Brown Sugar Backpackers

Johannesburg

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This quirky hostel is set in a rambling mansion that looks like a miniature castle and was once the home of a 1970s drugs baron. The wide assortment of options includes en-suite dorms, log cabins and a few quirkily decorated private rooms, as well as TV lounge, pool, and kitchen and laundry facilities.

Bonus: free pick-up from the airport or Park Station. Downside: not the best location. Dinners (R80) are available on request. Note that credit cards are accepted but there's an additional 5% commission.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Constitutional Court on Constitution Hill.

    Constitution Hill

    2.75 MILES

    Do not leave Jo'burg without visiting Constitution Hill. One of South Africa's most important historical sites, the deeply moving and inspirational…

  • 28 OCT 2017: the District Six Museum, a museum in memory of apartheid, located in Cape Town. 788479459 segregation, white, black, memorial, history, labor, slavery, forced movement, apartheid, district six, six, district, building, collection, exhibition, exhibit, art, museum, landmark, tourism, travel, cape town, capetown, architecture, african, africa, south african, south africa, sa, editorial

    Apartheid Museum

    6.22 MILES

    The Apartheid Museum illustrates the rise and fall of South Africa’s era of segregation and oppression, and is an absolute must-see. It uses a broad…

  • Freedom Park in Pretoria, South Africa.

    Freedom Park

    29.25 MILES

    This stunning park and museum honours fallen South Africans in all major conflicts and adopts an integrated approach to African history. It is a place of…

  • Sterkfontein Caves in South Africa.

    Sterkfontein Caves

    24.65 MILES

    One of the most significant archaeological sites in the world, Sterkfontein Caves include a permanent hominid exhibit and a walkway down into the…

  • Exterior of the Hector Pieterson Memorial Museum in Soweto.

    Hector Pieterson Museum

    11.67 MILES

    This powerful museum, named after the 12-year-old boy shot dead during the student protests in Soweto on 16 June 1976, illuminates the role of Sowetan…

  • Maropeng

    Maropeng

    29.6 MILES

    Partly housed in a building that looks like a giant grassy mound on one side and shiny modern steel on the other, Maropeng is an all-in-one information…

  • Constitutional Court

    Constitutional Court

    2.69 MILES

    Inaugurated in 2004, with its design based on the African concept of 'justice under a tree', the Constitutional Court is a very real symbol of modern…

  • Liliesleaf Farm

    Liliesleaf Farm

    9.6 MILES

    A highlight of Jo'burg's northern suburbs is Liliesleaf Farm. This was the secret headquarters of the ANC (African National Congress) from 1961 until a…

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