Lost City at Sun City Copyright: South African Tourism
Sun City, unique in the context of world resorts, with a combination of features unmatched anywhere, draws thousands of visitors each year to its four top-quality hotels, a Vacation Club plus magnificent sporting and recreational facilities including 2 world class golf courses, and the magical Lost City water-park, The Valley of Waves. Only 187 km from Johannesburg, the resort, situated in the bushveld of South Africa's North West Province, is surrounded by the imposing mountains of the Pilanesberg.
The malaria-free Pilanesberg National Game Park is home to South Africa’s Big 5 – Elephant, Rhino, Lion, Leopard and Buffalo.
The Resort has been awarded Gold classification from the Heritage Programme for its commitment to the principles of sustainable and responsible environmental practice. In addition to its Gold Heritage status, Sun City Resort was awarded the 2007 Overall Imvelo Responsible Tourism Award in South Africa. Imvelo, meaning “nature” in Nguni, forms part of an ongoing hospitality industry campaign to encourage industry members to accept voluntary guidelines by promoting responsible tourism.
This world class resort is home to one of the Leading Hotels of the World, The Palace of the Lost City. For a holiday unequalled in beauty, variety and interest, Sun City has something for everyone. The wide choice of conference venues ensure a level of convention and banqueting facilities which few can beat.
Rustenburg
Magaliesberg Mountains near Rustenburg Copyright: South African Tourism
Rustenburg was officially founded in 1851 by Boer burghers who had trekked into the area a decade earlier, Rustenburg is one of the oldest towns the North West Province and sits as an axis point for areas of interest throughout the region. Due to the mainly dry climatic conditions, agricultural activity consists of the farming of livestock and small stock. There is also large-scale cultivation of citrus and irrigated crops such as tobacco and wheat, flowers and many plant nurseries. The two largest platinum mines in the world are to be found here, and the area also produces asbestos, tin, chrome, lead, marble, granite and slate. Literally translated, Rustenburg means town of rest. It was Paul Kruger's home town and was established long before both Pretoria and Johannesburg. But in modern days, due to this rich history, the town is a tourism hot-spot, with areas of interest for all types of tourists. For the outdoor fanatic there are game farms, nature reserves and plenty of outdoor sporting facilities. For those more culturally minded there are some magnificent churches, including the Anglican Church (1871) and the Dutch Reformed Church (1898 -1903), plus the historic statue of the Voortrekker girl and the Rustenburg Museum. There are a multitude of sites with cultural and historical significance in and around Rustenburg. This is no surprise, given the many different communities in the area, such as the indigenous Bafokeng, Bakgatla and Botswana tribes, whose totemic tribal traditions are of much interest. There is also the German community of Kroondal that traces its origins back to 1857. Many Anglo-Boer and ethnic war battles took place in the area with the districts of Koster, Swartruggens and Rustenburg featuring prominent battlefields, memorial graves and ruined forts. The area is also an archaeologist's dream site, with its recorded Iron Age and Stone Age.
Hartebeestpoort Dam Copyright: South African Tourism
The Hartbeespoort Dam, surrounded by the majesty of the Magaliesberg mountain range, is a popular destination for weekend getaways or day trips. Water sports too be enjoyed include parasailing, windsurfing, water and jet skiing.
For the more adventurous the Dam offers paragliding, hang-gliding or hot air ballooning. There is an aquarium, private zoo, a snake park and a cable way. Explore and discover the scenic beauty, entertaining attractions, fun activities & places of interest of this wonderful land. The village of Hartbeespoort is situated along the shores of the dam, among undulating hills and panoramic views on the dam and the majestic Magaliesberg Mountains.
Lion in Pilansberg Copyright: South African Tourism
"The Volcano that gave birth to a game reserve"
The
crater of a long extinct volcano is the setting of Pilanesberg Game
Reserve- a fascinating alkaline complex produced by volcanic eruptions
some 1300 million years ago. Pilanesberg is one of the largest volcanic
complexes of its kind in the world. Its rare rock types and structure
make it a unique geological feature.
Wildlife:
An
abundance of wild life proliferate in 580 km of diverse and arresting
bushveld terrain. The park is home to healthy populations of lion,
leopard, black and white rhino, elephant and buffalo - Africa's "Big
Five".A
wide variety of rare and common species exist like the nocturnal brown
hyaena, the fleet-footed cheetah, the majestic sable, as well as
giraffe, zebra, hippo and crocodile, to mention but a few.
The Madikwe Game Reserve, situated against the Botswana
border, 90 km north of Zeerust, just three hours' drive from both
Johannesburg and Pretoria, is now one of South Africa's prime safari
destinations. Madikwe is a Big Five game
reserve covering some 75,000 hectare. It is one of the largest game
reserves in South Africa. The rich diversity of vegetation ensures
a wide range of game and the topography offers ideal game viewing
opportunities.
Located in Rustenburg in the North West Province, the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace was opened in 1999 and completely funded by the Royal Bafokeng community. (An administrative entity presiding over the world's richest platinum mines). The Stadium is already well equipped and will require only minor renovations to bring it up to FIFA™ standards.
The capacity of the stadium was increased to 42,000 with the construction of two additional rows of seating on the second level. New electronic scoreboards, floodlights and a new public address system completed the requirements for it to host the first and second round matches of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Brits was founded in 1924 on a farm owned by Gert Brits. Attractions include the De Wildt Cheetah Research Centre; Granite Works (the largest diamond saws in the world are used to cut blocks of granite); Vaalkop Dam Nature Reserve (a nature reserve tailor-made for bird watchers - over 340 bird species have been recorded); Le Croc Tours to an interesting crocodile farm
