The tour departs from Durban for the capital of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg. Your guide will give you a short tour of the city and visit Mahatma Gandhi’s statue by Pietermaritzburg City Hall.

Next stop will be the small town of Howick to visit its waterfall. KwaNogqaza or Howick Falls is approximately 95 m in height and lies on the Umgeni River. The local Zulu people named it the “Home of the Tall” referring to its height. Next to the falls lies a quaint old section of Howick which has a selection of historical museums and antique stores to visit.  

Next is the Nelson Mandela Capture Site Statue and Apartheid Museum. The Capture Site boasts a large sculpture of Nelson Mandela made up of multiply steel columns which stand between 6 and 9 meters tall. The approach to the site leads one down a path towards the sculpture where, at 35 meters away, a portrait of Nelson Mandela, looking west, comes into focus. The museum is dedicated to Nelson Mandela’s life and his struggle against Apartheid government.

The tour moves to the ‘Valley of 1000 Hills’ to experience traditional Zulu culture at PheZulu Cultural Village and Reptile Park. Visitors are taken into a traditional Zulu homestead to experience what traditional Zulu life was like before the modern era. Inside a traditional Zulu homestead there are thatched huts placed in a circular position, with the cattle placed in the center as a form of protection. At PheZulu’s ‘Sibaya’ or homestead the thatched huts are surrounding the auditorium which faces the beautiful ‘Valley of 1000 Hills’. The local PheZulu guide will take you on a guided tour of the PheZulu sibaya and describe Zulu cultural practices to gain insight into Zulu traditions during the 1800’s. The local Zulu dancing show is educating and entertaining with the local performers singing beautiful traditional Zulu songs and dancing energetically. The performers wear their traditional Zulu attire, showing off their dancing and singing skills with rhythmic agility and pride.

Included in PheZulu is the Reptile Park where guests enjoy a guided tour by a local PheZulu Reptile park guide. The local guides are very knowledgeable and eager to take you around the park and share interesting facts about the animals in the park. PheZulu Reptile Park has diverse reptilian wildlife on site which include crocodiles, alligators, snakes, tortoises, spiders and iguanas. The local PheZulu guide will let you touch or hold some of the animals including a small crocodile and the giant Burmese python, just long enough to take a photo.