Car Rental Soweto

Daily Car Rental Rates in South Africa

*daily rates in Soweto based on a 1 day rental (24hr period) and for guidance purposes only.

Soweto today is a much changed place compared to its origins. An acronym for ‘South Western Townships, it is a collection of the areas that apartheid South Africa threw black Africans into to segregate them from the whites.

Soweto Mini Guide

Getting There
You would normally access Soweto from Johannesburg and most people take one of the many tours on offer which bus you into the townships. It is possible to tour Soweto independently using a hire car but, even though Soweto is generally considered safe, like most cities, it is recommended that you stick to the main areas such as Orlando East and West.



Experience
Several tour companies organise overnight stays in Soweto but choose carefully. The accommodation is on a bed and breakfast basis and varies between those in the ‘nice’ parts of Soweto where you could be in any city in the world and those that are a bit edgier, nearer the traditional Soweto and where you’ll still see how difficult it is still for people living there to survive.

Don’t Miss
Don’t miss the Hector Pietersen Museum. Pietersen was a twelve year old student marching at the front of the demonstration during the uprising and was the first to be killed. The museum is a mixture of details of his short life which shows how a promising future was dramatically and cruelly cut short, and the timeline of the uprising and its aftermath including photographs and video of the event.



You should also visit the Mandela Family Museum in the house where the great leader lived and which is set out as it would have been at the time of the uprising, together with many artefacts related to the cause of the ANC. The Regina Mundi Church is another atmospheric place and is considered the ‘people’s parliament’ for it was here that people such as Desmond Tutu instilled hope into the hearts of the people of the township that one day they’d be free.

Credo Mutwa Village in the heart of Soweto showcases restored Zulu and Sotho village houses together with a museum showing how people lived in them prior to European rule in South Africa.

What’s On
If you’re in Soweto in September, make sure you visit the Soweto Wine Festival, the premier wine event in the country where producers from all over South Africa showcase their products.

Try Eating
Soweto eateries serve a lot of traditional African food and as well as maize porridge, you can chew on some fried chicken feet sold as snacks on the roadside or eat a meal of tripe stew, reminiscent of the time when Sowetans could only afford to eat the offal of their animals.