The Maboneng Precinct is a lively downtown district filled with modern cafés, galleries, boutique shops, restaurants and bars, and is one of the top places to visit in Joburg. Parkhurst is also worth exploring: a modern, affluent neighbourhood that’s home to upmarket shopping destination 4th Avenue. Meanwhile, Melville is one of the oldest suburbs in South Africa, dating back to the 1890s, and has been given a new lease of life with a cluster of hip bars and restaurants.

No Johannesburg holiday would be complete without a traditional al fresco braai (barbeque) of boerewors (sausages), sosaties (skewers) and snoek fish. Biltong and droewors jerky are also great snacks, while bunny chow – curry served inside hollowed-out bread – is a favourite street food. For those with a sweet tooth, there’s koeksisters (fried dough drenched in syrup), and malva pudding, a hot pudding with apricot jam and custard.

Constitution Hill is a living museum inhabiting the Old Fort Prison complex, a site where thousands of people were incarcerated. Explore the isolation cell where Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela were both held, and see artefacts including Mandela’s personal diaries. The Apartheid Museum is also a must-visit: a world-leading museum which takes visitors on an emotional journey through oppression, racial division and the birth of democracy.

Wits Art Museum (WAM) offers one of the world’s best collections of African art, with more than 13,000 works spanning classical and contemporary styles. Alternatively head to the Keyes Art Mile, a modern hub for creativity comprising galleries, design stores and event spaces. For those who prefer live arts, Joburg Theatre is a multi-stage performance complex that hosts regular musicals, dramas, comedies and concerts.

The Market Theatre (also referred to as the ‘Theatre of Struggle’) is a notable place to visit in Johannesburg due to its anti-racist stance during the apartheid era. It pioneered indigenous African theatre, performed by multiracial casts in front of multiracial audiences. It has now evolved into a cultural complex for dramatic performance, music, dance and arts, and remains at the forefront of South African theatre.

Melville Koppies Nature Reserve (koppie meaning ‘small hill’ in Afrikaans) is a gorgeous sprawling area of natural beauty in Johannesburg. The 160-acre reserve features geology dating back 3 billion years, and it’s a step back into Joburg’s ridged landscape before the discovery of gold in 1886. Enjoy panoramic views of Johannesburg’s landmarks as you hike across the rocky ridges and grassland, filled with indigenous fauna and flora.

Soweto is a historically fascinating and vibrant township in Joburg that offers a glimpse into modern-day South Africa. Home to roughly 2 million people, the best way to explore this city-sized suburb is with a guide. If you only have time to visit one place, it should be Vilakazi Street, once home to Nobel Peace Prize-winners Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and the heart of the struggle against apartheid.

Going on safari is a classic South African experience, and Pilanesberg National Park, about a three-hour drive from Johannesburg, is one of the closest wildlife reserves to the city. It’s located on a scenic volcanic crater and offers visitors the chance to see South Africa’s ‘Big Five’ – lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant and buffalo. Enjoy guided bush walks and game drives around the undulating hills and open savannahs of untouched Africa.

The Cradle of Humankind Unesco World Heritage site is one of the world’s most important anthropological areas, home to some of the oldest hominin fossils ever found. Explore the Sterkfontein Caves (where the 2-million-year-old skull known as “Mrs Ples” was discovered), learn about African traditions and cultures at the Lesedi Cultural Village, and visit the Nirox Sculpture Park: a contemporary art space within the site.