Travel & Experiences

A visit to South Africa’s apartheid history

Tourists from the U.S. visit the Nelson Mandela house on Vilakazi Street that is now a museum in Soweto, South Africa. It is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the area. The Mandelas lived here in the 1960s before Nelson was imprisoned.

Tourists from the U.S. visit the Nelson Mandela house on Vilakazi Street that is now a museum in Soweto, South Africa. It is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the area. The Mandelas lived here in the 1960s before Nelson was imprisoned.

  (Christian Science Monitor / Getty)

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Travelers to South Africa would be well-advised to take a walk through the rich history of the freedom struggle. A handful of museums and historic sites — “sites of memory” — offer a compelling picture of the battle an oppressed black majority waged to overcome white-minority rule.

Lilieslaf Farm in Rivonia, South Africa

Liliesleaf Farm in Rivonia, South Africa, was raided by police on July 11, 1963, interrupting a meeting of Operation Mayibuye, a plan to overthrow the apartheid government.

  (Christopher Furlong / Getty Images)

Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa

Visitors are seen during a visit of the Apartheid Museum.

  (Christof Koepsel / Getty Images)

Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa

Visitors to Apartheid Museum get their pictures taken at the entrance of the museum in Johannesburg, South Africa.

  (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa

Visitors to the Apartheid Museum walk past its entrance in Johannesburg, South Africa.

  (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa

A look inside the Apartheid Museum.

  (Christof Koepsel / Getty Images)

The Nelson Mandela Statue in Pretoria, South Africa

Visitors take photos of the statue of former South African President Nelson Mandela in Pretoria, South Africa.

  (J. Countess / Getty Images)

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