Pretoria is an absolutely beautiful and quiet city to visit. It is one of the three capitals in South Africa, and the executive power is situated in Pretoria. The judicial power capital is Bloemfontein, and in Cape Town the legislative power can be found. The city has a moderately dry subtropical climate, with hot long and rainy summers, and short, cool and dry winters. Reasons to visit Pretoria are there enough, and to give you a few ideas on what to do we created this list which state a few of the many to do things in Pretoria.
- Union Buildings. When visiting Pretoria this is an absolute must see. It is the official seat of the South African government, and it is absolutely wonderful to see the building and the beautiful large gardens. The deeper meaning to the building is that the building with its wings represents the union of a formerly divided people, and the two wings represent the two languages, Afrikaans and English, and the inner court symbolizes the Union of South Africa.
- Pretoria Botanical Garden. Visit the absolute gorgeous botanical garden of Pretoria and find yourself enjoying the amazing nature. You can relax in all peace and quiet and take a nice walk between the flowers and listen to the birds.
- Pretoria Zoo. The National Zoological Garden, better known as the Pretoria Zoo, is the largest zoo in South Africa, and is seen as one of the top zoos in the world. At the moment there are 3117 animals in the zoo, furthermore a reptile park and the largest inland marine aquarium in the country can be found in the zoo. When in Pretoria the zoo is an absolute must see.
- Voortrekker Monument. This famous landmark represents the Great Trek, the great Voortrekkers or pioneers, who left the Cape during 1835-1854 and went inlands. Often this monument is thought of to be an apartheid monument, but it does not matter which way you see it, it is definitely worth a visit.
- Tswaing Nature Reserve. The beautiful Tswaing Nature reserve is not only home to plants, animals and bird, but also to the 220.000 year old crater of a huge meteorite. It is estimated that the meteorite with the size of an average house would not need more than 10 seconds to hit the ground after entering the earth’s atmosphere. The energy that was released with this is thought to be equal to 100 atom bombs used to bomb Hiroshima, and life within a 35km radius would have been destroyed.
- Jacaranda Trees. Pretoria is sometimes also called the Jacaranda City, this is because there are approximately 55.000 purple blossomed trees in the city. When the Jacarandas bloom it gives you an absolutely beautiful view you should not miss out on. The Jacarandas in Pretoria bloom at the same time the end of the year exams at the University of Pretoria take place, and the legend says that if a flower from the Jacaranda tree drops on your head you will pass your exams.