Durban City Center Attractions

At the Durban Art Gallery in KwaZulu-Natal, exhibits of contemporary South African works, especially Zulu arts and crafts can be admired.  When visting, don’t miss the collection of baskets from Hlabisa, finely woven from a variety of grasses and incorporating striking natural colours.  The Durban Art Gallery collections include everything from current and historical art and artefacts of KwaZulu-Natal to English masterpieces, from anonymous carvings, clay pots and beadwork to the works of celebrated South African artists like Andrew Verster and Penny Siopis.

The Durban Art Gallery celebrated its centenary in 1992. Cathcart William Methven, Harbour Engineer of the day, gave one of his paintings to the Town Council in 1892. Various donations and purchases were subsequently made, and in 1920 Colonel R.H. Whitwell, art connoisseur and philanthropist, presented over 400 works to the Durban Art Gallery in South Africa, including British, French and Dutch paintings, objets d'art such as French and Chinese ceramics, early glass vases by Lalique and bronzes by Rodin. This established the character of the foreign collection. From the 1970s on, many works of local artists and crafts-people were added to the collection, and the Gallery's collecting focus is now largely concentrated on works which reflect the rich multi-cultural diversity of Durban and South Africa. The holdings now include over 3500 works.
 

The Durban Local History Museums are situated in the 1863 courthouse behind the Durban city hall, South Africa.  Displays of early colonial life in Natal can be found here.  Exhibits include a reconstruction of the city’s lst white settler dwelling, a sugar mill featuring indentured Indian labourers, general dealer and an apothecary can be observed.

Durban’s rich heritage is presented at many unique sites located within the city. Some of these sites and collections are managed by private institutions while others are administered by various government departments and educational institutions.  The Ethekwini Municipality is responsible for the seven Local History Museums.
Ethekwini, which is situated on the east coast of South Africa offers a glimpse of its history through seven unique museums. Durban, the hub of the region is the gateway to KwaZulu-Natal’s rich multi-cultural heritage.
The collections, exhibitions and programmes at the Durban Local History Museums provide visitors with indepth information.

North of Durban, one can found Mini Town which is a model city with replicas of Durban’s best-known buildings.   
Mini Town is a landmark in Durban featuring a miniature city replicating Durban situated on the beach front. Visitors may also see a miniature harbour with ships, as well as an airport.  The first model was completed in 1963, Minitown is a miniature city with replica's of some of Durban's well-known buildings and all the models were made in Minitown itself. Its amazing to see all the tiny details and effort that was put in to collaborating Minitown.
 

Visit the BAT Centre (Bartel Arts Trust) which is Durban’s dockside art-and-music scene. It consists of a theatre, music venue, dance studio, art galleries and shops. There is a shop where one can find out-of-the-ordinary souvenirs.
At Maydon Wharf is the Fishing Jetty where deep-sea fishing boats leave.

• Natal Maritime Museum – On exhibition are two tugboats and a minesweeper from World War II which you can clamber on.
• Vasco da Gama Clock – On the 400th anniversary, 1897, of Vasco da Gama’s sighting of Natal, the Portuguese government presented the Victorian monument to Durban
   

The Durban Natural Science Museum in South Africa offers dynamic and innovative research and education programmes with a particular emphasis on Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecology.  It is the mission of the Durban Natural Science Museum to acquire and disseminate knowledge about the Earth, its history, and life on Earth, both past and present.  One of South Africa’s smallest but busiest natural science museums, it is renowned for its realistic dioramas (habitat groups), life size T. rex model, near-complete Dodo skeleton and Egyptian mummy, Peten Amen. 

Founded on July 23rd 1887, the Durban Natural Science Museum in South Africa celebrated its 120th anniversary in 2007/08 and these celebrations culminated in the sealing of two time capsules on the 23 September 2008 in celebration of its contributions to the conservation of natural heritage. The first time capsule will be opened in 2057 (49 years time) and the second will be opened in 2087 on the occasion of the Museums bicentennial celebrations.

The old Fort in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, was constructed in 1842 by the troops of Captain Thomas Smith, who marched into Durban to show a British presence in the face of the intention of the Dutch farmers to establish a republic in Natal.
In 1858 the facilities were expanded to include an armoury and barracks, and troops remained in occupation until the end of the century.

North of the centre is where the British were besieged by the Boers in 1842. Just east is Warriors Gate which is the general headquarters of MOTH, a fomer service persons’ club. A small collection of militaria is on exhibit at the Old Fort in Durba, South Africa.
 

The Old House Museum in Durban, South Africa, is the restored home of KwaZulu-Natal’s first prime minister. 

The Old Train Station in Durban which is also referred to as the Tourist Junction is a red-brick building which was built in 1894 and now houses the tourist centre. Its roof was originally designed for snow-bound Toronto in Canada, but was mistakenly installed in Durban. In the entrance of the building is the statue in memory of Mahatma Gandhi, who bought a train ticket to Johannesburg here in June 1893.
 

Just outside Durban is the biggest Hare Krishna temple in the southern hemisphere.  The Temple of Understanding was designed by the Austrian architect, Hannes Raudner. It is encircled by a moat and a garden laid out in the shape of a lotus flower. Visit the beautiful marble temple room and the inner sanctuary.
 

The famous Golden Mile / Marine Parade in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, stretches for 6km, with its long surf beaches, which are protected with shark nets and lifesavers patrol between 8am – 5pm. On the seaward side are many amusement parks, Funworld with bumper-cars, an aerial cableway, craft sellers, restaurants and a continuous row of hotels, apartments on the other side. Along the promenade visitors find the brightly decorated rickshaws with their drivers festooned in beads and tall, elaborate headdresses. A must visit is the uShaka Marine World.  After hours, the Golden Mile waterfront comes into its own and visitors may experience the Entertainment World complex and the Suncoast Casino.
 

The Workshop in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal is a shopping centre housed in a vast, steel-girded Victorian building that was once the railway workshop.
 

The Umgeni River Bird Park in Durban, South Africa, overlooks the north bank of the Umgeni River with four waterfalls cascading down the cliffs into ponds fringed by palm and lush vegetation. There are four large walk-through aviaries plus individual cages of exotic birds. 

Spectacular waterfalls and lush vegetation, with birds out on perches, in walk-through aviaries and open paddocks, this little jewel is one of the finest bird parks in the world.  Come and see magnificent macaws and elegant flamingoes, and see how some of the world’s rarest birds live and breed. A viewing window allows visitors to follow the activity in the baby room, where plump little chicks are reared by loving foster-parents. You’ll see the stately cranes, the comical toucans and loads more.

Free flight Bird Show – the first in Africa, with critically endangered species like the Wattled Crane, as well as owls, storks, hornbills and a Cape Vulture in free unrestricted flight are educational and loads of fun. Bird show are offered at the Umgeni River Bird Park in Durban, South Africa.

 

Visitors find the uShaka Marine World at the end of the Golden Mile in Durban, South Africa. It is focused on family entertainment and is the largest marine theme park in South Africa. It is the 5th largest aquarium in the world by volume of water and has fresh and sea water, lush vegetation and a re-creation of a wreck of a 1940’s cargo ship.

The exciting uShaka Marine World in Durban, South Africa, opened on April 30th 2004. Close to three years in the making, uShaka has fast positioned itself as a key attraction on Durban’s Golden Mile, offering a world of entertainment, excitement, fun and uniqueness.  uShaka has bought together cultures, like no other place in Africa – into a safe, secure and clean environment that resonates the sound of fun, laughter and the spirit of togetherness. Entertainment is non-stop, extending from the day-time operations of Sea World, Wet ‘n Wild, and uShaka Beach, to the night time festivities of the Village Walk.

Sea World features research facilities of the Oceanographic Research Institute, which manages and protects scientific and environmental credibility of Sea World and SAAMBR as a whole.

Highlights of the uShaka Marine World: 

- Rocky Touch Pool – touch the creatures which live in rock pool

- Open Ocean – it feels as though you are actually standing underwater with the many fish

- Dangers of the Deep – in this area one can see or may be albe to tour a shark as it swims past

- Coral Gardens – see the magnificent colours of the coral

- Deep Zone -  Watch the weirdest and most spectacular animals

The famous uShaka Marine World features restaurants including the Shark Restaurant which is situated in the themed shipwreck with a window into a shark tank and shops.

One can experience indoor and outdoor displays where dolphins and seals will entertain and a penguin rookery. Offers of scuba dives, snorkeling through reefs and grottos are available. Adjacent to the uShaka Marine World is Bell’s Beach which has been set aside for adventure seekers and offers windsurfing, beach volleyball and beach rugby, surfing, jet skiing, kite surfing and paddle boat rides .

The wreck of Catalina "H" can be seen when lake levels are low near the eastern shore of the lake. The Catalina “H” crashed shortly after take-off on 25 June 1943 during World War II. The British Air Ministry sent 262 Squadron to Natal to do anti-submarine patrols and escort shipping and combat the U-boat menace.