West Rand

The West Rand is the western part of the Gauteng province of South Africa.

Cities

• 1 Carletonville
• 2 Krugersdorp — a good base for visiting the Krugersdorp Game Reserve, and home of the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Gardens
• 3 Magaliesburg
• 4 Randfontein
• 5 Westonaria

Other destinations

• 1 Cradle of Humankind - undoubtedly one of the must-see destinations of Gauteng. It is an UNESCO World Heritage Site where a lot of human ancestry fossil finds have been made.

Understand

Trivia The West Rand is home to the deepest mine in the world. TauTona (near Carltonville) operates at a depth of 3.9 km, surpassing the previous 3.7-km record held by the Savuka mine in the North West Province.

Do

Dragracing at Tarlton

• 1 Lesedi Cultural Village (just past Lanseria Airport on the R512), ☏ +27 12 205-1394. Traditional dances and food in authentic Zulu, Sotho, Pedi, Xhosa and Ndebele villages. 
• 2 Lion & Safari Park, R114 near the corner with Malibongwe (old Hans Strijdom Drive) (R512), Honeydew (from the N1, take exit 90, Randburg/R512 Malibongwe (old Hans Strydom Dr) and follow this north for 12 km past Kya Sands; at the traffic light for R114, take a right turn; the Lion Park is 600 m down the road on the right), ☏ +27 87 150 0100, info@lionpark.com. The entrance ticket gives you a visit with the lion cubs (yes, you get to touch them), feed the giraffe, and a self-drive game viewing through the lion camps and game area (antelope, zebra, giraffe and others live here). The Lion Park can be very busy over weekends and public holidays. If you want some quality time with the lion cubs, it is better to go during the week when it is not so busy. If you are going to drive through the lion enclosures, make sure there are no loose objects on the outside of your vehicle and keep your windows closed. The lions are especially fond of 4x4 spare wheel covers, so remove these before you enter. Self-drive R285 per adult, one-hour guided safari R430 per adult. (updated Dec 2024)

Visit a goldmine

• 3 Old Kromdraai Gold Mine, Ibis Ridge Farm, Kromdraai Road, Krugersdorp (12 km north of Krugersdorp), ☏ +27 11 957-0211. Sa Su 09:00 to 16:00, by appointment during the week. Visit a gold mine such as the Old Kromdraai Gold Mine. The Kromdraai Gold Mine was one of the first gold mines on the Witwatersrand (the Johannesburg area today) and is situated in an unspoilt rural setting about 60 minutes drive from Johannesburg International airport and 40 minutes from Johannesburg city. R100 adults, R50 children. 
• Blaauwbank Historic Gold Mine, Station Road, Magaliesburg, ☏ +27 82 567-3111, fax: +27 14 577-1080, sparkle@wildparkgroup.co.za. 

Adventure

• Johannesburg Skydiving Club, Carltonville outside Johannesburg, ☏ +27 82 928-2455, skydive@worldonline.co.za. Mostly uses a Pilatus Porter (PC 6). 
• Magaliesburg Gliding Club, ☏ +27 83 649-9918, sagliding@telkomsa.net. Based just outside Krugersdorp on the West Rand. 
• Tarlton International Raceway (Follow the R24 from Krugersdorp towards Magaliesburg. Tarlton is about halfway between the two towns), ☏ +27 11 762-5431. Gates generally open at 08:00 on race days. Home to spectacular drag racing. See their website for upcoming events. Price depends on event, but is usually around R60 per person. 

Sleep

• 1 Lesedi Cultural Village, Pelindaba Rd, R512, Lanseria, ☏ +27 87 740-9292. Offers traditionally themed accommodation with modern conveniences. From R1,258. (updated Dec 2024)
• 2 Mount Grace Hotel & Spa, Old Rustenburg Rd, Magaliesburg, ☏ +27 14 577 5600. 5-star hotel and spa just outside of Johannesburg. From R2,235. (updated Dec 2024)