precinct. “There’s plenty of history here,” said Barret. “But also the promise of the future.” I found all that street-level noise and clatter I was missing in the suburbs on this tour.

Lining up to grab a cappuccino and a croissant at the busy cafe, we took a look at the neighborhood’s trademark sign, steel-cut letters strung over the street—now an Instagram mainstay. Once a district of rundown warehouses, developers breathed new life into Maboneng, beginning about 20 years ago. The name, in Sotho, means “place of light.” Which feels just about right.

We toured through used bookstores, record shops, and cool spots selling vintage clothing. Huge murals telling the stories of this city occupy once-abandoned building walls. There are sculpture gardens and apartment complexes created entirely from shipping containers.

And perhaps not surprisingly, I ended up on another rooftop. A place called Living Room, with hand-crafted cocktails, little blooming gardens, and views right into the urban core. Close enough to hear the cars on the freeway. An excellent place to finish the tour, with a gin and tonic, and a little chat with the group about all that’s still so golden in this former boomtown.

When You Go

Fly: OR Tambo International Airport is the hub of Southern Africa. Nonstop flights land here from a number of European hubs (including Amsterdam, London, Paris, and Frankfurt), plus two direct routes from North America (Newark and Atlanta).

Stay: The Leonardo rises high, not just in stature but also in comfort and style. In an all-suite hotel, even entry-level rooms include a kitchen and living room that’s separate from the bedroom. The views are expansive, looking out over glittering Sandton. Spend the day in a cushy lounge by the seventh-floor pool. Then enjoy dinner at Aurum, an upscale restaurant with a carefully curated local wine list—its name means “gold” in Latin.

Getting Around: The city has a serviceable public transit system, and the Gautrain, a high-speed rail link, is definitely the best way to get into town from the airport. But if you’re in a rush, ride-sharing services (including Uber) are safe, abundant, and very affordable.

Take Note: These days, South Africa is a bargain, especially with the South African Rand (ZAR) trading at about 20-to-1 to the USD. A good meal in a great restaurant will usually cost less than 50 dollars, and a long ride in an Uber can be just five or 10.