The island s main claim to fame is rather unfortunateit includes the prison in which nelson mandela served much of his sentence. I had been told about the infestation of rabbits on the island. Information and translations of robben island in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The tour includes a return trip, for more info visit za tickets are not transferable. Township tour including visit to robben island this intimate interactive tour will expose you to some of cape towns multicultural life. Best time of day to visit robben island cape town forum. Robben island was used at various times between the 17th and 20th centuries as a prison, a hospital for socially unacceptable groups and a military base. Dec 10, 20 the low, scrubby oval of robben island, a few miles offshore, can be made out from any of the heights around cape town. When you are out for a vacation to cape town then robben island is a must to visit spot for you without which a significant part of cape town history will remain unknown to you. Even if you dont plan a visit to the island, its worth dropping by the free museum at the nelson mandela gateway, with its focus on the struggle for equality. Tickets often sell out, so its advisable to book in advance or make. Here we will discuss a variety of ways to visit the island by ferry and even by helicopter. Visit different townships around cape town and witness the aftereffects of the struggles of apartheid before hopping on a ferry to robben island and discovering the story of one of the men who played. The tour includes a return trip, for more info visit.
It takes its name from the dutch word for seals robben, hence the dutchafrikaans name robbeneiland which translates to seals island. Robben island gallery unesco world heritage centre. Robben island museum is a testament of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity. President obama wrote in a guest book that his family were deeply humbled to visit. Check out the best tours and activities to experience robben island. Book visit robben island and dine with a local south. On arrival, we were split into 2 groups, one group did the bus tour of the island, the other the prison visit at the end of each tour, you swap over. Gates close 10 minutes prior to boarding, so it is best to arrive early. Visiting the island is a sobering experience, which begins at the modern nelson mandela gateway to robben island, an impressive embarkation center that doubles as a conference center. Book your robben island tickets online and skiptheline.
Obama, the visit to robben island, just off cape town, was part of an african trip that has been overshadowed to some extent by concerns about mr. Featuring fitness center, a sun terrace with a swimming pool and a bar, the silo hotel is located in cape town, a 9minute walk from robben island ferry and 1. Firstly, you tour the island on board a coach on which a guide introduces history and various scenes of the island. It includes prison clothing, items manufactured in the prison workshop, workshop tools, prison registers, a music collection of lp records, sporting equipment and furniture. Robben island, cape town ticket price timings address. In 1961, robben island regained its function as a prison when the south african apartheid regime started using the island to stow away political dissidents, with the most famous ones being nelson mandela and current south african president jacob zuma robben island became a national monument in 1996 and is protected as a national heritage site up to.
By the end of the visit, i found the cell itself to be just a tiny part of the overall robben island visit, as i experienced it. The island is a unesco world heritage site and has served as a whaling station, a leper colony and most notably as a prison, where south africas nelson mandela spent 18 years of his 27 years of incarceration before being elected as the countrys first democratic president. Robben island, a desolate outcropping five miles offshore, is a testament to courage and fortitude in the face of brutality, a mustsee for any visitor to south africa. These days, a trip to robben island, a unesco world heritage site, is a must do on the. Robben island tours and times things to do in cape town. If you miss it in your inbox, you can still catch our greatest events on social media. Robben island fees robben island in cape town entry tickets.
Where mandela kept hope, guide tells their shared saga the. Robben island museum, cape town central tripadvisor. Robben island, island in table bay, western cape province, south africa. Visit robben island cape town attractions, cape town. To visit robben island, you must book tickets in advance, like a month or two or more for high season. Failure to produce corresponding proof will result in full price being charged.
Robben island, including its buffer zone, is a national heritage site and unesco has listed the island as a world heritage site. The ferry takes approximately 50 minutes to transfer to robben island where you follow the crowd to the buses. On a visit to robben island in 1997, president mandela commented on the general inadequacy of south african museums and other institutions in portraying the countrys diverse heritage. However, double check your reservations because they can cancel tours without a lot of notice. It was a training and defence station in world war ii 19391945 and a hospital for people with leprosy, and the mentally and chronically ill 18461931. It is not for the buildings that tourists make the pilgrimage to robben island. I tried booking online but they were always sold out. A day trip to robben island, which is now a unesco world heritage site, it must include in the itinerary for any traveler to cape town. Inscribed on unescos world heritage list in 1999, robben island is known for being used as a prison, leprosarium, psychiatric hospital and. Robben island tickets you can book your tickets for the tour by using.
The crossing can be quite rough, so those that suffer from. Jul 17, 2018 robben island sits in south africas table bay, only 4. Find out how to visit robben island, the infamous political prison off cape. Apr 14, 2015 in the beginning of march, ies took us on a robben island tour. Robben island is the most historic location in south africa. My letter to the press that, together with sharp reporting from freek robinson and his television episode on fokus, managed to highlight robben island s plight and, we think, eventually depose the corrupt officials. During the apartheid era, it was a kind of purgatory in plain sight for. But we cannot deny the fact that for centuries, this.
Robben island has been used as prison and a place where people were isolated, banished and exiled to for nearly 400 years. It also encompasses a visit to robben island, which was once a leper colony and a prison. Signup for our weekly email newsletter so that you can be the first to know about the biggest events and the ones we think you personally would like. Worth it for the views of cape town from the water alone. Book flights and browse accommodation now to get the best rates. When i pleaded they were kindly able to get me a spot the next day. Review of the halfday robben island tour from cape town. Robben island museum rim is a public entity responsible for managing, maintaining, presenting, developing and marketing robben island as a national estate and world heritage site. Mandela and six other antiapartheid leaders were sentenced to a life of hard labor in the quarry of robben island, apartheids most infamous island prison. I did pre book robben island all of the boats were cancelled the day i booked and i was offered an immediate refund, as they had no open spots until weeks after i was leaving cape town. A visit to robben island takes about 3,5 hours and can only be done by booking a tour which departs three times a day. Getting tickets for robben island was never that easy.
Alan had a good sense of humour and gave us an insight into the history of robben island as well as how robben island functions today. We were lucky as our guide was knowledgeable and humourous, and the whole tour was great fun. The low, scrubby oval of robben island, a few miles offshore, can be made out from any of the heights around cape town. The tours begin at the nelson mandela gateway in the victoria and alfred waterfront. The only way to reach the island is by boat or air. Well this is a must i suggest you book on line about. Then you would be led by a exprisoner to visit the prison who explained vividly life inside it. If you buy tickets for robben island tours in time, chances are that you might get robben island ticket prices at discounted rates. The leader in online ticket sales in south africa since 2007. The island is a unesco world heritage site and has served as a whaling station, a leper colony and most notably as a prison, where south africas nelson mandela spent 18 years of his 27 years of incarceration before being elected as the countrys first democratic. Visiting robben island on a tour from cape town why i wanted to visit robben island. I see there are four sailings a day to robben island, what would be the best time of day to book for.
Guide to the history and importance of robben island. He and the other political prisoners were forced to work at the limestone quarries on the island. Since 1997 it has been a museum and a heritage site. Located in the middle of table bay in cape town, it has mostly been used by the nation as a place to house. It was a highsecurity prison where nelson mandela was held captive for 18 years. A special tour with 10 highlights and 5 stops is also available and it needs the adults to pay r1050 and children below 12 years of age to pay r600 for the tickets. Robben island cape town, south africa attractions lonely. Things to do in cape town and everything you need to know about robben island, the attractions, history and.
A final, perhaps commercial concern, regards tourism. Robben island or robbeneiland afrikaans is an island in south africa, located off cape town, 6. Obama visits prison cell that helped shape modern south africa. Children under 2 enter for free with a presentation of a birth certificate. Visit the world heritage site of robben island museum, a spit of land just off the cape town coast. The windswept island, with its astounding legacy of confinement and brutality for those exiled there and its paradoxical existence as a sanctuary for bird and animal life is a place of mystery and amazement to the many who visit it. Make sure you book your tour in advance, because tickets could easily sell out for the day. Once aboard the bus, we had a lovely tour guide called alan. The prisoner the long walk of nelson mandela frontline. Robben island childhood memories of growing up there. Learn how the island was used to seclude freedom fighters and south african presidents such as nelson mandela, kgalema motlanthe and jacob zuma. Sep 28, 2015 robben island, cape town, south africa. Visit district 6 museum proceed to the robben island gateway to board the boat to robben island arrive at the nelson mandela gateway board the boat with many other customers 30 minute boat ride to the island walk to the buses guide will be on the bus 30 minute ride around the island walk around the prison, see nelson mandelas cell ex prisoner will do a guided tour in.
Best time of day to visit robben island cape town message. Robben island tour prices, entrance fees 2018 updated. Cape town has millions of people living in townships, and this tour takes you to visit them and offers an opportunity to find out about their harsh past, to witness the challenges. The journey takes around 30 minutes, giving you plenty of time to admire spectacular views of cape town and table mountain and to look for the whales, dolphins, penguins and fur seals that inhabit table bay. From robben island tickets to transport, we arrange everything for you. A visit to the island is essential when visiting cape town. Also preserved as a small museum is the waterfronts jetty 1, the departure point for robben island when it was a prison. Visit robben island museum on your trip to cape town central. The 45 minute ferry crossing also offers spectacular views over table bay. Its buildings, particularly those of the late 20th century. Cultural visit and robben island tour full day african. Robben island is an island near cape town in south africa. Visiting robben island on a tour from cape town stoked.
Visit to robben island cape town central forum tripadvisor. Robben island is a small landmass located just seven kilometres four miles off the coast of cape town, in table bay. I did, i got the trip i wanted, at the least expensive available. We take our visitors into the townships and witness everyday life in a harsh environment where you will hear some of. It was established by the department of arts and culture in 1997. Today, tourists and locals alike can tour robben island and give themselves the opportunity to experience a part of south africas history. Also, visit the popular attractions in the city by following cape town itinerary 2 days. Its name is the dutch word for seals, once plentiful in the surrounding waters. They are mostly empty, husks leftover from the old days. Sa adults and pay r400 and sa children pay r210 for 2 18 years. Robben island, the unique symbol of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity, suffering and injustice with a rich 500 year old multilayered.
Robben island was the location of one of the main prisons where political prisoners were held during the apartheid era in south africa, most notably nelson mandela, who was imprisoned there for 18 years of his 27 year sentence. The robben island entrance fee via a boat has been categorised into two. Robben island is located in table bay, some 6km west of bloubergstrand, and stands some 30m above sea level. Robben island south africa history and gripping facts. The prisoner in the winter of 1964, nelson mandela arrived on robben island where he would spend 18 of his 27 prison years.
It is 5 miles 8 km west of the mainland and 6 miles 10 km north of cape town and has an approximate area of 5 square miles square km. A visit to robben island the travels of bbqboy and spanky. Robben island museum artefacts this collection includes more than 3 000 accessioned objects left on robben island by prison authorities. For nearly 400 years, robben island, about 12 kilometres from cape town, was a place of exile where rulers sent those they regarded as outcasts and troublemakers. According to tripadvisor travelers, these are the best ways to experience robben island museum. For adults, the normal ferry trip costs r360 while for children it costs r200. Book your township tour now to receive guaranteed robben island tickets. This is also the location where the ferry will depart. Unesco declared robben island in the western cape a world heritage site in 1999. Visit robben island, known for its maximum security prison and for being a home to socially unacceptable groups over the past 500 years, for a tour of the manmade facilities. Township tour including visit to robben island book online. Fortunately, visiting robben island is a straightforward experience. A visit to robben island, the brutal prison that held mandela. Whilst my knowledge of apartheid is reasonable thanks to my university degree in international politics, nothing can compare to learning and experiencing history firsthand in south africa.
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