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South Africa is an exciting place to visit. Cape Town, with its vibrant nightlife, stylish young people and beautiful surroundings, has become one of the most desirable destinations in the world. And the country's natural attractions are as appealing as ever: the green vineyards and rocky coast of the Cape; the arid landscape of the Karoo; the rich farmlands of the Free State and Mpumalanga; the snowcapped peaks of the uKhahlamba-Drakensberg range; and the verdant hills and wide beaches of KwaZulu-Natal.

The country also has about 20 national parks and several hundred game and nature reserves, along with some of the finest safari lodges on the continent. Your surroundings can be as wild or as genteel as you want—or both.

Progress as a nation has been uneven, however, and huge inequities remain between rich and poor. Still, there has been much reconciliation among the people of South Africa—and, on the whole, a surprising lack of animosity between the many ethnicities and cultures.

Emblematic of South Africa's modern transformation from pariah nation to democratic statehood is Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela spent almost 20 years as a political prisoner, quarrying lime with pick and shovel, prior to his release and eventual emergence as the country's first democratically elected president. Now inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, Robben Island is one of South Africa's most popular tourist attractions, and its transformation from dreaded prison to postapartheid icon typifies an astonishing process accompanied by painful setbacks as well as exhilarating victories.

History

For centuries, South Africa's history was plagued by racial conflicts. Dutch settlers in Cape Town established control over the southern tip of South Africa about 300 years ago by driving out or enslaving the local Khoikhoi (also known as Hottentots) and San (Bushmen) people. The Dutch settlers continued to enlarge their territory in the 18th century, leading to clashes with the Xhosa of the present-day Eastern Cape. More complications were added when the British Empire was given control of the Cape Colony by the Congress of Vienna of 1814-15.

The British abolished the slave labor on which the Dutch farmers (Boers—literally farmers) had long depended. As a result, the Boers migrated northward in what is called the Great Trek, coming into contact with the Zulu nation, which was resident on the eastern coastal belt and escarpment area. A series of wars broke out, ending in the defeat of the Zulus at Blood River. In 1878, the British also fought the Zulus and defeated them the following year.

By the late 19th century, the country we now know as South Africa consisted of four main political entities: the British colonies of the Cape and Natal, and the Boer Republics of the Free State and Transvaal. The discovery of diamonds and gold in the Boer Republics was the catalyst for the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902, which ended in the defeat of the Afrikaners of the Boer Republic. Eight years later, the Cape, Natal, Transvaal and Orange Free State were merged into the self-governing Union of South Africa.

From the outset, the Union of South Africa granted minimal rights to nonwhite citizens, who were, among other things, excluded from the vote and had limited rights of land ownership. In 1948, the all-white electorate voted in the Afrikaner-dominated National Party, which swiftly set about entrenching its policy of apartheid (literally "the state of being apart" in Afrikaans) through a series of repressive legislations further restricting the rights of nonwhites.

This policy of institutionalized racism led to the formation of several organizations dedicated to ending apartheid, including the African National Congress (ANC). In the 1960s, most such organizations were banned by the government, and antiapartheid leaders such as Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo and Robert Sobukwe were jailed or forced into exile.

Continued violence, diplomatic isolation and economic boycotts forced the National Party to make some concessions in the 1980s, but the apartheid laws were not fully repealed until 1994, when South Africans of all races voted ANC leader Nelson Mandela into power in the country's first democratic elections. First under Mandela, then under his successor, Thabo Mbeki, South Africa made great strides forward during its early period of democratic rule.

Former deputy president Jacob Zuma took over the reins in 2009 following Mbeki's resignation, and in 2018 Zuma was succeeded by Cyril Ramaphosa.

It is more than three decades since Mandela's release from prison, and—although a vast disparity in wealth along broad racial lines remains an issue, as does the high rate of violent crime and widespread incidence of HIV infection and AIDS—the country's economy is widely regarded as being one of the most evolved on the African continent.

Snapshot

Among the foremost attractions of South Africa are game reserves, indigenous cultures, heritage sites, uncrowded beaches, surfing, wilderness trails, beautiful mountain scenery, shopping, gold and diamond mines, and a sunny climate year-round.

We think South Africa is a country with something for everyone.

Potpourri

South African English contains several unexpected idioms. For example, when South Africans say they will do something "just now," it means they will do it later. "Now now" means right away.

South Africans tend to affectionately abbreviate the names of their cities. As such, Johannesburg is known locally as Jozi, Durban as Durbs, Port Elizabeth as P.E., Pietermaritzburg as 'maritzburg and Jeffrey's Bay as J Bay. Cape Town is warmly referred to as the country's Mother City.

South Africa actually has three distinct capitals: Pretoria is the administrative and executive capital, Cape Town is the legislative capital and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital. Larger and wealthier than all three official capitals, Johannesburg is rightfully regarded as the country's unofficial economic capital.

Mohandas K. Gandhi (later to become Mahatma Gandhi) once practiced law in Durban. In 1893, he was evicted from a "whites only" train carriage at Pietermaritzburg railway station, an incident that helped launch his career in politics.

The independent and mountainous nation of Lesotho is completely within the borders of South Africa, and the Kingdom of Swaziland is surrounded by it on three sides (it shares its eastern border with Mozambique).

Confined to the Western Cape, the Cape floral kingdom is by far the smallest of the world's six floral kingdoms. It is dominated by a heath-like cover known as fynbos (literally fine bush) and is famed for its rich variety of proteas and other flowering plants.

Kruger National Park is breaking boundaries, literally, with the establishment of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park. When complete, the reserve will span three countries, five national parks and two communal land areas, with a total surface area of 13,514 sq mi/35,000 sq km. More than 500 birds, 157 mammal species and 200 species of plants will populate this giant park.

South Africa's flag is the only flag in the world that has six colors with no emblems or insignia; and the national anthem is the only one with five languages.